kremlin
© Sputnik / Natalia Seliverstova
Yes, Michael Cohen had really got in touch with Kremlin officials seeking help with building Trump Tower, the secretary to the Russian President has revealed - reiterating what he already told none other than CNN over a year ago.

"Indeed, there were requests from [Michael] Cohen, where he said that the company was seeking to erect a building in Moscow and struggles to establish the business contacts it needed. They asked to organize a meeting with the then-head of the President's administration - [Sergey] Ivanov, or with me," Peskov told reporters at the sidelines of the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Cohen pleaded guilty on Thursday to making false statements to Congress, related to a 2016 plan by then-candidate Trump to build a Trump Tower property in Moscow. The plan was eventually shelved, but Cohen initially said it had been axed several months before it actually was.

The plea does not implicate Trump in any crime, nor does it reveal any collusion with Russia to rig the 2016 election. Yet the mainstream media and the anti-Trump #Resistance greeted the news with glee, predicting it would become the "end of Trump."

Confronted by over-ecstatic journalists, Peskov patiently reiterated what he already told CNN in August 2017, and this time even read that notorious email that was sent to the address for public requests listed on Kremlin's official website.
Dear Mr. Peskov,

Over the past few months, I've been working with a company based in Russia, regarding the development of the Trump Tower Moscow project in Moscow city. Without getting into specifics, the communication between our two [parties] stalled. As this project is too important, I'm hereby requesting your assistance. I respectably request someone, preferably you, to contact me, so I might discuss the specifics as well as arranging meetings with the appropriate individuals.
The Kremlin receives "dozens of requests" from businessmen and citizens every day, and many of them are out the administration's competence, as was Cohen's request. The plea was left unanswered, but an administration official contacted Cohen's team, wondering if they were aware the Kremlin has better things to do.

"They were told that the Presidential administration was not into construction although, if they were eager to invest, they were welcome to the Economic forum in St. Petersburg," Peskov said.


Comment: In other words, they were politely rebuffed. After this initial offer, Cohen (via Felix Sater) actually planned initially on making the trip. Yet here's how it apparently got spun by Sater:
The day after this conversation (i.e., May 5), Sater informed Cohen that Putin's press secretary was extending an invitation for Cohen to be his personal guest at "the St. Petersburg Forum which is Russia's Davos," from June 16 to 19. There, Cohen would meet with one or both of Putin and Medvedev. Mueller's criminal information relates that this anticipated meeting would not be limited in scope to the Moscow project: "anything you want to discuss including dates and subjects are on the table."
Keep in mind this about Sater:
Cohen had been referred to Putin's press secretary by his friend, Felix Sater, who is an interesting character, to say the least. Sater is a former business associate of Trump's, in addition to being a convicted racketeer and former (we assume it's former) government informant.



The solicitants, however, had vanished and never showed up at that forum. So, could the big news be that Trump never really wanted that Tower in Moscow? And as far as Cohen's confessions are concerned, Peskov believes they should rather be commented on by a priest.