Donald Trump stepped up his defence of his eldest son yesterday, saying -Donald Trump Jr had done nothing wrong in meeting a Russian lawyer to get information about Hillary Clinton during the US presidential campaign and arguing that “most people would have taken that meeting”.

“My son is a wonderful young man who took a meeting with a Russian lawyer — not a Russian government lawyer but a Russian lawyer,” Mr Trump said at a press conference alongside French -President Emmanuel Macron. “Most people would have taken that meeting. It is called opposition research?.?.?.?that is very standard in politics.”

The comments came during his first visit to Paris since his election and a week since he attended the G20 in Hamburg, where critics charged that he was isolated on the global stage. He has developed what has appeared to be a rivalry with Mr Macron, who engaged in a white-knuckled handshake in their first meeting at a May Nato summit.