El Comité de Seguridad Nacional y Asuntos Gubernamentales del Senado de Estados Unidos finaliza un informe [pdf disponible aquí] con pruebas de que Joe y Hunter Biden realizan tratos financieros con gobiernos extranjeros.
El informe describe cómo la familia Biden vendió el acceso a la política gubernamental para beneficio financiero personal.
[Incrustar pdf abajo] Considerando la escala de evidencia que muestra conflictos de intereses masivos, es bastante asombroso que Joe Biden sea actualmente el ‘presidente electo’…
Hunter Biden, Burisma,and Corruption:The Impact on U.S.Government Policy andRelated Concerns
U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental AffairsU.S. Senate Committee on FinanceMajority Staff Report
2TABLE OF CONTENTSI.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARYII.
INTRODUCTIONIII.
CONFLICTS OF INTERESTIV.
THE VICE
PRESIDENT’S
OFFICE AND STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS WEREAWARE OF BUT IGNORED CONCERNS RELATING TO HUNTER
BIDEN’S
ROLEON
BURISMA’S
BOARD.V.
SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN KERRY FALSELY CLAIMED HE HAD NOKNOWLEDGE ABOUT HUNTER
BIDEN’S
ROLE ON
BURISMA’S
BOARD.VI.
STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS VIEWED MYKOLA ZLOCHEVSKY AS ACORRUPT,
“ODIOUS
OLIGARCH,
”
BUT VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN WASADVISED NOT TO ACCUSE ZLOCHEVSKY OF CORRUPTION.VII.
WHILE HUNTER BIDEN SERVED ON
BURISMA’S
BOARD,
BURISMA’S
OWNER, ZLOCHEVSKY, ALLEGEDLY PAID A $7 MILLION BRIBE TO
UKRAINE’S
PROSECUTOR GENERAL
’
S OFFICE TO CLOSE THE CASE.VIII.
HUNTER BIDEN: A SECRET SERVICE PROTECTEE WHILE ON
BURISMA’S
BOARD.IX.
OBAMA ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS AND A DEMOCRAT LOBBYING FIRMHAD CONSISTENT AND SIGNIFICANT CONTACT WITH FORMER UKRAINIANOFFICIAL ANDRII TELIZHENKO
.
X.
THE MINORITY FALSELY ACCUSED THE CHAIRMEN OF ENGAGING IN ARUSSIAN DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGN AND USED OTHER TACTICS TOINTERFERE IN THE INVESTIGATION.XI.
HUNTER
BIDEN’S
AND HIS
FAMILY’S
FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS WITHUKRAINIAN, RUSSIAN, KAZAKH AND CHINESE NATIONALS RAISECRIMINAL CONCERNS AND EXTORTION THREATS.XII.
CONCLUSION
3
I.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In late 2013 and into 2014, mass protests erupted in Kyiv, Ukraine, demandingintegration into western economies and an end to systemic corruption that had plagued thecountry. At least 82 people were killed during the protests, which culminated on Feb. 21 whenUkrainian President Viktor Yanukovych abdicated by fleeing the country. Less than two monthslater, over the span of only 28 days, significant events involving the Bidens unfolded.On April 16, 2014, Vice President Biden met with his son
’
s business partner, DevonArcher, at the White House. Five days later, Vice President Biden visited Ukraine, and he soonafter was described in the press as the
“
public face of the administration
’
s handling of Ukraine.
”
The day after his visit, on April 22, Archer joined the board of Burisma. Six days later, on April28, British officials seized $23 million from the London bank accounts of Burisma
’
s owner,Mykola Zlochevsky. Fourteen days later, on May 12, Hunter Biden joined the board of Burisma,and over the course of the next several years, Hunter Biden and Devon Archer were paidmillions of dollars from a corrupt Ukrainian oligarch for their participation on the board.The 2014 protests in Kyiv came to be known as the Revolution of Dignity
—
a revolutionagainst corruption in Ukraine. Following that revolution, Ukrainian political figures weredesperate for U.S. support. Zlochevsky would have made sure relevant Ukrainian officials werewell aware of Hunter
’
s appointment to Burisma
’
s board as leverage. Hunter Biden
’
s position onthe board created an immediate potential conflict of interest that would prove to be problematicfor both U.S. and Ukrainian officials and would affect the implementation of Ukraine policy.The
Chairmen’s
investigation into potential conflicts of interest began in August 2019,with Chairman
Grassley’s
letter to the Department of Treasury regarding potential conflicts ofinterest with respect to Obama administration policy relating to the Henniges transaction.
