A Timeline of Known Facts...
Pre-Election
2016
July
Meeting with Russian Officials
On July 7 or 8, 2016, Carter Page, a specialist in oil and gas production in Russia and one of Trump's foreign policy advisors, meets Igor Sechin in Moscow. Sechin, who was Deputy Prime Minister of Russia and is a close ally of Putin, is also the Executive Chairman of Rosneft, Russia’s largest oil and gas company.
Sechin proposed transfer of 19% interest in Rosneft to Trump in return for Trump lifting Obama’s 2014 sanctions (Christopher Steele Dossier p. 30 dated 10/18/16). Page admitted publicly that he was in Moscow on July 7 and 8, 2016 (reported on CNN 11/3/17). One of the sanctioned entities believed to be seriously affected by Obama’s 2014 sanctions is Rosneft.
Page sought and received permission from Trump’s Co-Campaign Chairman to make his July 2016 trip to Russia. And while he denies meeting Sechin, he admits he saw a Russian government official and a Rosneft executive during his July 2016 trip to Russia.
Page has also admitted that sanctions “may” have been discussed. Page invoked his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination when he testified before House Intelligence Committee about his meeting in Moscow.
Connection to Manafort
On May 19th 2016 Trump named Paul Manafort as his campaign manager. Manafort served in that capacity until August 19th 2016. Manafort has a long history of working on behalf of Ukrainians allied with Russia. Manafort has been indicted for multiple crimes including tax evasion, money laundering and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Russian Accommodations
On July 18th, 2016, Trump allies at Republican National Convention amended Republican Platform in a way that accommodated Russia (by weakening provision that called for arming anti-Russian forces in Ukraine). Was this move a signal?
Cohen's Cleanup
On August 19th, 2016, Manafort is fired as Trump’s campaign manager. Michael Cohen, Trump’s personal lawyer (who paid $130,000 to Stormy Daniels), takes over Page’s Russian activities with the added task of cleaning up mess created by Manafort’s activities in Ukraine. Steele’s Dossier says Cohen met with Russians in Europe; Cohen denies that he did. McClatchy News reports (dated April 14, 2018) state that Mueller has evidence Cohen did go to Prague in late August or early September 2016.
October
Steele Dossier Delivered
October 15th, 2016, the Steele dossier was delivered to FBI. It describes the Rosneft deal. Steele had met with FBI twice before; once in London (on July 5th, 2016) and later in Rome (in early October 2016).
November
Trump Wins 2016 Presidential Election
December
Meeting with Russian Ambassador
On December 1, 2016, Jared Kushner (Trump’s son-in law and advisor) and Michael Flynn (Trump’s campaign national security advisor) met with Sergey Kislyak, Russian Ambassador to the United States, to discuss setting up secret back-channel between Trump and Putin using Russian embassy communications facilities; not U.S. facilities at White House, State Department or the CIA.
Transfer of Interest in Rosneft
December 7th, 2016 Rosneft announced a transfer of 19.5% interest in the company. That transferee is a Limited Liability Company formed in Cayman Islands. The interest transferred was owned by the Russian government. The new beneficial owner of the 19.5% interest in Rosneft remains a secret today.
Meeting with Qatari Investment Authority
On December 12, 2016, Cohen and Flynn met with Ahmed Al-Rumaihi at Trump Tower. An online picture of meeting participants was provided by Michael Avenatti. Al-Rumaihi is CEO of Qatari Investment Authority. And while Qatar’s role in the Rosneft scheme is not clear, it could be as escrow agent for the 19% interest in Rosneft.
Payment to Hackers
On December 13th 2016, the last report by Steele (p.35) alleges hackers who helped Trump win were paid by Cohen and by Russians. Cohen reportedly raised more than $750,000 in cash in Fall of 2016; $130,000 was used to pay Stormy Daniels; the disposition of the remaining $620,000 remains unknown.
Election Interference Sanctions
On December 29, 2016, then President Obama imposed additional sanctions on Russia for election interference. These election related sanctions remain in place today.
Flynn Discusses Lifting 2014 Russian Sanctions
Later on December 29th, 2016 Flynn discussed Trump’s lifting of Obama’s 2014 sanctions with Kislyak during six telephone calls (Sally Yates, acting Attorney General of the United States, was listening and Flynn has been indicted and convicted of having lied to FBI about the calls).
2017
January
Meeting in the Seychelles
On January 11th 2017, Erik Prince (CEO of Blackwater, Trump supporter and brother of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos), Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed of the UAE, George Nader (an American businessman now co-operating with Mueller investigation), and Kirill Dmitriev (a Russian with ties to Putin), meet in Seycelles. Prince lies to Congress about reason for the meeting. Prince says unplanned; Nader says that he, Nader, planned the meeting and that the subject of the meeting was setting up a back channel between Trump and Russians.
Meeting at Lowes Regency Hotel
On January 27th, 2017, Michael Cohen, Felix Sater (convicted felon) and Andri Artemenko (a Ukrainian legislator tied to Manafort) meet at Lowes Regency Hotel in New York to discuss a plan, purportedly provided by Russia, for lifting of Obama’s sanctions. Cohen delivers the plan to Flynn in White House. Cohen denies delivering plan to Flynn. (5/15/18 – Artemenko was scheduled to appear before Grand Jury).
July
House Passes Russian Sanctions
On July 25th, 2017, the House of Representatives passed Russian sanctions 419-3 and the Senate passed Russian sanctions 98-2. Trump refused to implement any of the sanctions adopted by Congress for eight months claiming there was no need to implement those sanctions. When he did announce sanctions, none were designed to adversely affect Putin.
Congress allocated $120 billion to the State Department to protect U.S. elections from foreign interference in 2018. Not a single dollar has been spent by Trump administration.
2018
April
Trump Backs Out of More Russian Sanctions
On April 15th 2018, Nikki Haley, U.S. Ambassador to U.N., announced harsher sanctions on Russia for its support of Syria in connection with use of chemical weapons. The following day Trump announced there will be no new sanctions. No reason given.
June
Trump Wants Russia Back in G-7
On June 8th, 2018, Trump announced his support for Russia’s return to membership in G-7. No reason given. There has been no change in the behavior which caused Russia’s expulsion.
July
12 Russian Agents Indicted in Mueller Investigation
A dozen Russian military intelligence officers were indicted on July 13th, 2018 on charges they hacked Democrats’ computers, stole their data and published those files to disrupt the 2016 presidential election. This indictment against members of the GRU, a Russian military agency, accused 12 named officers of a sophisticated, sustained effort to hack the computer networks of Democratic organizations and the Hillary Clinton campaign.
Trump Meets Putin in Helsinki
On July 16, 2018, Trump meets Putin in Helsinki. No other American officials were allowed in the meeting. Not even Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Was this so Trump could try to re-negotiate his bribe agreement with Putin? Trump has tried to lift sanctions but failed. He apparently failed to make a new deal in Helsinki and intends to try again.
Trump Announces Plans for Putin to Visit US
On July 19, 2018, Trump announced plans to invite President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia to visit Washington in the fall, the White House -- an invitation that stunned the nation’s top intelligence official, Senator Dan Coats, who said he was still groping for details of what the two leaders had discussed in their encounter in Helsinki, Finland.
