Political news outlet Politico published an investigation today on the figure David Zaikin, who has been involved in Russian energy deals, sold apartments in Trump Tower, and has been involved with Mike Flynn, one of the main persons of interest in several sprawling investigation of the US House and Senate, as well as a Special Prosecutor.
The investigation reveals that Zaikin, who is said to have extensive ties with the Russia’s political and business world, also advised then LSI Ilir Meta.
A few years later [after 2011], Zaikin’s career took yet another turn. After working in residential real estate and the Russian energy sector, Zaikin became an adviser to the ruling parties in Turkey, Albania and Macedonia. He also began working with those parties to set up lobbying in the United States. […]
While working on Turkey, Zaikin also facilitated lobbying and political consulting deals for the Macedonian political party VMRO-DPMNE, according to four people with direct knowledge of the activities. He did the same for Albania’s Socialist Movement for Integration, known as LSI, according to four people familiar with the arrangements. Zaikin introduced leaders of both parties to American lobbyists and campaign advisers, the people said. […]
Albania’s LSI and its leader, Ilir Meta, are avowedly pro-Western but have sometimes clashed with the State Department over the U.S.’s push to reform the country’s criminal justice system.
Although the precise nature of Zaikin’s involvement with both Flynn and Trump are still unclear, his opaque business and political dealings are reflected by most recent lobbying efforts of the LSI in the United States ahead of the parliamentary elections.
As Reporter uncovered, the LSI spent more than $300,000 on lobbying in the US, but failed to declare two-thirds of that sum at the Central Election Commission (KQZ).