1
During the Obama administration, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States(CFIUS) approved a transaction that gave control over Henniges, an American maker of anti-vibration technologies with military applications, to a Chinese government-owned aviationcompany and a China-based investment firm with established ties to the Chinese government.One of the companies involved in the Henniges transaction was a billion-dollar privateinvestment fund called Bohai Harvest RST (BHR). BHR was formed in November 2013 by amerger between the Chinese-government-linked firm Bohai Capital and a company namedRosemont Seneca Partners. Rosemont Seneca was formed in 2009 by Hunter Biden, the son ofthen-Vice President Joe Biden, by Chris Heinz, the stepson of former Secretary of State JohnKerry, and others.
2
1
Press Release, Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., Grassley Raises Concerns Over Obama Admin Approval of U.S.Tech Company Joint Sale to Chinese Government and Investment Firm Linked to Biden, Kerry Families (Aug. 15, 2019),https://www.finance.senate.gov/chairmans-news/grassley-raises-concerns-over-obama-admin-approval-of-us-tech-company- joint-sale-to-chinese-government-and-investment-firm-linked-to-biden-kerry-families.
2
Peter Schweizer,
Inside the Shady Private Equity Firm Run by Kerry and
Biden’s
Kids
, N
EW
Y
ORK
P
OST
(Mar. 15, 2018),https://nypost.com/2018/03/15/inside-the-shady-private-equity-firm-run-by-kerry-and-bidens-kids/; Peter Schweizer,
TheTroubling Reason Why Biden is so Soft on China
, N
EW
Y
ORK
P
OST
(May 11, 2019), https://nypost.com/2019/05/11/the-troubling-reason-why-biden-is-so-soft-on-china/; Tom Llamas et al
., Biden Sidesteps Questions About His
Son’s
Foreign Business Dealings but Promises Ethics Pledge
, ABC
N
EWS
(June 20, 2019), https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-sidesteps-questions-sons-foreign-business-dealings-promises/story?id=63820806(Stating that Hunter Biden was a managing partner at RosemontSeneca Partners.).
4Access to relevant documents and testimony has been persistently hampered by criminalinvestigations, impeachment proceedings, COVID-19, and several instances of obstructive behavior. Accordingly, this investigation has taken longer than it should have. The
Chairmen’s
efforts have always been driven by our belief that the public has the right to know aboutwrongdoing and conflicts of interest occurring within government, and especially those conflicts brought about by the actions of governmental officials. This is a good-government oversightinvestigation that relies on documents and testimony from U.S. agencies and officials, not aRussian disinformation campaign, as our Democratic colleagues have falsely stated.What the Chairmen discovered during the course of this investigation is that the Obamaadministration knew that Hunter
Biden’s
position on
Burisma’s
board was problematic and didinterfere in the efficient execution of policy with respect to Ukraine. Moreover, thisinvestigation has illustrated the extent to which officials within the Obama administrationignored the glaring warning signs when the vice p
resident’s
son joined the board of a companyowned by a corrupt Ukrainian oligarch. And, as will be discussed in later sections, Hunter Bidenwas not the only Biden who cashed in on Joe
Biden’s
vice presidency.This report not only details examples of extensive and complex financial transactionsinvolving the Bidens, it also describes the quandary other U.S. governmental officials faced asthey attempted to guide and support
Ukraine’s
anticorruption efforts. The Committees willcontinue to evaluate the information and evidence as it becomes available.
Key Findings
In early 2015 the former Acting Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv,Ukraine, George Kent, raised concerns to officials in Vice President Joe
Biden’s
officeabout the perception of a conflict of interest with respect to Hunter
Biden’s
role onBuris
ma’s
board.
Kent’s
concerns went unaddressed, and in September 2016, heemphasized in an email to his colleagues,
“
Furthermore, the presence of Hunter Bidenon the Burisma board was very awkward for all U.S. officials pushing ananticorruption agenda in Ukraine
.”
In October 2015, senior State Department official Amos Hochstein raised concerns withVice President Biden, as well as with Hunter Biden, that Hunter
Biden’s
position on
Burisma’s
board enabled Russian disinformation efforts and risked undermining U.S. policy in Ukraine.
