Joseph Mifsud#cite ref-Svab22819 32-0

Mifsud holds a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Malta (1982) and a master's degree in education from the University of Padua (1989). He was awarded a PhD in 1995 from Queen's University Belfast; his thesis was titled Managing Educational Reform: A Comparative Approach from Malta (and Northern Ireland); a Headteachers' Perspective.{{cite thesis |url=http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.324830 |title=Managing educational reform: a comparative approach from Malta (and Northern Ireland); a headteachers' perspective. |website=British Library |year=1995 |access-date=31 October 2017 |type=Ph.D |last1=Mifsud |first1=Joseph |archive-date=7 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190607035552/https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.324830 |url-status=dead }}

Mifsud assisted in the 1999 founding of Link Campus University (a subsidiary of the University of Malta with links to Italian intelligence{{Cite magazine|date=11 October 2019|title=How Papadopoulos Put the Lie to Trump's Collusion Fantasy|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/10/what-george-papadopoulos-taught-me-about-trump|access-date=14 November 2021|magazine=Vanity Fair|language=en-US}}), who was then the head of the university's education department.{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}} Mifsud acted as its "director of international relations".{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}

From 2006 to 2008, Mifsud served as the chef de cabinet of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Malta. He later became a principal in the London Centre of International Law Practice (LCILP). In 2008, he was named President of the Euro-Mediterranean University of Slovenia (EMUNI).{{cite web|url=http://www.emuni.si/en/node/742|title=Dr. Joseph Mifsud: the New Role of the European Union|date=6 June 2011|work=Euro-Mediterranean University|accessdate=9 September 2018|archive-date=10 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180910061249/http://www.emuni.si/en/node/742|url-status=dead}} At least as early as 2010, he began making numerous trips to Russia.{{cite news|last1=Helderman|first1=Rosalind S.|last2=Harris|first2=Shane|last3=Nakashima|first3=Ellen|title='The enigma of the entire Mueller probe': Focus on origins of Russia investigation puts spotlight on Maltese professor|url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/the-enigma-of-the-entire-mueller-probe-focus-on-origins-of-russian-investigation-puts-spotlight-on-maltese-professor/ar-AADEKRz?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=mailsignout|work=MSNBC news|via=Washington Post|date=30 June 2019|access-date=1 July 2019}} He was a professorial teaching fellow at the University of Stirling in Scotland, as well as director of the London Academy of Diplomacy, where he served as director from 2012 until it closed in 2016. The academy was partnered with the University of Stirling.{{cite news|url=https://brignews.com/2017/11/12/revealed-stirling-universitys-ties-to-academy-run-by-russia-inquiry-professor/|title=Revealed: Stirling University's ties to Academy run by Russia inquiry professor|last=Hardie|first=Warren|date=12 November 2017|work=Brig News|accessdate=10 September 2018}}Kumar, Anita, Goldstein, David & Hall, Kevin G. (30 October 2017). "Three Republicans were still in the presidential race. The Russians only contacted one". [http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/white-house/article181783506.html McClatchy DC website] Retrieved 9 November 2017.{{cite news|last1=Cadwalladr|first1=Carole|title=Boris Johnson met 'London professor' linked to FBI's Russia investigation|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/nov/11/boris-johnson-met-london-professor-linked-to-fbis-russia-investigation|accessdate=3 January 2018|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|date=11 November 2017}} He has also served as president of the University Consortium of the Province of Agrigento in Sicily; in September 2018, an Italian court ordered him to repay the Consortium 49,000 euros ($56,700) in overpayments.

As of 2017, Mifsud was a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR).{{cite web|url=http://www.repubblica.it/esteri/2017/11/01/news/russiagate_mystery_professor_joseph_mifsud_speaks_out_dirt_on_hillary_clinton_nonsense_-179948962/|title=Russiagate, mystery professor Joseph Mifsud speaks out: "Dirt on Hillary Clinton? Nonsense"|date=1 November 2017}}{{Cite web|date=10 January 2017|title=The ECFR Council {{!}} European Council on Foreign Relations|url=https://ecfr.eu/council/members/|access-date=14 November 2021|archive-date=10 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170110140843/https://ecfr.eu/council/members/|url-status=bot: unknown}} He regularly attended meetings of the Valdai Discussion Club, an annual conference held in Russia, backed by the Kremlin and attended by Vladimir Putin. In April 2016, Mifsud spoke at a Valdai Club panel in Moscow{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}} alongside Switzerland-based lawyer Stephan Roh. Roh, who has been associated with Russian oligarchs and who owns a 5% stake in Link Campus University,{{cite news|last1=Horowitz|first1=Jason|date=14 October 2019|title=Rome University at Heart of Trump Inquiry Becomes a Vortex of Intrigue|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/14/world/europe/link-university-trump-impeachment.html|access-date=5 December 2020}} has been described by George Papadopoulos's wife as Mifsud's partner, best friend, and funder.{{cite news|last1=Bertrand|first1=Natasha|date=14 May 2018|title=Mueller Detains Lawyer Close to Shadowy Professor|work=The Atlantic|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/05/muellers-probe-is-more-expansive-than-it-seems/560255/|access-date=5 December 2020}}

