Who is Trump ex-adviser George Papadopoulos?

Donald Trump’s former foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos has admitted making false statements to the FBI about individuals linked to the Russian government, according to court records unsealed yesterday detailing his guilty plea.

CNN says the revelation provides the “clearest connection” yet between the campaign and Russia’s efforts to meddle in the 2016 presidential election. The documents also show that Papadopoulos was living in London when he was hired as Trump’s foreign policy adviser, and that he reported back to Trump campaign officials about attempts to broker meetings between the campaign and the Russian government, The Washington Post reports.

But who is George Papadopoulos? What is his London connection? And could his guilty plea damage Trump?

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What is Papadopoulos’s connection with London?

Papadopoulos is described as a thirtysomething energy lawyer-turned-presidential adviser. He graduated from DePaul University in Chicago in 2009, before moving to the UK to study for a master’s degree in security studies the University College London, according to The Washington Post. He was a foreign policy adviser to then-Republican presidential primary candidate Ben Carson before joining the Trump campaign.

And what is his connection to Trump and Russia?

Days after Papadopoulos was hired by the Trump team, he reportedly sent an email to campaign officials with the subject line, “Meeting with Russian leadership - including Putin”, and offered to attempt to organise “a meeting between us and the Russian leadership to discuss US-Russia ties under President Trump”, The Washington Post says.

Court documents indicate that in 2016, Papadopoulos had a meeting with a professor with ties to Russia who promised to reveal “dirt” on Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. One message sent to Trump campaign officials had the subject line: “Request from Russia to meet Mr Trump”. Papadopoulos’s efforts to arrange a meeting were dismissed by, among others, Trump’s ex-campaign manager Paul Manafort, who has also been indicted.

Why has Papadopoulos pleaded guilty?

“While Papadopoulos’s interactions on behalf of the campaign on their face don’t seem to have broken any laws,” says the National Public Radio website, “it was the fact that he allegedly lied about them to the FBI that got him into trouble.”

Is Papadopoulas a danger to Trump?

Vanity Fair says Papadopolous may simply have been a low-level employee in the election campaign - but there isn’t enough detail yet to be certain.

“What the Trump campaign would like us to believe,” says the magazine’s T.A. Frank, “is that Papadopoulos was a low-level wannabe jockeying for importance in the campaign, hoping to play a central role in US-Russia rapprochement and eager to take credit for it.”