Washington 14 Feb (ANA) - US National Security Advisor Michael Flynn has resigned over controversy surrounding his ties with Russia. The military veteran stepped down late on Monday night less than a month into President Donald Trump's administration amid mounting questions over his future and his close links with the Kremlin.

His stunning announcement, first reported by CNN, came just hours after sources close to the government revealed that the Justice Department had warned the new administration that his links with the Kremlin had put him in a compromising position and left him open to blackmail.

 

Flynn made numerous phone calls to the Russian Ambassador to the US before Trump took office, and later hinted he may have gone against diplomatic protocol by discussing the rollback of sanctions. 

 

Vice President Mike Pence vouched for Flynn, without knowing the full details of the calls, and gave him his full support. Flynn has now issued a grovelling apology to Pence. 

 

Retired general Keith Kellogg will take over as acting National Security Advisor. 

 

Former CIA Director David Petraeus and US Navy Admiral Michelle Howard are among the names being touted as a replacement.

 

TIMELINE OF FLYNN'S RUSSIA TROUBLES 

 

December 29: Obama announces sanctions against Russia over alleged hacks targeting election. Flynn spoke with Russian ambassador Kislyak repeatedly the same day, it was later reported.

 

December 30: Russian President Vladimir Putin says he will not respond to the sanctions, surprising many U.S. officials. Trump praises Putin's decision as 'very smart.'

 

January 13: Trump spokesman Sean Spicer says Flynn had called Kislyak merely to set up a phone call between Trump and Putin

 

January 15: Vice President-elect Mike Pence says in an interview with CBS that Flynn had not discussed santions in the call with Kislyak

 

January 20: Trump inaugurated president

 

January 23: Spicer, now White House spokesman, said Flynn had told him the call to Kislyak covered four topics: a plane crash that killed a Russian military choir; Christmas greetings; Russian-led talks over the Syrian civil war; and logistics for a call between Putin and Trump

 

January 20-30 (exact date unclear): Acting Attorney General Sally Yates briefs Trump officials that intercepted communications indicated Flynn had discussed sanctions with Kislyak in ways she believed were 'highly significant' and 'potentially illegal'

 

January 30: Trump fires Yates for refusing to defend executive immigration order in court

 

February 8: Flynn denies in interviews that he discussed sanctions in the calls with Kislyak

 

February 9: Flynn backpedals, saying through a spokesperson that he 'couldn't be certain' sanctions weren't discussed

 

February 13: Report breaks of Justice Department concerns about blackmail, and Flynn resigns hours later

 

In his resignation letter, Flynn wrote: 'I inadvertently briefed the Vice President Elect and others with incomplete information regarding my phone calls with the Russian Ambassador. I have sincerely apologized to the President and the Vice President, and they have accepted my apology.' 

 

Democrats in the House of Representatives requested a classified briefing within hours of the abrupt resignation announcement.

 

Reps. John Conyers Jr (D-Mich.) and Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), respectively the ranking members of the Judiciary and Oversight committees said in a statement: 'We were shocked and dismayed to learn this evening of reports that three weeks ago, U.S. law enforcement officials warned the White House Counsel that General Flynn had provided false information to the public about his communications with the Russian government.

 

'The reality is General Flynn was unfit to be the National Security Advisor, and should have been dismissed three weeks ago.' 

 

'We need to know who else within the White House is a current and ongoing risk to our national security,' the statement reported in The Hill said.

 

The Justice Department weeks ago warned the Trump administration about Flynn's contacts with Russia, according to a report earlier Monday. 

 

Government officials supposedly informed the White House because they were concerned Flynn could be vulnerable to blackmail by the Kremlin. 

 

Former acting attorney general Sally Yates told the new administration last month she was concerned over potential blackmail after Flynn denied that he had discussed sanctions in calls with the Russian ambassador to the United States, the Washington Post reported just hours before the resignation.

 

Intelligence intercepts of those calls indicate that they did touch on sanctions in ways Yates believed were 'highly significant' and 'potentially illegal', leaving the Kremlin with potential leverage over Flynn, the Post reported.

 

Flynn, a former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, spoke to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak more than once before Trump took office, sparking concerns that the two were discussing US policy toward Russia.

 

One call took place on the same day that President Obama applied sanctions against Moscow for their alleged interference in the presidential election. 

 

A Trump administration official says the White House was aware of the warning, but it's unclear whether Trump himself was briefed on the matter.

 

FLYNN'S RESIGNATION LETTER 

In the course of my duties as the incoming National Security Advisor, I held numerous phone calls with foreign counterparts, ministers, and ambassadors. These calls were to facilitate a smooth transition and begin to build the necessary relationships between the President, his advisors and foreign leaders. Such calls are standard practice in any transition of this magnitude.

 

Unfortunately, because of the fast pace of events, I inadvertently briefed the Vice President Elect and others with incomplete information regarding my phone calls with the Russian Ambassador. I have sincerely apologized to the President and the Vice President, and they have accepted my apology.

 

Throughout my over thirty three years of honorable military service, and my tenure as the National Security Advisor, I have always performed my duties with the utmost of integrity and honesty to those I have served, to include the President of the United States.

 

I am tendering my resignation, honored to have served our nation and the American people in such a distinguished way.

 

I am also extremely honored to have served President Trump, who in just three weeks, has reoriented American foreign policy in fundamental ways to restore America's leadership position in the world.

 

As I step away once again from serving my nation in this current capacity, I wish to thank President Trump for his personal loyalty, the friendship of those who I worked with throughout the hard fought campaign, the challenging period of transition, and during the early days of his presidency.

 

I know with the strong leadership of President Donald J. Trump and Vice President Mike Pence and the superb team they are assembling, this team will go down in history as one of the greatest presidencies in U.S. history, and I firmly believe the American people will be well served as they all work together to help Make America Great Again.(ANA) 

FA/ANA/14 February 2017-----