Who is Tom Barrack? And will the investigations affect Trump and his ambitions to return to the White House?

NEW YORK -

As soon as Donald Trump was elected President of the United States, Tom Barrack quickly sent a mail to a senior official in Abu Dhabi requesting that the UAE's priorities be identified with the new president.

Barrack was confident in himself and in his ability to do what was asked of him, not only because of his personal proximity - 40 years to the new president (Trump) or (Donnie) as he calls him - but also because of his great influence in his election campaign, and with his senior officials in the White House.

In 2010, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, faced a major crisis that brought him close to bankruptcy, after the failure of a real estate deal in Manhattan, amounting to one billion and 800 million dollars.

It was then that Trump called his billionaire friend Tom Barrack, who helped Kushner buy about $70 million of his debt;

So, Roger Stone, a close friend of Trump, says, "Barack is the only person Trump talks to as his equal."

Barack was raising funds for the Trump campaign.

And when he succeeded, he took over the presidency of the committee organizing the inauguration of the president, and at that time raised a record sum of more than 107 million dollars.

Observers believe that this committee may have been the focus of the (lobby), or pressure groups and interests that represent foreign countries, companies and many parties, who want to influence the policies and directions of the new administration.

Although investigations into her did not lead to any charges;

Barak was the subject of special interest from Robert Mueller, the former FBI director, who took over the independent investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 US election.

Investigations and arrests

Because Barak was not in direct contact with this case, he was not charged with it, but the investigations moved to the Office of the Federal Prosecutor in New York, which tracked down suspects in violating the "FARA" law that regulates the work of representatives of the interests of foreign countries or entities in the United States.

According to the indictment, Tom Barrack ignored its most important clauses;

It is the registration of his name with the US Department of Justice as an "agent" or representative of the interests of the United Arab Emirates;

Where he worked - for many years - closely with princes and senior officials, and then turned to influence Washington's policies after Trump took office, in violation of the law.

Barak, 74, was arrested in California, where he was charged with 7 federal charges, including obstruction of justice, in addition to failing to register his name as a member of a pressure group, exploiting his personal proximity to Trump to achieve the goals of a foreign country (UAE), and lying to investigators about his activities. .

The court responded to the prosecution's request to keep him in detention for owning private planes, and because he has another (Lebanese) nationality, which would facilitate his escape outside the country.

Tom Barrack (right) and Yousef Al Otaiba, UAE Ambassador to Washington (Reuters)

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It is mentioned here that Barak's relationship with Saudi Arabia and the UAE in particular dates back to many years ago.

Some reports spoke of him as a link between the Trump administration and many Arab princes, especially Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Vice President of the UAE.

Bin Zayed was mentioned in the investigations more than once, as was the Emirati businessman Rashid Al Malik, whom Barak described as the secret weapon of the UAE, and invited him to Trump's inauguration ceremony among a group of senior diplomats.

Al Malik had previously been questioned by the FBI when he resided in California 3 years ago, and then left the United States and did not return, according to the prosecution papers.

He was also accused of representing foreign interests without being registered, but was not arrested for being outside the country.

The investigation papers also include correspondence between Barak and the "UAE Official 5", according to what he calls the investigation, and it is believed that he is the Emirati ambassador to Washington Youssef Al-Otaiba.The papers reveal the great role of Tom Barrack in communication between Trump and senior Emirati officials.It was he who introduced Al-Otaiba to Jared Kushner before Assuming responsibility for the Middle East file.

Reports say that Barak was able to arrange many meetings between Trump and his administration and senior Emirati officials.

He was able to stop the conference Trump plans to hold at Camp David to reconcile the Gulf countries, and it could have led to the lifting of the blockade imposed at the time on Qatar.

Barak was proudly talking about his rejection of offers to take important positions such as the Secretary of the Treasury, and it is said that he aspired to the position of "special envoy for economic development in the Middle East", but he did not succeed in achieving it, but approaching the head of power in the White House helped him increase his wealth, His company, Colony NorthStar, which specializes in stocks and real estate investment, has raised more than $7 billion within the three years of Trump's tenure.

According to an official familiar with the New York Times, about a quarter of this money came from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and includes $474 million from the sovereign funds of the two countries.

Former Trump adviser Tom Barrack faces 7 federal charges related to dealing with the UAE (European)

its upbringing

Tom Barrack grew up in California, to a simple Lebanese immigrant family.

He studied law and worked as a lawyer before starting some private business in the Gulf countries, where he succeeded in concluding lucrative deals that helped him launch in the business world.

Proficiency in the Arabic language brought him closer to Emirati princes and officials.

He used to take care of much of their business and take care of their children in the United States, and conduct their real estate and commercial deals.

He tried to use that old relationship in front of investigators, as it precedes his political relationship with Trump, and does not require his registration as a "lobby" in the Ministry of Justice.

However, legal experts’ assessments indicated his attempt to use his proximity to Trump to influence US foreign policy, in line with the interests of another country, which calls for the official registration of his work.

There are no accurate estimates of the nature of the sentence that may be issued against him, due to the short age of application of this law, but it may range from a small fine to 5 years in prison, if convicted.

It is not yet known the impact of this issue on the UAE's relationship with the new Joe Biden administration.

Many expect that it will not lead to a rupture, but it will cast a shadow at a critical time, as the administration is expected to decide whether to proceed with the major arms deal for the Emirates approved by Trump, which is worth $ 23 billion and includes 50 F-35 aircraft. ).

Investigations and Trump

It is not expected that the investigations with Barak will implicate Trump personally, especially since the accusation papers refer to Barak’s “betrayal” of him, but the possibility remains if he turns against Trump, and he tries to evade some accusations by revealing information about him by virtue of his proximity to him and the circle around him.

Barak asserts that he is "not guilty", and will not accept or confess these accusations, and will try to deny them and not reach a deal with the prosecutors.

He has the funds to help him recruit a strong team of lawyers.

Barak is not the only one close to Trump who has been subjected to such accusations;

The Trump Organization and its chief financial officer were accused of tax evasion in New York.

His former campaign manager Paul Manafort was also indicted after Robert Mueller's team investigated Russian election interference, and was pardoned by Trump just before his term expired.

This is what the former president also did with his chief adviser, Steve Bannon, who was accused of personal use of the money he collected to support the construction of a wall on the country's southern border.

But the most famous person who was convicted and imprisoned was Michael Cohen, Trump's personal lawyer, who faced numerous charges;

Including giving a girl sums of money from the Trump campaign to silence her from declaring their relationship before his election.

Cohen then turned on Trump, giving a lot of information to investigative teams and the media.

However, all these and other issues did not significantly affect the confidence of Trump with the majority of the Republican Party.

The conservative base still supports him and believes his allegations of election fraud, and wants him to re-run for the next elections in 2024.

Therefore, many hope that some of these investigations will result in accusations against Trump personally, and perhaps the New York investigations into tax evasion will come closest to that, making it more difficult for him to return to the race for the White House again.