WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump’s embattled national security adviser Michael Flynn resigned late on Monday night, following reports that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about his contacts with Russia. His departure came less than a month after Mr Trump’s Jan 20 inauguration.

In his resignation letter, Mr Flynn said he had numerous conversations with the Russian ambassador to the US during the transition period and gave “incomplete information” about the telephone calls to Vice President Pence.

Relying on the information from Mr Flynn, Mr Pence initially said the national security adviser had not discussed sanctions with the Russian envoy. But later, Mr Flynn conceded that the issue might have come up during those calls.

The US media reported that on the day the Obama administration slapped sanctions on Russia for hacking the 2016 US elections, Mr Flynn made phone calls to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak and discussed the issue with him.

President’s failure to delegate authority main cause of dysfunction in White House, according to media

Along with Mr Flynn’s resignation letter, the White House released an announcement, saying that President Trump had appointed retired Lt Gen Keith Kellogg as the acting national security adviser.

Last month, the US Justice Department warned the Trump administration that contradictions between the public depictions and actual details of the calls could leave Mr Flynn in a compromised position.

But since the warning came from acting attorney general Sally Yates, a holdover from the Obama administration, the Trump administration did not pay much attention, the US media reported.

The Washington Post was the first to report the communication between Ms Yates and the Trump White House. The Post also reported last week that Mr Flynn had indeed discussed sanctions with the Russian ambassador.

Mr Flynn, a retired general of the US Army, said that while working in the Trump transition team as the incoming National Security Adviser, he held numerous phone calls with foreign counterparts, ministers and ambassadors.

“Unfortunately, because of the fast pace of events, I inadvertently briefed the vice president-elect and others with incomplete information regarding my phone calls with the Russian ambassador. I have sincerely apologised to the president and the vice president, and they have accepted my apology,” he wrote in his resignation letter.

“I am tendering my resignation, honoured to have served our nation and the American people in such a distinguished way.”

He disagreed with the media’s suggestion that other members in the Trump team might face similar problems. But the media reported that Gen Flynn’s departure revealed lack of order in the Trump White House.

“There appears to be no central authority at the White House to keep people in line. As a result, competing power centres have developed, and officials in President Trump’s orbit feel free to pursue their agendas at will,” the US News and World Report noted.

“It appears that the staff aren’t sure what the rules of governing are or precisely what President Trump wants them to do, except for backing him unwaveringly and defending him ceaselessly.”

The media said that Mr Trump’s failure to delegate authority was the main cause of dysfunction in the White House.

The reports noted that in any administration, the president’s chief of staff is the central authority at the White House but President Trump’s chief of staff, Reince Preibus, was just one among several power players in the current White House.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2017