Ukraine Foreign Minister: U.S. Aid, Investigations Were ‘Never’ Linked

Ukrainian foreign minister Vadym Prystaiko said Thursday that U.S. Ambassador to the E.U. Gordon Sondland had “never” linked U.S. aid to Ukrainian investigations of the 2016 elections or the Biden’s role in stopping a probe of Burisma.

Prystaiko spoke the day after the first public hearings in the House Intelligence Committee as part of the “impeachment inquiry,” where two witnesses said they came to believe there had been such a link — though only some time after Politico reported on August 28 that aid had been held up by the Trump administration.

One of the witnesses, Chargé d’affaires Bill Taylor, introduced new evidence that a staffer told him recently that he overheard Sondland speaking to President Donald Trump the day after his July 25 phone call with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, discussing “investigations.” The staffer also told Taylor that Sondland said that Trump was more interested in investigations than anything else.

As Breitbart News’ Kristina Wong noted, that new evidence — which is fourth-hand hearsay, plus opinion — added little new information, but was cited by Democrats and journalists as evidence that aid might have been linked to investigations Trump had asked the new Ukrainian government to pursue.

One of Tyler Robinson’s last meals as a free man may have been a steak dinner — medium rare

Police warn of ‘door kicking challenge’ that can turn viral prank ‘from funny to fatal’

Illegal immigrants rack up $1B+ in Texas hospital costs in FY 2025, total likely higher: report

US congressional delegation visits Denmark amid backlash over Trump’s push to acquire Greenland

81 GOP Lawmakers Just Voted to Fund an Elite Org That Exists to Elect Democrats and Suppress MAGA

Barbarians at the Gate: What Leftist in Minneapolis Said As Rioters Attempted to Storm ICE Facility Proves We Need the Insurrection Act Now

‘Scourge’ of sexual predators, violent criminals being removed from Minneapolis streets despite backlash

Democrat insider rips Mamdani bidet hopes for Gracie Mansion, cites Trump White House bathroom reno hypocrisy

Somali City Council Member Resigns Days After Being Sworn in Over Criminal Charges

Oregon city reverses vote, removes convicted murderer from police review board after backlash

Woke Christian Artist Releases Song Tying J6 to Woodstock

WATCH: Ellen Greenberg’s ex-fiancé dodges questions as feds reopen death case of teacher with 23 stab wounds

Latin Kings Gang Member Stole FBI Weapons During Left-Wing Anti-ICE Riot in Minneapolis

Philadelphia’s threat to prosecute ICE could trigger landmark court fight over authority, experts warn

White House torches Newsom as ‘inauthentic slimeball’ after California governor walks back ICE rhetoric

On Thursday, Prystaiko said that there had been no link in discussions at the time with Sondland, as Reuters reported:

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said on Thursday that U.S. ambassador Gordon Sondland did not explicitly link military aid to Kiev with opening an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Interfax Ukraine reported.

…

“Ambassador Sondland did not tell us, and certainly did not tell me, about a connection between the assistance and the investigations. You should ask him,” Prystaiko said about Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union.

…

“I have never seen a direct relationship between investigations and security assistance,” Prystaiko was quoted as saying by Interfax. “Yes, the investigations were mentioned, you know, in the conversation of the presidents. But there was no clear connection between these events.”