Who Is Sergey Kislyak? Russian Ambassador To US Discussed Sanctions With Trump Security Adviser Flynn: Reports

National Security Adviser Michael Flynn has had his name splashed across headlines in recent days amid allegations that he had illegal conversations with the Russian ambassador to the United States in the days leading up to the 2016 election.

But what about the man on the other end of the telephone?

Sergey Kislyak, the Russian ambassador, has been a leading official in Russian foreign service since the days of the Soviet Union.

Sixty-six-year-old Kislyak previously served as Russian ambassador to Belgium and permanent representative of Russia to NATO in Belgium, according to his embassy biography. He served on the USSR’s mission to the United Nations in New York as well as a first secretary and counselor of the embassy of the USSR to the U.S. in the 1980s. Kislyak is reportedly married with an adult daughter.

Flynn, adviser to President Donald Trump, may have spoken with Kislyak prior to the November election regarding sanctions the Obama administration was preparing to place on Russia in response to its interference in the race, according to a recent report by the Washington Post. Former president Barack Obama ultimately sanctioned four Russian individuals and five Russian organizations and ordered 35 Russian diplomats to leave the U.S. in December after he received intelligence the country may have hacked top Democratic officials in an effort to influence the election.

Though it’s unclear exactly what was said in the discussion between Flynn and Kislyak, some top officials in Washington, D.C., have called the conversation inappropriate and potentially illegal if Flynn promised relief to Russia once Trump took office. Others said that even if sanctions were discussed, it doesn’t necessarily mean any promises were made to the Kremlin.

Flynn, for his part, adamantly denied the allegations in an interview Wednesday. During a follow-up Thursday, however, Flynn’s spokesman said that “while he had no recollection of discussing sanctions, he couldn’t be certain that the topic never came up.”

Top Democrats, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, called for Flynn to be removed from his post as national security adviser in the wake of the allegations and asked for an FBI investigation into the matter. In a statement, Pelosi denounced the “mortifying coziness the Trump administration has shown with Putin.”

Trump said he planned to look into purported discussions between Flynn and Kislyak.