WASHINGTON _ There is nothing inherently wrong with an incoming presidential administration establishing "back channel" communications with a foreign power such as Russia, Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly said Sunday.
Kelly, on "Fox News Sunday," was asked about reports that President Donald Trump's son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, sought to set up secret lines of communication with Russian officials before Trump took office.
Kelly did not confirm the reports, but said the principle of establishing secretive contacts during a presidential transition "doesn't bother me" and is a legitimate means of building relationships.
"I think that any channel of communication, back or otherwise, with a country like Russia is a good thing," he said.
Kelly did not address a central element of the reports _ that Kushner discussed the possibility of using Russian communications channels from a Russia diplomatic outpost to shield from U.S. intelligence surveillance whatever discussions Trump transition officials wanted to have with Moscow.
The FBI, a special counsel and multiple congressional committees are investigating Russian interference in the U.S. presidential campaign last year and whether the Trump camp colluded in it.
In a separate interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," Kelly defended Kushner's integrity.
Calling Kushner "a great guy, a decent guy," Kelly said the president's son-in-law's "No. 1 interest, really, is the nation."
Also in the NBC interview, Kelly excoriated intelligence leaks after last week's terrorist bombing in Manchester, England. British officials, including Prime Minister Theresa May, were angered by disclosures of details of the investigation, including the dead attacker's name and detailed photos from the bomb scene that were published by the New York Times.
Several news organizations cited unidentified U.S. officials as the source of the information including the bomber's identity. The Times did not say how it obtained the photos.
Britain routinely shares intelligence with close allies like the United States with the expectation that it will be kept confidential. Kelly said that failing to keep such secrets could seriously damage intelligence-sharing arrangements with other nations.
"I believe when you leak the kind of information that seems to be routinely leaked_high, high level of classification... I think it's darn close to treason," Kelly said. It is not clear what level of classification, if any, the information about the British investigation would have had.
