Army Reportedly Seeks To Recoup Money From Michael Flynn For His Pay From Russia, Turkey

Mary Papenfuss
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The U.S. Army is going after retired Army Gen. Michael Flynn to recoup a portion of hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments he received from Russia and Turkey before he became Donald Trump’s national security adviser in 2017, The Washington Post reported Friday.

The Army is seeking nearly $40,000 from Flynn after he was cited by the Defense Department inspector general for failing to disclose lucrative speaking engagements and other business arrangements with foreign entities, according to the Post.

Investigators determined that Flynn received nearly $450,000 from Turkish and Russian interests in 2015, including for an appearance in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin, while failing to seek government approval beforehand, as required.

He was also paid to appear at an October 2015 conference sponsored by Kaspersky Government Security Solutions, “an entity that appears to be controlled by the Russian government,” according to a memo early last year by Sean O’Donnell, the acting Defense Department inspector general, the Post reported.

The Emoluments Clause of the Constitution prohibits retired military personnel from receiving money from foreign governments without prior authorization.

Flynn could not be reached for comment.

Flynn left the Trump administration within weeks over his connections to Russia amid the investigation into Kremlin interference into the 2016 presidential election.

He later pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his Russian connections during Trump’s campaign and transition into the White House. He was sentenced to prison, but Trump pardoned him in 2020.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

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