Although Kent believed that Hunter
Biden’s
role on
Burisma’s
board was awkward for
all
U.S. officials pushing an anti-corruption agenda in Ukraine, the Committees are onlyaware of two individuals
—
Kent and former U.S. Special Envoy and Coordinator forInternational Energy Affairs Amos Hochstein
—
who raised concerns to Vice PresidentJoe Biden (Hochstein) or his staff (Kent).
The awkwardness for Obama administration officials continued well past his presidency.Former Secretary of State John Kerry had knowledge of Hunter
Biden’s
role on
5
Burisma’s
board, but when asked about it at a town hall event in Nashua, N.H. on Dec. 8,2019, Kerry falsely said,
“I
had no knowledge about any of that. None.
No.”
Evidenceto the contrary is detailed in Section V.
Former Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nulandtestified that confronting oligarchs would send an anticorruption message in Ukraine.Kent told the Committees that Zlochevsky was an
“odious
oligarch.”
However, inDecember 2015, instead of following U.S. objectives of confronting oligarchs, VicePresident
Biden’s
staff advised him to avoid commenting on Zlochevsky andrecommended he say,
“I’m
not going to get into naming names or accusing
individuals.”
Hunter Biden was serving on
Burisma’s
board (supposedly consulting on corporategovernance and transparency) when Zlochevsky allegedly paid a $7 million bribe toofficials serving under
Ukraine’s
prosecutor general, Vitaly Yarema, to
“shut
the caseagainst
Zlochevsky.”
Kent testified that this bribe occurred in December 2014 (sevenmonths after Hunter joined
Burisma’s
board), and, after learning about it, he and theResident Legal Advisor reported this allegation to the FBI.
Hunter Biden was a U.S. Secret Service protectee from Jan. 29, 2009 to July 8, 2014. Aday before his last trip as a protectee, Time published an article describing
Burisma’s
ramped up lobbying efforts to U.S. officials and
Hunter’s
involvement in
Burisma’s
board. Before ending his protective detail, Hunter Biden received Secret Service protection on trips to multiple foreign locations, including Moscow, Beijing, Doha, Paris,Seoul, Manila, Tokyo, Mexico City, Milan, Florence, Shanghai, Geneva, London,Dublin, Munich, Berlin, Bogota, Abu Dhabi, Nairobi, Hong Kong, Taipei, Buenos Aires,Copenhagen, Johannesburg, Brussels, Madrid, Mumbai and Lake Como.
Andrii Telizhenko, the
Democrats’
personification of Russian disinformation, met withObama administration officials, including Elisabeth Zentos, a member of
Obama’s
National Security Council, at least 10 times. A Democrat lobbying firm, Blue StarStrategies, contracted with Telizhenko from 2016 to 2017 and continued to request hisassistance as recent as the summer of 2019. A recent news article detailed otherextensive contacts between Telizhenko and Obama administration officials.
In addition to the over $4 million paid by Burisma for Hunter Biden
’s
and
Archer’s
boardmemberships, Hunter Biden, his family, and Archer received millions of dollars fromforeign nationals with questionable backgrounds.
Archer received $142,300 from Kenges Rakishev of Kazakhstan, purportedly for a car,the same day Vice President Joe Biden appeared with Ukrainian Prime Minister ArsemyYasenyuk
and addressed Ukrainian legislators in Kyiv regarding
Russia’s
actions inCrimea.
Hunter Biden received a $3.5 million wire transfer from Elena Baturina, the wife of theformer mayor of Moscow.
6
Hunter Biden opened a bank account with Gongwen Dong to fund a $100,000 globalspending spree with James Biden and Sara Biden.
Hunter Biden had business associations with Ye Jianming, Gongwen Dong, and otherChinese nationals linked to the Communist government and the
People’s
LiberationArmy. Those associations resulted in millions of dollars in cash flow.
Hunter Biden paid nonresident women who were nationals of Russia or other EasternEuropean countries and who appear to be linked to an
“Eastern
European prostitution orhuman trafficking ring
.”
7
II.
