The Hill on Wednesday reported that the FBI years ago had investigated officials in the Russian nuclear industry engaging in bribery and kickbacks.

President Donald Trump tweeted Thursday morning: "Uranium deal to Russia, with Clinton help and Obama Administration knowledge, is the biggest story that Fake Media doesn't want to follow!"

The Senate Judiciary Committee recently opened an investigation into the matter.



President Donald Trump, resurfacing a campaign-trail attack, on Thursday morning tweeted about a bombshell report that the FBI investigated a bribery scandal involving the Russian nuclear industry and the Clintons.

"Uranium deal to Russia, with Clinton help and Obama Administration knowledge, is the biggest story that Fake Media doesn't want to follow!" Trump tweeted.

Trump also tweeted a quote from "Fox & Friends" on Thursday morning that Russia "sent millions to Clinton Foundation."

John Solomon and Alison Spann at The Hill reported Wednesday that the FBI investigated Russian nuclear industry officials engaging in bribery and kickbacks before the Hillary Clinton-led State Department and Obama administration approved a 2010 deal giving Russia control of much of the US's uranium. The Senate Judiciary Committee opened a fresh inquiry into the matter, its Republican chairman, Sen. Chuck Grassley, said Wednesday.

Trump's own dealings with Russia remain under constant examination in the media. The FBI's special counsel, Robert Mueller, as well as the House and Senate intelligence committees are examining Russian interference in the 2016 election and whether any Trump associates played a role.

During the campaign, Trump claimed that the deal for uranium, an important element needed for both nuclear power and weapons, had enriched the Clinton family because people with interest in the deal had donated to the Clintons' charity, the Clinton Foundation. Clinton has said, however, that she was not personally involved in vetting the deal.

"The Russians were compromising American contractors in the nuclear industry with kickbacks and extortion threats, all of which raised legitimate national security concerns," a person who worked on the case told The Hill. "And none of that evidence got aired before the Obama administration made those decisions."

In another report, Solomon and Spann cited an American businessman who said the Obama administration blocked him from testifying to Congress about "conversations and transactions he witnessed related to the Russian nuclear industry's efforts to win favor with Bill and Hillary Clinton and influence Obama administration decisions."

Hillary Clinton, then the US secretary of state, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov after presenting him with a “reset” button in Geneva in 2009. AP Photo/Fabrice Coffrini, Pool

The investigation was conducted under the leadership of Mueller, then the director of the FBI.

The investigation into the Trump campaign's ties to Russia have loomed over his presidency since its early days. It has continually expanded and now includes possible obstruction of justice by Trump and one of his sons as well as the role social media played in Russia's push to influence the 2016 election.

Trump's highlight of the report fits with a trend of his promoting coverage favorable to him or critical of his key opponents, including Clinton.

Solomon has written articles in the past defending the Trump administration and the former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who was fired after misrepresenting his connections to Russian agents in a conversation with Vice President Mike Pence.