According to the Mueller Report, released in 2019 after Mifsud's disappearance, Mifsud "maintained various Russian contacts while living in London", including an unnamed person (name redacted), who was a former staff member of the Internet Research Agency, the Russian troll farm based in Saint Petersburg.{{cite news|last=Stripling|first=Jack|date=18 April 2019|title=What the Mueller Report Reveals About the Globe-Trotting Professor Who Spoke of 'Dirt' on Clinton|work=The Chronicle of Higher Education|url=https://www.chronicle.com/article/What-the-Mueller-Report/246136|access-date=20 April 2019}} Mifsud had previously denied having any contact with the Russian government, saying "I am an academic, I do not even speak Russian."

In March 2016, shortly after George Papadopoulos was named as a foreign policy advisor to the Trump campaign, Mifsud met Papadopoulos in Rome. They later met again in London, where – according to Papadopoulos – Mifsud claimed "substantial connections to Russian officials"{{cite news|last=Kelly|first=Meg|date=13 November 2017|title=All the known times the Trump campaign met with Russians|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2017/11/13/all-of-the-known-times-the-trump-campaign-met-with-russians|access-date=6 March 2018|newspaper=The Washington Post}}{{cite news|last1=LaFraniere|first1=Sharon|last2=Mazzetti|first2=Mark|last3=Apuzzo|first3=Matt|date=30 December 2017|title=How the Russia Inquiry Began: A Campaign Aide, Drinks and Talk of Political Dirt|website=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/30/us/politics/how-fbi-russia-investigation-began-george-papadopoulos.html|access-date=21 January 2018}} and introduced Papadopoulos to a Russian woman that he falsely claimed was Putin's niece.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/oct/31/joseph-mifsud-professor-trump-russia-inquiry-kremlin|title=Joseph Mifsud: more questions than answers about mystery professor linked to Russia |first1=Stephanie |last1=Kirchgaessner |first2=Claire |last2=Phipps |first3=Kevin |last3=Rawlinson |date=31 October 2017|accessdate=31 October 2017 |work=The Guardian}}{{cite news |last=Kirkpatrick |first=David D. |date=31 October 2017 |title=The Professor Behind the Trump Campaign Adviser Charges |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/31/world/europe/russia-us-election-joseph-mifsud.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=31 October 2017 }} At a meeting in April, Mifsud told Papadopoulos that he had learned that the Russian government had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton. Mifsud has acknowledged meeting Papadopoulos, but denied Papadopoulos's specific allegations. On 10 May 2016, Papadopoulos repeated the information to the Australian High Commissioner in London, Alexander Downer, who was accompanied by Australian diplomat Erika Thompson, that "the Trump team had received some kind of suggestion from Russia that it could assist this process with the anonymous release of information during the campaign that would be damaging to Mrs Clinton (and President Obama)." Downer later reported to American authorities that Papadopoulos had apparently known about Russia's theft of Democratic National Committee emails before it was publicly reported. Papadopoulos denies having told Downer this.{{Cite web|agency=Australian Associated Press|date=26 March 2019|title=Ex-Trump adviser takes aim at Alexander Downer after Mueller report|url=http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/mar/26/ex-trump-adviser-takes-aim-at-alexander-downer-after-mueller-report|access-date=14 November 2021|website=The Guardian|language=en}} The FBI then launched an investigation into possible connections between Russia and the Trump campaign.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/30/us/politics/how-fbi-russia-investigation-began-george-papadopoulos.html|title=How the Russia Inquiry Began: A Campaign Aide, Drinks and Talk of Political Dirt|last1=LaFraniere|first1=Sharon|date=30 December 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=30 December 2017|last2=Mazzetti|first2=Mark|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|last3=Apuzzo|first3=Matt}} Mifsud was interviewed by the FBI in February 2017 while visiting the United States to speak at a conference.{{cite news|last1=Lister|first1=Tim|last2=Robertson|first2=Nic|date=10 November 2017|title=Academic at heart of Clinton 'dirt' claim vanishes, leaving trail of questions|publisher=CNN|url=https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/08/politics/joseph-mifsud-trump-russia-investigation/index.html|accessdate=10 September 2018}}{{cite web|last1=Brera|first1=Paolo G.|date=1 November 2017|title=Russiagate, mystery professor Joseph Mifsud speaks out: "Dirt on Hillary Clinton? Nonsense"|url=http://www.repubblica.it/esteri/2017/11/01/news/russiagate_mystery_professor_joseph_mifsud_speaks_out_dirt_on_hillary_clinton_nonsense_-179948962/|work=La Repubblica|accessdate=1 June 2018}} Mifsud left the United States on 11 February 2017.{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}