INTRODUCTION
The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (HSGAC) andthe Senate Committee on Finance undertook this investigation into potential conflicts of interest,and the involvement of the Biden family in foreign business ventures while Joe Biden was vice president, following allegations that the Obama administration
’s
Ukraine policy could have beenaffected by Hunter Biden
’
s position on the board of Burisma, and that family members may haveimproperly sought to benefit from their relationship with the vice president.The first letter written regarding potential conflicts of interest was sent by ChairmanGrassley on Aug. 14, 2019, relating to the Henniges transaction.
3
That was an Obama-eraCommittee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) approved transaction whichgave control over Henniges, an American maker of anti-vibration technologies with militaryapplications, to a Chinese government-owned aviation company and a China-based investmentfirm with established ties to the communist Chinese government. One of the companiesinvolved in the Henniges transaction was a billion-dollar private investment fund called BohaiHarvest RST (BHR). BHR was reportedly formed in November 2013 by a merger between theChinese government-linked firm Bohai Capital and a U.S. company named Rosemont SenecaPartners. Rosemont Seneca Partners was reportedly formed in 2009 by Hunter Biden, the son ofthen-Vice President Joe Biden, by Chris Heinz, the stepson of former Secretary of State JohnKerry, and by others.
4
The direct involvement of Hunter Biden and Heinz in the acquisition of Henniges by theChinese government creates a potential conflict of interest. Both are directly related to high-ranking Obama administration officials. The Department of State, then under Mr. Kerry
’
sleadership, is also a CFIUS member and played a direct role in the decision to approve theHenniges transaction. The appearance of a potential conflict of interest in this case was particularly troubling given Hunter Biden
’
s history of investing in and collaborating withChinese companies, including at least one that clearly poses significant national securityconcerns. This history with China precedes and follows the 2015 Henniges transaction. Thisreport will discuss Hunter Biden
’
s and Devon Archer
’
s corporate entities and their links to thecommunist Chinese government in more detail.In 2019, newly released documents, made public as a result of Freedom of InformationAct (FOIA) requests and investigative reporting, brought fresh public attention and scrutiny to
3
See
Press Release, Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., Grassley Raises Concerns Over Obama Admin Approval ofU.S. Tech Company Joint Sale to Chinese Government and Investment Firm Linked to Biden, Kerry Families (Aug. 15, 2019),https://www.finance.senate.gov/chairmans-news/grassley-raises-concerns-over-obama-admin-approval-of-us-tech-company- joint-sale-to-chinese-government-and-investment-firm-linked-to-biden-kerry-families.
4
Peter Schweizer,
Inside the Shady Private Equity Firm Run by Kerry and
Biden’s
Kids
, N
EW
Y
ORK
P
OST
(Mar. 15, 2018),https://nypost.com/2018/03/15/inside-the-shady-private-equity-firm-run-by-kerry-and-bidens-kids/; Peter Schweizer,
TheTroubling Reason Why Biden is so Soft on China
, N
EW
Y
ORK
P
OST
(May 11, 2019), https://nypost.com/2019/05/11/the-troubling-reason-why-biden-is-so-soft-on-china/; Tom Llamas, et al
.
,
Biden Sidesteps Questions About His
Son’s
Foreign Business Dealings but Promises Ethics Pledge
, ABC
N
EWS
(June 20, 2019), https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-sidesteps-questions-sons-foreign-business-dealings-promises/story?id=63820806(Stating that Hunter Biden was a managing partner at RosemontSeneca Partners.).
8 potential conflicts of interest with respect to Ukraine policy in the Obama administration.
5
Additionally, news reporting also raised questions about potential conflicts of interest withrespect to Hunter Biden
’
s business dealings in China, Ukraine and Russia while Joe Biden wasserving as vice president.
6
Accordingly, on Nov. 6, 2019, Chairman Grassley and ChairmanJohnson wrote a letter to the Department of State regarding potential conflicts of interest due toHunter Biden
’
s position on the board of the corrupt Ukrainian gas company Burisma HoldingsLimited while Vice President Biden was the
“
public face of the administration
’
s handling of
Ukraine.”
