A long-time business partner and friend of Donald Trump conspired with the United Arab Emirates to draw up a “wish list” of US foreign policies when he was elected president, according to American prosecutors.
An indictment unveiled against Thomas Barrack, 74, a wealthy property investor and chairman of Trump’s inaugural committee, claims to reveal the extent of efforts made by the UAE, an oil-rich Gulf nation, to get close to the president-to-be during and after his campaign. Barrack was arrested on Tuesday in Southern California and ordered to be detained until a hearing next Monday.
The alleged back channels to Trump, of which Barrack was part, avoided the formal institutions of the State Department and embassies. Then when the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain announced