White House refuses to say if Trump will take action on Russia bounty claims as administration questions their ‘veracity’

‘This was not briefed up to the president because, in fact, it was not verified,’ press secretary says

The White House is questioning the “veracity” of US intelligence reports that Russia offered bounty payments to Taliban forces to kill American military troops in Afghanistan.

“There was no consensus within the intelligence community,” press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters of the 16 US intelligence agencies. “There are some dissenting opinions within the intelligence community.”

“This was not briefed up to the president because, in fact, it was not verified,” she said, declining to say what, if anything, Donald Trump might do in retaliation to the Kremlin, if the intelligence is eventually verified.

The New York Times first reported the intelligence reports about the bounty payments, which US forces and commanders in Afghanistan learned about after being tipped off when they found large sums of money at Taliban-controlled facilities in Afghanistan.

Mr Trump tweeted over the weekend that he also believes the intelligence has yet to be verified.

“Intel just reported to me that they did not find this info credible, and therefore did not report it to me or @VP. Possibly another fabricated Russia Hoax, maybe by the Fake News @nytimesbooks, wanting to make Republicans look bad!!!” he wrote, using the wrong handle for the newspaper’s official Twitter account.

Ms McEnany said CIA director Gina Haspel, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Robert O’Brien, Mr Trump’s national security adviser, all have assured her the president was not briefed on the alleged bounty payments.

The US president has been accused of being too soft on Russia since taking office, with even some senior congressional Democrats accusing him of being possibly compromised by Moscow.

Mr Trump, however, often notes his administration has issued strict sanctions on Russia while also saying he still wants closer relations with Vladimir Putin, the Russian president. The White House press secretary gave reporters no indication that the president, since the New York Times report was published, has been briefed on the alleged bounty scheme.

“The president is briefed on verified intelligence,” she said even as intelligence officials have begun briefing some US lawmakers. A group was being briefed at the White House as Ms McEnany spoke to reporters.

But the very nature of intelligence is it is imperfect. Under previous administrations, unverified information was briefed to presidents routinely to allow them to have a full view of conflicts and what adversaries are up to.