7
The Committees
’
investigation focused on determining whether Hunter Biden and DevonArcher sought to benefit financially from their relationship with then-Vice President Joe Bidenor if they sought to influence U.S. policy in Ukraine on behalf of Burisma. Further, theCommittees reviewed and evaluated the Obama administration
’
s handling of Ukraine policy todetermine whether policy decisions related to Ukraine and Burisma were improperly influenced by the employment and financial interests of family members of the administration.For example, after joining Burisma
’
s board, Biden and Archer subsequently requestedmeetings with senior State Department officials, including then-Secretary of State John Kerryand then-Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
8
Further, a Democratic lobbying firm, BlueStar Strategies, working on behalf of Burisma, also invoked Hunter Biden
’
s association withBurisma while requesting a meeting with then-Under Secretary of State Catherine Novelli todiscuss matters of concern related to the Department of State
’
s position that Burisma was acorrupt company.
9
In 2016, Ukraine
’
s top prosecutor, Viktor Shokin, had an active and ongoinginvestigation into Burisma and its owner, Mykola Zlochevsky.
10
At the time, Archer and Hunter
5
See
Alana Goodman,
John
Kerry’s
son cut business ties with Hunter Biden over Ukrainian oil deal
, T
HE
W
ASHINGTON
E
XAMINER
(Aug. 27, 2019), https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/john-kerrys-son-cut-business-ties-with-hunter-biden-over-ukrainian-oil-deal;
see also
John Solomon,
These once-secret memos cast doubt on Joe
Biden’s
Ukraine story
, T
HE
H
ILL
(Sept. 26, 2019), https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/463307-solomon-these-once-secret-memos-cast-doubt-on-joe-bidens-ukraine-story; Jessica Donati,
Firm Hired by
Ukraine’s
Burisma Tried to Use Hunter Biden as Leverage, Documents show
, T
HE
W
ALL
S
TREET
J
OURNAL
(Nov. 5, 2019), https://www.wsj.com/articles/firm-hired-by-ukraines-burisma-tried-to-use-hunter-biden-as-leverage-documents-show-11573009615.
6
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize his
Father’s
Campaign?
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign; Joseph Simonson,
Hunter Biden arranged meeting between father and Chinese business partner during vice presidential visit: Report
, T
HE
W
ASHINGTON
E
XAMINER
(July 1, 2019), https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/hunter-biden-arrangement-of-fathers-meeting-with-chinese-business-partner-draws-scrutiny; Ben Schreckinger,
Biden Inc.
, P
OLITICO
(Aug. 2, 2019),https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/08/02/joe-biden-investigation-hunter-brother-hedge-fund-money-2020-campaign-227407.
7
Press Release, Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., Johnson, Grassley Call for State Department to ReleaseDocuments on Hunter Biden and Burisma (Nov. 7, 2019), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/johnson-grassley-call-state-department-release-documents-hunter-biden-and-burisma.
8
Emails between Hunter Biden and U.S.
Dep’t
of St. employees (May 2015) (on file with Comms.), Email between U.S.
Dep’t
of St. employees (Mar. 2, 2016) (on file with Comms.).
9
John Solomon,
Hunter
Biden’s
Ukraine gas firm pressed Obama administration to end corruption allegations, memos show
,(Nov. 4, 2019), https://johnsolomonreports.com/hunter-bidens-ukraine-gas-firm-pressed-obama-administration-to-end-corruption-allegations-memos-show/.
10
Kenneth P. Vogel and Iuliia Mendel,
Biden Faces Conflict of Interest Questions That Are Being Promoted by Trump Allies
,T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(May 1, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/01/us/politics/biden-son-ukraine.html; Oleg Sukhov,
9Biden continued to serve on Burisma
’
s board of directors. According to news reports, then-VicePresident Biden
“
threatened to withhold $1 billion in United States loan guarantees if Ukraine
’
sleaders did not dismiss [Shokin].
”
11
After that threat, Ukraine
’
s Parliament fired Shokin.Pursuant to the scope of this investigation, the Committees requested relevant Obamaadministration records from several U.S. federal government agencies and interviewed currentand former U.S. government officials with firsthand knowledge of the Obama administration
’
shandling of U.S. policy in Ukraine. The Committees sent requests for information to theDepartment of State, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Department ofJustice, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Secret Service, Department of the Treasury,and the U.S. Democratic consulting firm Blue Star Strategies.
12
Accordingly, this investigation is based on Obama administration federal government records and records from a Democrat lobbyshop, Blue Star Strategies.Senate Resolution 70 gives HSGAC express authority
“
to study or investigate... theefficiency and economy of operations of all branches of the government, including the possible
Powerful suspects escape justice on
Lutsenko’s
watch
, K
YIV
P
OST
(Apr. 13, 2018), https://www.kyivpost.com/ukraine- politics/powerful-suspects-escape-justice-lutsenkos-watch.html?cn-reloaded=1.
