Mueller report: William Barr will make public redacted Trump-Russia report on Thursday, department of justice says

Robert Mueller’s report into Russia’s interference in the US election – and alleged possible collusion with campaign of Donald – will be made public on Thursday, the US government has said.

In an announcement set to make 18 April one of the most hotly anticipated days in Washington DC for several years, the department of justice said a version of the 400-page report would be provided to the congress and the public on Thursday morning.

Justice department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec did not specify a time, and provided no insight into how much of the special prosecutor’s report will have been redacted by the time congress and members of the public have a chance to read it.

“The Mueller Report, which was written by 18 Angry Democrats who also happen to be Trump Haters (and Clinton Supporters), should have focused on the people who SPIED on my 2016 Campaign, and others who fabricated the whole Russia Hoax. That is, never forget, the crime,” Mr Trump tweeted after the news emerged.

The president – who is due to deliver a speech in Minnesota, the home state of congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who he has controversially criticised over the way she described the events of 9/11 – said: “Since there was no collusion, why was there an investigation in the first place! Answer – dirty cops, Dems and Crooked Hillary!”

Mr Mueller, a former director of the FBI, concluded the nearly two-year investigation last month and sent his findings to attorney general William Barr. Mr Barr then released his own four-page synopsis, saying Mr Mueller found no evidence the Trump campaign colluded with Russia.

He said Mr Mueller did not exonerate Mr Trump on the question of whether he obstructed justice, but rather laid out evidence both for and against in relation to several incidents. In turn, Mr Barr and his deputy made a determination the president had not committed any offence that merited prosecution.

Democrats and others demanded to see the full details of the report – which Mr Barr agreed to, saying that the department would first oversee a series of redactions to protect sensitive information, or data relating to ongoing investigations.

Several Democrats have suggested Mr Barr will go too far with this redactions, give the constitutional and legal elasticity he has on this issue.

In his synopsis, Mr Barr wrote that Mr Mueller had employed 19 lawyers who were assisted by a team of approximately 40 FBI agents, intelligence analysts and forensic accountants.

He said the special counsel issued more than 2,800 subpoenas, executed nearly 500 search warrants, obtained more than 230 orders for communication records, issued almost 50 orders authorising use of pen registers, made 13 requests to foreign governments for evidence, and interviewed approximately 500 witnesses.

“The report states ‘The investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities’,” Mr Barr said.

On the issue of obstruction of justice, Mr Barr said the report set out evidence on both sides of the question. “The special counsel’s report states that ‘while this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him’,” he said.

The attorney general said that he and his deputy, Rod Rosenstein, reviewed the evidence and concluded the evidence developed during the special counsel’s investigation was not sufficient to establish that the president committed an obstruction-of-justice offence.

Mr Trump claimed the investigation exonerated him on both counts, something that was not true. He also pressed Mr Barr to launch an investigation into what the FBI began its probe of members of his campaign team, claiming he was the victim of an “attempted coup”.