Republican Demands Donald Trump Jr Be Investigated Over Russian Wedding Gift - Newsweek

Republican Senator John Curtis of Utah has requested that Donald Trump Jr. be investigated over his foreign business dealings and acceptance of gifts, including a "lavish wedding after-party" funded by a Russian oligarch.

In a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, Curtis wrote that oligarch Umar Kremlev funded Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding after-party on a private island shortly after reportedly traveling to China "as part of a delegation accompanying Vladimir Putin."

He added that there were further concerns regarding Donald Trump Jr.'s "active promotion of family-backed cryptocurrency ventures, his continued pursuit of international real estate deals involving direct meetings with foreign heads of state, and his reported investments in defense contracting."

"These reports raise legitimate questions about foreign access to members of a sitting president's family and whether such relationships can create actual or perceived expectations of favorable treatment," Curtis wrote. "They also may create expectations of a returned favor that would not be in the best interests of the American people or our allies, and could even create national security vulnerabilities."

Curtis urged the committee to launch an investigation into the use of "presidential family relationships for private financial benefit, preferential treatment, or access by domestic and foreign interests." He also urged the committee to subpoena not only Donald Trump Jr. but also Hunter Biden, the son of former President Joe Biden, to testify regarding their business dealings.

Newsweek has contacted the Trump Organization for comment by email outside regular working hours.

On Friday, President Donald Trump downplayed the issue of Kremlev paying for his eldest son's wedding after-party, saying it was "totally allowed" and that he himself had paid for other people's wedding parties. He also said he believed his son had reimbursed Kremlev for the expenses.

"As I understand it, he paid him back. He didn't want to have that, so I hear he paid him back," the president said, while speaking to press in the Oval Office.

A ProPublica investigation earlier this month first reported that Kremlev, the president of the International Boxing Association, paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses for Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding celebrations in the Bahamas. The executive vice president of the Trump Organization married Bettina Anderson in May.

ProPublica described Kremlev as a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin. As Curtis noted in his letter, Kremlev reportedly traveled to China as part of a delegation accompanying Putin in the days before the wedding.

A spokesperson for Donald Trump Jr. told the outlet, "Umar is a personal friend of Don," adding that Kremlev is "not someone he has a business relationship with." According to the spokesperson, the pair met through a mutual friend in the hunting world and bonded over their love of boxing and the outdoors.

Kremlev's press office told ProPublica that the two men "have a friendly relationship" and first met "a couple of years ago." It added that Kremlev "has never discussed political matters with any of his American friends and acquaintances."

After the story of Kremlev's payment attracted media attention, Anderson addressed the matter on Instagram, writing: "Our dear friend Umar very generously hosted two incredible nights of celebrations for us AFTER our wedding. It was an extraordinarily generous wedding gift from a friend, and something for which we were and remain incredibly grateful."

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Alfred Joyner and Shakeema Edwards.