11
Kenneth P. Vogel and Iuliia Mendel,
Biden Faces Conflict of Interest Questions That Are Being Promoted by Trump Allies
,T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(May 1, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/01/us/politics/biden-son-ukraine.html; Glen Kessler,
Correcting a media error:
Biden’s
Ukraine showdown was in December 2015
, T
HE
W
ASHINGTON
P
OST
(Oct. 2, 2019),https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/10/02/correcting-media-error-bidens-ukraine-showdown-was-december/(Another report indicates that Vice President Biden made this threat in late 2015); Tim Hains,
FLASHBACK, 2018: Joe Biden Brags At CFR Meeting About Withholding Aid To Ukraine To Force Firing Of Prosecutor
, R
EAL
C
LEAR
P
OLITICS
(Sept. 27,2019),https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2019/09/27/flashback_2018_joe_biden_brags_at_cfr_meeting_about_withholding_aid_to_ukraine_to_force_firing_of_prosecutor.html. (Joe Biden was recorded, in a January 2018 appearance at the Council on ForeignRelations, bragging about threatening to withhold military aid to Ukraine in an attempt to force the Ukrainian government to fireProsecutor General Viktor Shokin. Joe Biden is recorded bragging that in response to his threat to withhold the aid,
“[w]ell
sonof a bitch. [Viktor Shokin] got
fired.”).
12
Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. on Homeland Se. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S.Comm. on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Nov. 6, 2019), https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2019-11-06%20RHJ,%20CEG%20to%20Sec.%20Pompeo%20re%20Burisma%20Inquiry.pdf ;Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson, S.Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S. Dep
’
t of Just.(Sep. 27, 2019), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/sites/default/files/2019-09-27%20CEG%20RHJ%20to%20DOJ%20%28Ukraine%20DNC%29.pdf; Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. onHomeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S. Nat
’
l Archives and RecordsAdministration (Nov. 21, 2019), https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2019-11-21%20RHJ,%20CEG%20to%20Archivist%20Ferriero%20re%20Records%20Request.pdf; Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson,S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S. Dep
’
t of Just.and Fed. Bureau of Investigation (Nov. 22, 2019), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2019-11-22%20CEG%20RHJ%20to%20DOJ%20FBI%20%28Chalupa%20Records%29.pdf; Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson, S.Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., to Blue Star Strategies(Dec. 3, 2019), https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2019-12-3%20RHJ,%20CEG%20to%20Blue%20Star%20Strategies%20re%20Burisma.pdf; Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson, S.Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S. Secret Serv. (Feb.5, 2020), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2020-02-05%20CEG%20RHJ%20to%20Secret%20Service%20%28Biden%20Travel%29.pdf; Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson, S.Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Apr.30, 2020), https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2020-04-30%20RHJ%20CEG%20to%20State%20(Ukraine%20Follow%20Up).pdf ;Letter from Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. onHomeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S. D
ep’t
of St. (Nov. 6, 2020),https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2019-11-06%20RHJ,%20CEG%20to%20Sec.%20Pompeo%20re%20Burisma%20Inquiry.pdf .
10existence
of…
corruption or unethical
practices…
[and] conflicts of inte
rest.”
13
The Committeeon Finance has broad jurisdiction over the United States government and, specifically, theDepartment of Treasury and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), whichincludes oversight jurisdiction over potential financial crimes.
14
13
S. Res. 70, 116th Cong. at 30 (2018), https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/sres70/BILLS-116sres70ats.pdf.
14
See
U.S. S. Comm. on Fin., Jurisdiction, https://www.finance.senate.gov/about/jurisdiction.
11
III.
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
Federal regulation prohibits federal government employees from
“us
[ing] [] public officefor [] private gain
…
or for the private gain of
…
relatives.”
15
This regulation also seek
“[t]o
ensure that the performance of [] official duties does not give rise to an appearance of the use of public office for private gain or of giving preferential
treatment[.]”
16
This regulation, however,does not apply to the president or vice president.
17
Other federal regulations require only the
“consideration”
of an appearance of a conflictof interest.
