WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, has been seeking immunity from prosecution in return for testifying to the House and Senate intelligence committees, a congressional official confirmed Thursday.
The negotiations were first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
In a statement, Flynn's lawyer, Robert Kelner, said "Gen. Flynn certainly had a story to tell and he very much wants to tell it, should the circumstances permit."
"No reasonable person, who has the benefit of advice from counsel, would submit to questioning in such a highly politicized, witch-hunt environment without assurances from unfair prosecution."
Trump fired Flynn three weeks into the new administration after news reports disclosed that he had lied to White House colleagues, including Vice President Mike Pence, about his contacts with Sergey Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to the U.S.
In December, Flynn had telephone conversations with Kislyak in which he discussed sanctions that the Obama administration had recently imposed on Russia to punish Moscow for its interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Flynn denied to Pence and other officials that he had discussed the sanctions with Kislyak.
So far, the committees, which are investigating Russian interference and whether anyone close to Trump colluded with Moscow, have not taken Flynn up on his offer, the Journal reported.
