Members of the nationalist American Third Position Party (A3P), whose website was defaced by Anonymous, organised Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul's meetings and campaigns, according to emails hacked by the collective.

Chairman of the British National Party (BNP) Nick Griffin also took part in meetings with Paul and other representatives of A3P.

"According to these messages, Ron Paul has regularly met with many A3P members, even engaging in conference calls with their board of directors," read a statement from Anonymous.

It also claims that Paul received financial support from other white power groups, such as the online hate forum Stormfront, founded by Don Black, a white supremacist. There is even a photograph of Paul with Black, a former Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan and a current member of the American Nazi Party. Paul allegedly refused to return donations from Black and Stormfront. Black told The New York Times that Paul's newsletter had inspired him to become a supporter.

In its statement, Anonymous said it put extra effort into hacking A3P webmaster Jamie Kelso, a key figure in organising Paul's meetings and conferences.

Anonymous Claims Neo-Nazi Links to Republican Ron Paul

Kelso, a former Scientologist and account owner of other German Nazi forums, became an active supporter of Paul in 2007. He was reportedly attracted to Paul because he believed the Republican's followers would be receptive to his white supremacist views. He described Paul as "implicitly white" and started to actively organise Paul's events.

"Let's appreciate this big (Paul) audience that's overwhelmingly white," Kelso said in an interview with the Southern Poverty Law Center. "This is our audience, this is our public. These are our people. If we can't persuade these people of the rightness of our cause, then we're finished," he said.

Excerpts from the email hacked by Anonymous show Kelso's commitment to Paul's policies.

In 2009 he wrote to a supporter: "My own opinion is that the White revolution has already begun, and that the good White folks like Quinn [a member of A3P] that fills these Ron Paul crowds and marching armies ARE the start of the revolution."

In a 2011 email from someone who goes by the name "Penn Dutch" and appears to be close to Paul, the author expressed his resentment at the way Kelso was treated at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CAPC): "Jamie, just wanted you to know that I thought it was ashame [sic] that you were treated so badly at the CPAC meeting. I intend to let Ron Paul know that you have a large following, and are well respected by many White people."

Kelso also appears to have made his team available to Paul's campaign. In an email dated 2009, he wrote to an Alexander Hamilton: "Imbar is Ron Paul #2 man in Illinois. Owns his own manufacturing company. Young guy like you, Jeff (Imbar) and I have been buddies for years. We met up with Ron Paul in Ames, Iowa in Aug. 2007."

In another email from 2010, Kelso reiterates his commitment to Paul's presidential campaign and claims that some A3P members are part of Paul's team. "A couple of my buddies are among those dozen [email sent]. 'Knucklehead' is my buddy and Sr. Mod named Imbar on WhiteNewsNow [a racist website owned by Kelso]. He's also Ron Paul's #2 man in Illinois, Chicago, where is a manufacturer. His name is Jeff".

Griffin from the British National Party was also involved in these meetings. "We'll be meeting up with Nick Griffin on Wednesday night... a few of us," Kelso wrote to a member of AP3. "I let Nick know about the CPAC going on Thurs. and Fri. at the Marriott Hotel north of the White House," he said. "Ron Paul will be there Fri. afternoon. Want to meet up with him?"

Paul's connections with racist supporters have been highlighted by the media in America. Bill White, a former member of the neo-Nazi group the National Socialist Movement, became disillusioned with Paul after a spokesman for the Republican candidate called white supremacy "a small ideology".

Following the incident, he wrote on a popular white supremacist website: "Both Congressman Paul and his aides regularly meet with members of the Stormfront set, American Renaissance, the Institute for Historic Review, and others at the Tara Thai restaurant in Arlington, Virginia, usually on Wednesdays," he said. "I have attended these dinners, seen Paul and his aides there, and been invited to his offices in Washington to discuss policy."

"Paul is a white nationalist of the Stormfront type who has always kept his racial views and his views about world Judaism quiet because of his political position," he added.

Anonymous Expose Nazi Third Position 'Bridging Tactic' with Ron Paul