ATTORNEY GENERAL Jeffrey Sessions announced Thursday he would recuse himself from a role in Justice Department investigations into possible Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Attorney General Jeffrey Sessions announced Thursday afternoon in Washington that he would recuse himself from a role in the investigation of possible Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

In a televised address from the Justice Department, Sessions said “They said that since I had involvement with the campaign, I should not be involved in any campaign investigation,” Sessions said, referring to Justice Department ethics officials.

When questioned by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearings to be attorney general, Sessions denied having any contact with Russian officials.

But after published reports revealed he had met with Russian ambassador Segrgey Kislyak, calls for Sessions to step aside from the inquiry rose from Democrats and Republicans.

“In retrospect, I should have slowed down and said I did meet one Russian official a couple times. That would be the ambassador,” said Sessions.