On May 5, 2016, Sater followed up with a text that Cohen thought he probably read to Trump:
On May 5, 2016, Sater followed up with a text that Cohen thought he probably read to Trump:
Peskov would like to invite you as his guest to the St. Petersburg Forum which is Russia’s Davos it’s June 16-19. He wants to meet there with you and possibly introduce you to either Putin or Medvedev. . . . This is perfect. The entire business class of Russia will be there as well. He said anything you want to discuss including dates and subjects are on the table to discuss. 2218
Cohen recalled discussing the invitation to the St. Petersburg Economic Forum with candidate Trump and saying that Putin or Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev might be there. 2219 Cohen remembered that Trump said that he would be willing to travel to Russia if Cohen could “lock and load” on the deal. 2220 In June 2016, Cohen decided not to attend the St. Petersburg Economic Forum because Sater had not obtained a formal invitation for Cohen from Peskov. 2221 Cohen said he had a quick conversation with Trump at that time but did not tell him that the project was over because he did not want Trump to complain that the deal was on-again-off-again if it were revived. 2222