Mifsud has been claimed to be an intelligence agent by various sources. Former FBI Director James Comey has described Mifsud as a "Russian agent".{{cite web|last=Knight|first=Amy|date=30 October 2019|title=Here's How Dumb Bill Barr's Great Mifsud Conspiracy Story Really Is|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/heres-how-dumb-bill-barrs-great-mifsud-conspiracy-story-really-is|access-date=24 November 2019|website=The Daily Beast}}{{cite web|last=Sullivan|first=Eileen|date=24 July 2019|title=Joseph Mifsud, Key to Russia Inquiry, Gets Moment in the Spotlight|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/24/us/politics/joseph-mifsud-mueller.html|access-date=24 November 2019|website=The New York Times}}{{cite web|last=Goldman|first=Adam|date=6 October 2019|title=Italy's Connection to the Russia Investigation, Explained|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/06/us/politics/italy-russia-mifsud-trump.html|access-date=24 November 2019|website=The New York Times}} Papadopoulos and other critics of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 campaign, such as Republicans Jim Jordan and Devin Nunes, have suggested Mifsud might be a Western intelligence agent instructed to entrap Papadopoulos in order to justify an investigation.{{Cite magazine|title=Here's Why Mueller Kept Getting Asked About a Mysterious Maltese Professor|url=https://time.com/5633912/joseph-mifsud-mueller-testimony/|magazine=Time}}{{Cite news|title='The enigma of the entire Mueller probe': Focus on origins of Russian investigation puts spotlight on Maltese professor|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/the-enigma-of-the-entire-mueller-probe-focus-on-origins-of-russian-investigation-puts-spotlight-on-maltese-professor/2019/06/30/b374fe8c-8185-11e9-bce7-40b4105f7ca0_story.html|newspaper=Washington Post}}{{Cite news|last=Sullivan|first=Eileen|date=24 July 2019|title=Joseph Mifsud, Key to Russia Inquiry, Gets Moment in the Spotlight|work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/24/us/politics/joseph-mifsud-mueller.html|via=NYTimes.com}} A December 2019 Justice Department Inspector General report found no evidence Mifsud was an FBI informant, or that his involvement with Papadopoulos was related to any FBI operation.Inspector General report, p. 312: https://www.justice.gov/storage/120919-examination.pdf U.S. Attorney General William Barr and U.S. prosecutor John Durham met with Italian intelligence officials in Rome in late September 2019 to learn more about Mifsud and his contacts.{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-barr-mifsud-explainer-idUSKBN1WO1BX|title=Explainer: The missing Maltese academic at the heart of Washington intrigue|date=9 October 2019|work=Reuters|access-date=23 November 2019|language=en}} Italian officials denied that Italian intelligence services were involved.{{Cite news|last1=Zapotosky|first1=Matt|last2=Dawsey|first2=Josh|last3=Harris|first3=Shane|last4=Helderman|first4=Rosalind S.|author-link4=Rosalind S. Helderman|date=6 October 2019|title=Barr's review of Russia investigation wins Trump's favor. Those facing scrutiny suspect he's chasing conspiracy theories.|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/barrs-review-of-the-russia-investigation-has-won-trumps-favor-but-some-facing-scrutiny-suspect-hes-chasing-conspiracy-theories/2019/10/05/cea0f994-e612-11e9-a331-2df12d56a80b_story.html}}{{Cite news|last=Momigliano|first=Anna|date=23 October 2019|title=Italy Did Not Fuel U.S. Suspicion of Russian Meddling, Prime Minister Says|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/23/world/europe/italy-trump-conspiracy-conte.html}}

