Michael Crowley is senior foreign affairs correspondent for Politico.



Illustrations by Erin Aulov and Janet Michaud/Politico.

What is the real story of Donald Trump and Russia? The answer is still unclear, and Democrats in Congress want to get to the bottom of it with an investigation. But there’s no doubt that a spider web of connections—some public, some private, some clear, some murky—exists between Trump, his associates and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

These charts illustrate dozens of those links, including meetings between Russian officials and members of Trump’s campaign and administration; his daughter’s ties to Putin’s friends; Trump’s 2013 visit to Moscow for the Miss Universe pageant; and his short-lived mixed martial arts venture with one of Putin’s favorite athletes. The solid lines mark established facts, while dotted ones represent speculative or unproven connections.


There’s nothing inherently damning about most of the ties illustrated below. But they do reveal the vast and mysteriously complex web behind a story that has vexed Trump’s young presidency from its start—and is certain to shake the White House for months to come.

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1. Trump and Putin, via Administration Officials



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2. Trump and Putin, via Michael Flynn



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3. Trump and Putin, via Campaign Advisers



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4. Trump and Putin, via Paul Manafort



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5. Trump and Putin, via Business Ties



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6. Trump and Putin, via Felix Sater



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7. Trump and Putin, via Trump Family Members

