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.
Republican sounds alarm on rising Dem star: ‘This guy’s going to be a problem’
Zohran Mamdani urged to skip New York City’s 9/11 memorial: ‘Vile antisemite’
Houthis seize port city in offensive aimed toward Bab el-Mandeb Strait
Richard Hudson’s three keys to holding the House, and why midterm conventions are here to stay
Illegal Alien Charged with Kidnapping 6-Year-Old Girl From Her Home and Sexually Assaulting Her
Charlie Kirk’s Death Was a Singular Tragedy, But Part of a Wider Surge in Leftist Violence
9/11 hero Welles Crowther’s firehouse president reveals what shaped the ‘man in the red bandana’
Lone holdout in Lindsay Clancy trial demonstrated the killings during deliberations, fellow juror says
Trump dangles $5,000 checks as debt surges — but only if GOP can clear major midterm hurdle
Republican convention attendees share heartfelt tributes to late Charlie Kirk on assassination anniversary
Before One of Charlie Kirk’s Final Speeches, He Was Warned Not to Talk About Christianity – That Was All the Motivation He Needed
False Moderates, Part 4: AOC’s Presidential Ambitions Could Threaten American Liberty
Newsom says Biden, Clinton, and Harris were too insulated; urges Democrats to get out of their bubble
9/11 Museum unveils exhibition for generation too young to remember the attacks: ‘Called everybody to lead’
America’s reddest state chases billion-dollar boom as others sour on massive emerging industry
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.”
Republican sounds alarm on rising Dem star: ‘This guy’s going to be a problem’
Zohran Mamdani urged to skip New York City’s 9/11 memorial: ‘Vile antisemite’
Houthis seize port city in offensive aimed toward Bab el-Mandeb Strait
Richard Hudson’s three keys to holding the House, and why midterm conventions are here to stay
Illegal Alien Charged with Kidnapping 6-Year-Old Girl From Her Home and Sexually Assaulting Her
Charlie Kirk’s Death Was a Singular Tragedy, But Part of a Wider Surge in Leftist Violence
9/11 hero Welles Crowther’s firehouse president reveals what shaped the ‘man in the red bandana’
Lone holdout in Lindsay Clancy trial demonstrated the killings during deliberations, fellow juror says
Trump dangles $5,000 checks as debt surges — but only if GOP can clear major midterm hurdle
Republican convention attendees share heartfelt tributes to late Charlie Kirk on assassination anniversary
Before One of Charlie Kirk’s Final Speeches, He Was Warned Not to Talk About Christianity – That Was All the Motivation He Needed
False Moderates, Part 4: AOC’s Presidential Ambitions Could Threaten American Liberty
Newsom says Biden, Clinton, and Harris were too insulated; urges Democrats to get out of their bubble
9/11 Museum unveils exhibition for generation too young to remember the attacks: ‘Called everybody to lead’
America’s reddest state chases billion-dollar boom as others sour on massive emerging industry
In his closed-door testimony last month, which was released by the House Intelligence Committee several days ago, Sondland told the committee that he had spoken frequently with Prystaiko and other Ukrainian officials during the period in question.
Sondland is due to testify in the public hearings next week.
Story cited here.