Mifsud's passport and wallet were found on 5 August 2017, in Câmara de Lobos, Portugal, although the Maltese government was not informed until in October 2019.{{Cite web|title=The Curious Case Of Joseph Mifsud's Lost Passport And Wallet|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/albertonardelli/joseph-mifsud-passport|access-date=5 December 2019|website=BuzzFeed News|date=5 December 2019 |language=en}}{{Cite web|last1=Fern|first1=Miguel|last2=Luís|first2=es|title=Passaporte de "agente" que liga Trump aos russos encontrado em Câmara de Lobos|url=https://www.dnoticias.pt/madeira/passaporte-de-agente-que-liga-trump-aos-russos-encontrado-em-camara-de-lobos-HC5532854|access-date=5 December 2019|website=www.dnoticias.pt|language=pt-PT}} He spoke to his girlfriend on 31 October 2017, the day before an Italian newspaper revealed that the "professor" referred to in news reports about Papadopoulos was Mifsud; as of 27 February 2018, she had not heard from him again.{{Cite web|title=The Mysterious Professor At The Center Of The Russia-Trump Probe Has Disappeared. Even His Girlfriend Can't Find Him.|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/albertonardelli/the-mysterious-professor-at-the-center-of-the-russia-trump|access-date=14 November 2021|website=BuzzFeed News|date=27 February 2018 |language=en}} Photographic evidence showed that Mifsud was in Switzerland on 21 May 2018;{{Cite web|last=Horowitz|first=Jason|date=2 October 2019|title=First Barr, Now Pompeo: Italy Is Hub of Impeachment Intrigue for Trump Officials|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/02/world/europe/mike-pompeo-italy-joseph-mifsud.html|access-date=16 October 2019|website=The New York Times}} he lived in Link Campus University housing until the summer of that year. In September 2018, an Italian court described his location as "residence unknown". According to a filing in a U.S. federal court in the case Democratic National Committee v. Russian Federation in September 2018, Mifsud was "missing and may be deceased". Mifsud's whereabouts were unknown and he could not be served with the complaint.{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-07/dnc-lawyers-raise-prospect-papadopoulos-u-k-contact-may-be-dead/|title=DNC Lawyers Say Papadopoulos's U.K. Contact May Be Dead|last=Schneider|first=Joe|date=7 September 2018|publisher=Bloomberg News}}

According to media reports, Mifsud was in Rome as of April 2019. Corriere della Sera, Italy's newspaper of record, said on 11 November 2019 that it received a recording of someone who claimed to be Mifsud. Voice recognition experts with the U.K.-based investigative journalism group Bellingcat said that, based on tone and pronunciation, the recording matched verified recordings of Mifsud.{{Cite web|title=An Italian Newspaper Has Published An Audio Recording From Someone Claiming To Be Joseph Mifsud|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/albertonardelli/joseph-mifsud-audio-recording|access-date=14 November 2021|website=BuzzFeed News|date=13 November 2019 |language=en}}

As of 18 May 2023 the Italian newspaper La Notizia reported Mifsud's whereabouts were still unknown following his disappearance into thin air on 31 October 2017. With his disappearance, a huge number of mysteries remained unsolved. Mifsud appeared in an October 2017 photo with then British Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, when attending a Brexit event at the London School of Diplomacy.Caroline Mortimer. (12 November 2017). "Boris Johnson met ‘London professor’ linked to FBI’s Russia investigation

". [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-boris-johnson-russia-probe-fbi-joseph-mifsud-robert-mueller-a8051076.html The Independent website] Retrieved 22 June 2023. Mifsud has a history of disappearances related to employment and debts.Raphael Satter. (22 October 2018). "Malta academic in Trump probe has history of vanishing acts". [https://apnews.com/article/trump-investigations-ap-top-news-malta-international-news-europe-800354d636af47f3afbd19338a377887 AP website] Retrieved 22 June 2023. It's not clear who Mifsud was: a Russian spy or a professor who worked for some intelligence service of a NATO country.{{Cite web |url=https://www.la-notizia.net/2023/05/18/scandali-anche-italiani-dal-russiagate-ad-oggi/ |title=Scandali anche italiani …. dal Russiagate ad oggi |date=2023-05-18| access-date=2023-05-22 |website=La Notizia}}

• List of people who disappeared
• Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections
• {{section link|Trump Tower meeting|George Papadopoulos}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Scopus id}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mifsud, Joseph}}

Category:1960 births

Category:2010s missing person cases

Category:Academics of the University of Stirling

Category:University of Malta alumni

Category:Date of birth missing (living people)

Category:Living people

Category:Maltese academics

Category:Missing British people

Category:Missing person cases in Italy

Category:People associated with Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections

Category:University of Padua alumni