William Barr has announced he will release Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russian interference in the 2016 election by mid-April — and possibly even sooner.

The attorney general — appointed by Donald Trump earlier this year — previously released a four-page summary of the special counsel’s findings in a letter to congressional committees still probing the president’s financial dealings and Russian connections.

It was not immediately clear whether the full report would be released or if certain components would face major redactions from the Justice Department or White House.

However, in his statement announcing the imminent release of the special counsel’s report, Mr Barr said the Department of Justice was identifying and redacting “information that would unduly infringe on the personal privacy and reputational interests of peripheral third parties."

Mr Barr also said he would not be providing the report to the White House prior to its release. He said the Justice Department will also redact any relevant information pertaining to ongoing investigations, so as not to jeopardise those probes.

“As we have discussed, I share your desire to ensure that Congress and the public have the opportunity to read the Special Counsel’s report,” Mr Barr wrote in his letter to the chairman of both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees. “We are preparing the report for release, making the redactions that are required.”

Mueller investigation: The key figures Show all 12 1 /12 Mueller investigation: The key figures Mueller investigation: The key figures Robert Mueller is the special counsel overseeing the investigation into Russia's meddling in the 2016 election, and potential obstruction of justice by the president. Mr Mueller has a pristine reputation in Washington, where he was previously in charge of the FBI. Throughout his investigation, he and his team have been notoriously tight lipped about what they know and where their investigation has led. REUTERS Mueller investigation: The key figures Former FBI director James Comey was the catalyst that led to the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller. Mr Comey was fired by the president after Mr Trump reportedly asked him to drop his own Russia investigation. Mr Trump has long maintained that the investigation is a "witch hunt". AFP/Getty Images Mueller investigation: The key figures Deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein had authority over the special counsel investigation for much of the two years it has been active. Mr Rosenstein found himself with that responsibility after then-attorney general Jeff Sessions recused himself from that oversight. AP Mueller investigation: The key figures Attorney general Jeff Sessions's decision to recuse himself from oversight of the special counsel investigation may have cost him his job in the end. Mr Sessions resigned last year, after weathering a contentious relationship with Donald Trump who vocally criticised his attorney general for taking a step back. Mr Sessions recused himself from the oversight citing longstanding Justice Department rules to not be involved in investigations overseeing campaigns that officials were apart of. AP Mueller investigation: The key figures Attorney General William Barr is currently responsible for oversight of the special counsel investigation. Mr Barr's office will be the first to receive the Mueller report when it is finished. His office will then determine what portion or version of that report should be delivered to Congress, and also made public. EPA Mueller investigation: The key figures Michal Cohn is the president's former personal lawyer, who has been helping the special counsel investigation as a part of a plea deal over financial crimes, and campaign finance crimes, he has pleaded guilty to. Among those crimes, Cohen admitted to facilitating $130,000 in hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 campaign. Cohen has said he did so at the direction of Mr Trump. Cohen has also admitted that he maintained contacts with Russian officials about a potential Trump real estate project in Moscow for months longer than Mr Trump and others admitted. The talks continued well into 2016 during the campaign, he has said. AP Mueller investigation: The key figures Stormy Daniels has alleged that she had an affair with Donald Trump in 2006, soon after Melania Trump gave birth to Baron Trump. The accusation is of particular importance as a result of the $130,000 hush money payment she received to keep quiet about the affair during the 2016 campaign. AP Mueller investigation: The key figures Paul Manafort was Donald Trump's former campaign chairman. Manafort was charged alongside Rick Gates for a slew of financial crimes, and was convicted on several counts in a Virginia court. He then pleaded guilty to separate charges filed in a Washington court. Manafort has been sentenced to just 7.5 years in prison for his crimes — in spite of recommendations from the special counsel's office for a much harsher sentence. AP Mueller investigation: The key figures George Papadopoulos was one of the first individuals associated with the Trump campaign to be charged by the Mueller probe. He ultimately received a 14 day prison sentence for lying to investigators about contacts he had with Russian officials. AP Mueller investigation: The key figures Roger Stone is a well known political fixer and operative, who has made a name for himself for some dirty tactics. He has been charged by the Mueller probe earlier this year, and he has been said to have had prior knowledge that WikiLeaks planned on publishing stolen emails from the Hillary Clinton campaign in 2016. Getty Images Mueller investigation: The key figures Rick Gates was charged alongside former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort for a range of crimes. Gates, who worked alongside Manafort for a pro-Russia Ukrainian political party. The two were charged with conspiracy and financial crimes. Gates pleaded guilty. AP Mueller investigation: The key figures Former national security adviser Michael Flynn was one of the first casualties of the Russia scandal, and was forced out of his position in the White House weeks after Donald Trump took office. Flynn pleaded guilty in 2017 to "willfully" making fraudulent statements about contacts he had with Russian officials including former Russian ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. Flynn then lied to Vice President Mike Pence about that contact. REUTERS

“The Special Counsel is assisting us in this process,” the attorney general added. “Our progress is such that I anticipate we will be in a position to release the report by mid-April, if not sooner.”

Mr Barr also denounced media reports calling his four-page letter to lawmakers a “summary,” though he notes what he sent was — in his words — “a summary of its ‘principal conclusions’ — that is, its bottom line.”

“Everyone will soon be able to read it on their own,” he continued. “I do not believe it would be in the public’s interest for me to attempt to summarise the full report or to release it in serial or piecemeal fashion.”

Mr Barr's summary of the report said it didn’t find a criminal conspiracy between Russia and Mr Trump’s campaign to swing the 2016 presidential election.

The special counsel reached no conclusion about whether Mr Trump sought to obstruct the investigation. But Mr Barr said he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein determined there was insufficient evidence to conclude the president obstructed justice.

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The attorney general also offered multiple dates he was available to testify before Congress about the report.