Trump defends US ambassador to Greece amid allegations of pay-for-access scheme

Donald Trump responded to fresh reporting that US ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle allegedly requested a donor’s assistance with a credit-card debt in return for access to senior officials. Trump said he had only just heard about the story, did not know many specifics, and called Guilfoyle “very nice.” The newspaper’s investigation links the request to the period just before her Senate confirmation hearing and says she offered the donor a line to the Trump administration.

It further reports that Guilfoyle told attendees at a March reception in Athens that the United States could undermine the Greek government if it wished, and that she advanced the commercial interests of a Greek construction and energy company, granting a lobbyist private diplomatic meetings. Greek Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou publicly rejected any suggestion that the US had pressured or threatened Greece. The controversy has sparked diplomatic tension between Washington and Athens.