The motive is still largely unknown. We also don't know yet if Flynn operated independently, or at the direction of Trump or his team.
Putin & Kremlin interfered in the 2016 presidential election to help elect Trump; they did so partly under the impression that a Trump presidency would be far more favorable to Russia than a Clinton presidency. Trump & his team came into office trying to lift sanctions on Russia.
Why did Putin and the Kremlin get the impression that Trump would be far more favorable to Russia? Trump hired KREMLIN lobbyist Paul Manafort as his campaign manager; Trump spoke favorably of Putin & pro-Russia policies. His team met w Russians repeatedly
