The criminal investigation into alleged links between the Trump presidential election campaign and Russia appears to have moved deeper into the White House.

Donald Trump's son-in-law and senior aide Jared Kushner has been named in US media as the "very senior" member of the President's transition team who directed former national security adviser Michael Flynn to reach out to Russia.

This was in an attempt to delay or defeat a UN resolution on Israeli settlements before Mr Trump took office, according to reports.

The allegation comes as Mr Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI over his conversations last December with the Russian ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak.

As part of the plea agreement, retired three-star general Mr Flynn has agreed to co-operate with an investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller.


Image: Mr Flynn has said members of the president's inner circle were intimately involved with - and at times directing - his contacts

Mr Mueller and a team of prosecutors are looking into accusations of Russian meddling in the presidential election and potential collusion by Mr Trump's campaign.

Court papers suggested senior Trump transition officials were fully aware of Mr Flynn contacting Russian officials in the weeks before January's inauguration.

Along with Mr Kushner, another of the officials has been named in US media as former deputy national security adviser KT McFarland.

The court documents set out the directions given to Mr Flynn by a Trump transition official about how to interact with Russia regarding sanctions the Obama administration imposed for alleged Russian meddling in the election.

Mr Flynn and the official reportedly spoke about "the potential impact of those sanctions on the incoming administration's foreign policy goals" and that Mr Flynn then called Mr Kislyak, and "requested that Russia not escalate the situation".

ABC News reported Mr Flynn would testify that Mr Trump ordered him to reach out to Moscow after last November's presidential election, initially as a way to work together to fight Islamic State in Syria.

Image: Special counsel Robert Mueller has been investigating alleged ties to Russia

The White House has rejected the idea that Mr Flynn could implicate "anyone" else but himself.

"I recognise that the actions I acknowledged in court today were wrong," Mr Flynn said after a federal court appearance in Washington.

"My guilty plea and agreement to cooperate with the special counsel's office reflect a decision I made in the best interests of my family and of our country. I accept full responsibility for my actions."

The charge normally carries up to five years in prison but under the terms of a plea deal, Mr Flynn faces a lighter sentence of only up to six months in jail, court filings show.

:: Flynn brings Russia investigation to Trump's door

White House lawyer Ty Cobb said: "Nothing about the guilty plea or the charge implicates anyone other than Mr Flynn."

Mr Cobb described Mr Flynn as "a former Obama administration official" who was only at the White House for "25 days".

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The charges related to events late last year, during the transition period between President Obama and President Trump, when the US imposed sanctions on Russia, and when a United Nations Security Council resolution was pending.

Mr Flynn was interviewed by the FBI just days after Mr Trump's inauguration on 20 January, before being forced to resign in February after White House officials claimed he had misled them about whether he had held discussions with Mr Kislyak.

Another former senior aide to Mr Trump, Paul Manafort, who ran his campaign for president for several months last year, was charged in October with conspiring to launder money, conspiracy against the United States and failing to register as a foreign agent of Ukraine's former pro-Russian government.

Kushner: 'I did not collude with Russia'

Mr Manafort, who did not serve in Mr Trump's administration, and a business associate who was charged with him, pleaded not guilty.

Mr Flynn is the first person who actually worked in the White House to be charged.

Mr Kushner, who is married to the President's eldest daughter Ivanka, has denied any wrongdoing.

Mr Trump is said to have taken a particular interest in the Flynn investigation. Former FBI Director James Comey has claimed that during a private meeting in the Oval Office, Mr Trump asked him to consider ending the investigation into Mr Flynn.

Mr Comey said he was so unnerved by the meeting that he prepared an internal memo about it. The assertion has been denied by the White House.

The dismissal of Mr Comey by the President in May precipitated the appointment of Mr Mueller as special counsel.