Trump White House scrambles after allowing Russian state media into briefing

A reporter for Russian state media was allowed to attend a joint briefing between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday, although the Trump White House claimed this was done in error.

The correspondent, who was working for the TASS Russian news agency, was first spotted by The Independent's Andrew Feinberg, who broke news of his presence on X.

Shortly afterward, a White House official gave Feinberg a statement saying that the TASS reporter had been admitted in error.

“TASS was not on the approved list of media for today’s pool," they said. "As soon as it came to the attention of press office staff that he was in the Oval, he was escorted out by the White House press secretary. He is not on the approved list for the press conference."

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The presence of a Russian state news reporter is notable given President Donald Trump's long affinity for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump on Friday also repeatedly berated and insulted Zelenskyy to his face in front of cameras, even as Zelenskyy and his nation have been fighting against a Russian military invasion for more than three years now.