President Trump’s transition team was reportedly told that former national security adviser Michael Flynn would likely have to register as a foreign agent before stepping into the job despite White House claims that Trump was unaware of his lobbying work.

Flynn filed paperwork on Wednesday to officially register as a foreign agent, and admitted that he may have done work that benefited the Turkish government. The retired Army lieutenant general was previously paid more than half a million dollars for work for a Turkish company.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer on Thursday said Trump was unaware that Flynn had lobbied in the interest of a foreign government, and Vice President Pence called Flynn’s registration as a foreign agent “an affirmation of the president's decision to ask Gen. Flynn to resign."

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It wasn’t clear when the Trump team learned about Flynn’s lobbying work with Turkey, according a Friday report from The Associated Press, but it was before the inauguration.

Flynn resigned from the top national security job at the White House last month amid revelations that he discussed sanctions with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak before Trump took office, and misled Pence and others about the conversations.