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.

Austin police arrest 2 juveniles allegedly linked to 12 random shootings injuring 4 people

Trump reads Bible as thousands pack National Mall for America 250 prayer rally

Attorney for man accused of throwing rock at endangered Hawaiian monk seal says client was protecting turtles

Faith and government leaders celebrate US as ‘One Nation Under God’ at Rededicate 250

Sean Spicer-linked group makes case for Trump to seniors before midterm elections

Two Navy jets crash midair as crew successfully ejects during Idaho military base air show

Blue State May Have Slipped Up While Defending Its Ammo Ban

Republican Lawmaker Crashes Woke Church’s Gun Buyback Scheme With Ingenious Play

Trump warns Iran’s ‘clock is ticking’: Move ‘fast’ or ‘there won’t be anything left’

Dad Innocently Opens Lid to Weird, Old Bottle – Moments Later the Ground’s on Fire, the Bomb Squad’s Coming, and He’s Headed to the Hospital

Taiwan’s president says island ‘will never be sacrificed or traded’ in stern rebuke of China

Six Found Dead in Cargo Boxcar at Union Pacific Yard in Border Town: Police

Fox News’s Kayleigh McEnany on faith, family, and career

Florida Police Officers Sue Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, Claim Details in New Action Thriller Are Too Real

The Founders Likely Built the Most Famous Phrase in the Declaration of Independence from a Christian Sermon

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.”