Report: Mexico tried to manipulate Jared Kushner

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner listens as President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with lawmakers about trade policy in the Cabinet Room at the White House last week. Photo: Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post via Getty Images

The Mexican government has held internal talks on how to “manipulate” Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump, by taking advantage of his complex web of financial interests and lack of experience in foreign policy, The Washington Post reported.

The governments of Israel, China and the United Arab Emirates have also debated internally in their respective capitals about how to take advantage of Trump’s son-in-law and adviser to boost their interests, according to the Post.

Those countries saw a vulnerability in Kushner due to “his complex business agreements, financial difficulties and lack of experience in foreign policy,” the newspaper said, citing officials and former U.S. officials who have accessed intelligence reports on the subject.

For that reason, Kushner’s contacts with certain foreign officials have generated concern in the White House and are one of the reasons why he has not been able to obtain a permanent permit to access confidential information, according to the sources.

Until last week, Kushner had access to “top secret” information from the U.S. government, thanks to a temporary permit granted by the White House.

Last Friday, the White House downgraded to a lower level, considered “secret,” the kind of classified information that Kushner can access, due to delays in his background investigation, according to several media reports.

Some White House officials are concerned that Kushner has been “naive” in his contacts with foreign officials, some of whom insisted on speaking directly with Kushner alone and not with more experienced staff, a former official told the Post.

Trump’s son-in-law has maintained a close relationship with Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray since the U.S. election campaign in 2016. Kushner usually meets with Videgaray on his frequent visits to Washington and is the main point of contact in Trump’s government for Videgaray, who maintains a much less close relationship with his counterpart, U.S. Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson.

The Washington Post did not mention Videgaray in its article, although it did mention a Mexican diplomatic source, who requested anonymity, and assured that Kushner “has maintained (a strictly professional behavior)” in his relationship with the neighboring country.

“Both sides have pursued their interests, but they have also tried to find common ground,” said the Mexican source.

According to the newspaper, the United Arab Emirates last year detected the potential of Kushner to be manipulated because his family was looking for potential investors in his real estate company.

It is not clear, however, if any of the four countries mentioned successfully managed to manipulate Kushner, the newspaper said.

Last year, Kushner maintained several contacts with foreign officials without coordinating with the National Security Council, the White House body in charge of foreign policy.

Although he now informs the Council of all his conversations, the issue has attracted the attention of the special prosecutor investigating the Russian plot, Robert Mueller, who is interested in the protocols used by Trump’s son-in-law for his contacts with foreigners, according to the Post.

With information from EFE

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