A Russian banker who met Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner did not do so on the Kremlin’s orders, according to the Russian president's spokesperson.
"These contacts do not need any approval from the Kremlin and naturally (these meetings) did not happen on the Kremlin's orders," the Kremlin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.
He further added that it was "normal practice" for the head of a major Russian bank to meet various US representatives in the course of his work while being in the United States.
Kushner testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Monday as part of the probe into alleged Russian meddling in last year's US presidential vote. In the closed-door meeting, he said that he had met Sergei Gorkov, the head of Russian state-owned Vnesheconom bank, on December 13.
Kushner has denied any collusion with Russia to help his father-in-law, President Donald Trump, win the presidency. Kushner described contacts made during the 2016 campaign with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, other Russians as routine.
Earlier this month reports claimed that Kushner, along with other Trump campaign aides, held a meeting with a Russian lawyer who offered compromising information about Trump's Democratic rival Hillary Clinton last year.
An intensive investigation has been launched to find out whether the Russian government coordinated with Trump’s associates during the 2016 campaign and transition.
Trump and his team have already been implicated in the case. The White House and the Kremlin have described contacts between the two sides as something ordinary but Congressional and FBI investigators have not been convinced.