In a bid to 'distract' the former U.S President Donald Trump during the G20 summit in 2019, the Russians hired amateur salsa dancer Daria Boyarskaya as an interpreter. Former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham made the startling claim in her upcoming book.
Titled, "I'll Take Your Questions Now," Grisham's memoir will be released next week. It details her time spent in the White House as part of the Trump administration.
Boyarskaya Was Hired as Putin's Interpreter
The incident refers to the meeting held between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin during the summit in Osaka, Japan. It was reported that Putin didn't hire the leggy brunette for her linguistical skills but merely to distract Trump during their meeting in 2019.
Videos from the meeting that have surfaced since the claim show Boyarskaya sitting next to Putin and translating his speech in English as Trump looks on. In several pics from the summit, Boyarskaya who is an amateur salsa and bachata dancer, is seen wearing blue colored dress as she stands next to the world leaders.
According to an excerpt published in The New York Times, Grisham said Fiona Hill, a White House advisor on Russia, suspected that Putin was trying to throw the U.S. President off balance through his attractive interpreter.
"As the meeting began, Fiona Hill leaned over and asked me if I had noticed Putin's translator, who was a very attractive brunette woman with long hair, a pretty face, and a wonderful figure," Grisham wrote, according to The Times. "She proceeded to tell me that she suspected the woman had been selected by Putin specifically to distract our president."
Trump Denies Claims Made in the Book
The Daily Mail reported that Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied the claims made by Grisham pertaining to Boyarskaya. "Interpreters are provided by the foreign ministry at the request of the presidential administration. Putin himself is not involved in this process," said Peskov.
The outlet also claimed that Boyarskaya was previously engaged for a meeting between Putin and former U.S. President Barack Obama in Hangzhou, China, in 2016.
Calling Grisham angry and bitter following her fallout with former White House official Max Miller, Trump issued a statement denying her claims made in the book. "Stephanie didn't have what it takes and that was obvious from the beginning," Trump said according to Business Insider.
"She had big problems and we felt that she should work out those problems for herself. Now, like everyone else, she gets paid by a radical left-leaning publisher to say bad and untrue things," Trump said.
