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Donald Trump Jr was told that his meeting with a Moscow lawyer with ‘dirt’ on Hillary Clinton was part of an effort by the Russian government to help his father win the election, a new report claims.

Trump Jr was allegedly told before his meeting with lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya the 'Russian government was the source of the potentially damaging information' in an email from British PR guru Rob Goldstone, according to the New York Times.

Don Jr received the email from Rob Goldstone, which stated the 'Russian government was the source of the potentially damaging information', the Times reports.

The newspaper's account is based on conversations with 'three people with knowledge' of what it contained.

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Donald Trump Jr was reportedly told before meeting with a Moscow lawyer with 'dirt' on Hillary Clinton that it was part of an effort from by the Russian government to help his father win the election

It added: 'There is no evidence to suggest that the promised damaging information was related to Russian government computer hacking that led to the release of thousands of Democratic National Committee emails.' 

The meeting took place on June 9 - just two weeks after Trump won the Republican nomination.  

Don Jr's lawyer attempted to downplay the reports in a statement given to the Times on Monday, instead trying to shift the blame to Clinton.

'In my view, this is much ado about nothing. During this busy period, Robert Goldstone contacted Don Jr. in an email and suggested that people had information concerning alleged wrongdoing by Democratic Party front-runner, Hillary Clinton, in her dealings with Russia,' Alan Futerfas told the newspaper.

'Don Jr.’s takeaway from this communication was that someone had information potentially helpful to the campaign and it was coming from someone he knew. Don Jr. had no knowledge as to what specific information, if any, would be discussed.' 

Donald Trump Jr was reportedly told via email the damning evidence he was hoping to receive on Hillary Clinton came from the Russian government

Trump Jr, Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort met with Kremlin-linked lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya last summer in Manhattan

PR guru Rob Goldstone (pictured) says he facilitated the controversial meeting between Donald Trump's son and a Russian lawyer who promised 'dirt' on Hillary Clinton

Goldstone posted this picture of himself wearing a t-shirt with 'RUSSIA' emblazoned across his chest after the election result

Goldstone also 'checked in' at 'Trump Organization' in New York City on June 9, 2016 - the day Trump Jr, Kushner, and Manafort met with Moscow-linked lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya. Based on the post, it appears as though he chose the wrong option title, which is why it says he is in Jakarta, Indonesia, but the location on the map matches up with Trump Tower

When the newspaper contacted Kushner and his lawyers about the new allegations, they 'deferred questions on the content of the meeting' to Trump Jr. 

Manafort declined to comment through a spokesman who contacted the Times. 

The potentially damning allegation comes after White House remained adamant the president's son did not collaborate with the Russians to secure a favorable outcome in November's election.

The meeting last summer between Don Jr and two other campaign officials, including Jared Kushner, and Natalia Veselnitskaya was revealed over the weekend.

'The president's campaign did not collude in any way,' White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday during an off-camera question and answer session. 'I would certainly say Don Jr. did not collude with anybody to influence the election.'

Shortly after she finished, Reuters revealed Don Jr had hired criminal defense attorney Futerfas to represent him.

Donald Trump Jr confirmed he met with the Moscow-linked lawyer in a statement on Sunday

Donald Trump, Jr has hired criminal defense lawyer Alan Futerfas to represent him since the meeting emerged

Trump Jr, Kushner, and Manafort's meeting with Veselnitskaya came during a period of weeks when the Democratic National Committee was hacked, Wikileaks posted thousands of DNC emails, and Trump associates met with Russia's ambassador to the US.

The Senate Intelligence Committee is reportedly interested in speaking to Trump Jr, a committee source told NBC news.

Republican panel member Sen. Susan Collins of Maine told reporters Monday that 'our intelligence committee needs to interview him and others who attended the meeting,' which took place in Trump Tower in June 9 last year.

'I think it’s appropriate that he does that to clear this up,' Democrat Jack Reed, a senior Intelligence and Armed Services member who has forged ties with members of both parties, added when speaking to CNN.

The committee is already probing contacts between Trump campaign officials and Russians last year. 

Trump Jr defended himself Monday prior to the latest allegations surfacing, by claiming he 'had to listen' to the potentially damaging information.

He also appeared to contradict himself from earlier statements, in which he claimed he didn't know the identity of the Russian attendee before it happened and that the substance was about adoption.

The latest developments add further fuel to suspicions that officials with the president's campaign actively colluded with the Kremlin to tilt the election in their favor. 

Ties between officials close to Trump and Moscow have drawn scrutiny from the FBI and Congress in light of assessments that the Russian government hacked the Democratic National Committee and Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's email account.

The wife of a former deputy transportation minister, Veselnitskaya is best known for her public attacks on American sanctions aimed at Russian human rights abusers

Rob Goldstone (left) is pictured during a meeting with Donald Trump (right) in Las Vegas in 2013. An email from his reportedly alerted Trump Jr to Russia's role in the Clinton 'dirt'

The White House was adamant Monday that President Donald Trump's son did not collaborate with the Russians to secure a favorable outcome in November's election

The goal was to sway the election toward Trump and away from Clinton, intelligence officials said. 

Former FBI director Robert Mueller is leading the investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to hack the election.

Both Russia and the Trump campaign deny this. 

The woman on the other side of the meeting with Trump Jr, Veselnitskaya, is the wife of a former Russian government minister and best known for her public attacks on American sanctions aimed at Russian human rights abusers. 

The Magnitsky Act imposed visa bans and asset freezes on Russian officials linked to the 2009 death in prison of Sergei Magnitsky, a 37-year-old Russian whistleblower.

Russia has demanded that the US repeal the legislation since its passage in 2012. President Vladimir Putin was so enraged by the law that he halted American adoptions of Russian children as retaliation. 

The Times also reported over the weekend Veselnitskaya's clients include state-owned businesses and the son of a senior government official whose company was under investigation in the United States at the time of the meeting. 

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, stands off to the side before her turn at the podium Monday. During the off-camera briefing, she said: . 'I would certainly say Don Jr. did not collude with anybody to influence the election'