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DOSSIER: President Donald Trump addresses reporters at the White House.
(AP)
White House officials learned that Russia and China intercepted telephone conversations on President Donald Trump's mobile phone to gather information about his aides and political positions, the New York Times reported on Wednesday.
Officials quoted in the report, who remained anonymous, said they were alerted by people working in these foreign governments. According to them, the Chinese have established a list of contacts with which the president speaks most often.
The president keeps two official iPhones modified by the National Security Agency and a third personal phone allowing personal contacts, announced officials of the White House. But using a mobile phone presents some risks. The report states that Trump prefers to use his cell phone over the more secure fixed line of the White House.
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China has sought to use this information to forge links with Trump's associates or "friends of his friends" to ensure that Beijing's viewpoint is passed on to the president, according to officials quoted in the report.
Businessmen Stephen A. Schwarzman and Steve Wynn, who both have connections in China, are quoted in the report. Both refused to comment for the paper.
Fox News contacted the White House Thursday morning to confirm some elements of the report, but did not immediately receive an answer.
Russia does not monitor the President's telephone calls to the extent of China because of the alleged affinity of Trump with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump's aides, however, warned that Russian spies "listened regularly" to his calls, the report said.
