Topline
Michael Flynn, the former national security adviser who resigned and pleaded guilty for misleading authorities over his ties to the Russian government—before later pardoned by former President Donald Trump—attacked the Biden Administration Monday for its support of Ukraine in an op-ed article on a right-wing site criticized for spreading misinformation, appearing to parrot the views of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Former White House National Security Advisor Michael Flynn leaves the Prettyman Federal Courthouse … [+]
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Key Facts
Flynn alleged in his column appearing in Western Journal that the White House has “sold an illusion” that the potential Russian invasion of Ukraine is not justified, reasoning that an increased NATO presence in Eastern Europe will cause an “existential threat” to Russia.
The op-ed comes the same day that the Pentagon said the U.S. has ordered up to 8,500 troops to be on “heightened preparedness” for a potential deployment to NATO countries in response to increased Russian forces at the Ukraine border.
Permanently banned from Twitter last January for spreading the QAnon conspiracy theory, Flynn has relied on right-wing outlets as a platform and writes a recurring column on Western Journal, a far-right website described by the New York Times as a “disinformation mill” that stokes dangerous conspiracy theories.
According to Flynn, NATO’s bolstering of resources and reinforcements in countries close to Ukraine would be the “principal cause of a devastating war,” echoing what Putin has suggested, though the NATO measures are in response to Russia’s military buildup at the border.
Flynn likened the White House’s messaging about Ukraine to the “hoax about Russia having elected President Donald Trump in 2016.”
All U.S. intelligence evidence, including a 2020 report from the bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee from U.S. intelligence officials, points to Russia interfering in the 2016 presidential election to assist a Trump victory, though Robert Mueller, the special counsel appointed to investigate the matter, did not find proof the Trump campaign actively colluded with Russia.
Key Background
Flynn, a former lieutenant general in the U.S. Army, resigned from his post as national security advisor in 2017 for lying to the FBI about his relationship with the Russian ambassador, later pleading guilty to related charges before receiving a pardon from Trump in 2020. In December 2016, Flynn encouraged Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak on phone calls to not respond to sanctions imposed by then-President Barack Obama over alleged Russian interference in the U.S. election, according to declassified documents from the investigation, and lied to FBI investigators in January 2017 about the nature of his communication with Kislyak. Flynn was subpoenaed by the House committee investigating the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol in November for his role in the events leading up to the attack, and a federal judge blocked Flynn’s request in December to prevent the panel from obtaining Flynn’s phone records. Western Journal has been heavily criticized as a leading home for right-wing disinformation, and Flynn appears on Western Journal’s YouTube channel and promotes his op-eds on his own website.
Tangent
U.S. intelligence found evidence of Russia planning a military offensive into Ukraine last month, but the looming threat of a Russian invasion seems to be increasingly real, as the U.S. State Department ordered American diplomats’ families to leave Ukraine on Sunday. President Joe Biden and Putin held a virtual meeting where Biden warned Putin of “strong economic and other measures” that the U.S. would enact on Russia should an invasion occur. The U.S. is planning to soon increase its troop presence in NATO countries near Ukraine, according to multiple outlets.
Further Reading
Families Of U.S. Diplomats Ordered To Leave Ukraine As Fears Of Russian Invasion Mount (Forbes)