“Where
an employee
…
knows that a person with whom he has a coveredrelationship [e.g.,] is or represents a party to [a particular matter involving specific parties], andwhere the employee determines that the circumstances would cause a reasonable person withknowledge of the relevant facts to question his impartiality on the matter, the employee shouldnot participate in the matter unless he has informed [a designated superior] and received
authorization[.]”
18
According to the Office of Government Ethics (OGE), these rules and regulations help toensure that federal employees
“fulfill[]
their responsibility to endeavor to act at all times in the
public’s
interest and avoid losing impartiality or appearing to lose impartiality in carrying outtheir official
duties.”
19
In the context of U.S. foreign policy, the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM)sets forth the policies and procedures for State Department employees working abroad. TheFAM includes ethical regulations that take into account foreign policy considerations and treatyand statutory obligations.
20
Specifically, when a U.S. citizen employee of the State Department
21
is serving abroad and subject to the authority of that
country’s
Chief of Mission, that
employee’s
family members may be prohibited from employment or other outside activity in any foreigncountry if the Chief of Mission in that country determines it could damage the interests of theUnited States.
22
The FAM also requires employees to bring any violations of the FAM or anyother applicable regulations to the attention of the appropriate official.
23
Although
OGE’s
authority to investigate and recommend solutions to most employees forconflicts of interest issues is well-established, Congress did not extend this authority to the president and vice president in
OGE’s
establishment statute. This does not mean there is anabsence of any authority to hold the President and Vice President accountable for conflict ofinterest issues; rather, it demonstrates that the responsibility for holding the President and VicePresident responsible for conduct that implicates conflicts of interest lies elsewhere, namely,with Congress and the American people.
15
5 C.F.R. § 2635.702.
16
Id
.
at § 2635.702(d).
17
Id
.
at § 2635.102.
18
Id
.
at § 2635.502.
19
Conflicts Analysis & Resolution, Office of
Gov’t
Ethics, https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/ethicsofficials_conflict-resolution.
20
3 FAM 4121.3.
21
The FAM rules referenced in this section apply to Foreign Service, Foreign Service National, and Civil Service employees. 3FAM 4123.2-2; 3 FAM 4125.
22
3 FAM 4125.
23
3 FAM 4139.13.
12In certain instances, like self-dealing, the harm is plain. In others, the harm
—
a loss orapparent loss of impartiality
—
may be less concrete, but the effect is still the same.
24
When theimpartiality of decision makers is drawn into question, it creates a chilling effect on thecredibility of their decision-making processing and the ultimate decision. That, in turn, couldundermine the effectiveness of U.S. policy. Although these consequences may sometimes bedifficult to measure or quantify, they certainly have an effect, or else there would be little reasonto regulate them in the first instance. In the context of foreign affairs, because these subtletiesmatter, the FAM provides the Chief of Mission with the discretion to make these assessments.
24
The House of Representatives appears to think these issues matter. A House committee has been investigating PresidentTrump and his family for
“undisclosed
conflicts of interest that may impair [the
President’s]
ability to make impartial policydecisions
.”
Trump v. Mazars
, 140 S. Ct. 2019 (July 9, 2020) (Quoting Rep. Elijah Cummings, Chairman of the House OversightCommittee.).
13
IV.
THE VICE
PRESIDENT’S
OFFICE AND STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALSWERE AWARE OF BUT IGNORED CONCERNS RELATING TO HUNTER
BIDEN’S
ROLE ON
BURISMA’S
BOARD.a.
Introduction
In early 2015, senior State Department official George Kent raised concerns to staff inthe Office of the Vice President about Hunter Biden
’
s role on Burisma
’
s board. Kent testifiedthat he never heard anything back from the vice president
’
s office, and although Kent advisedthat Hunter Biden should step down from Burisma
’
s board to avoid the perception of a potentialconflict of interest, his recommendation was not followed.Hunter Biden
’
s role on Burisma
’
s board continued to be an issue State Departmentofficials had to manage when executing U.S. / Ukraine policy. More than a year after Kentreported his concerns to the vice president
’
s staff, he wrote to his superiors that Hunter Biden
’
srole on Burisma
’
s board was
“
very awkward
”
to those on the front lines pushing anticorruptionefforts in Ukraine on a daily basis.
25
Kent testified that he felt the need to
“prepar[e]
everybodyfor
‘what
about-
ism,’
because we
’re
pushing
what’s
right
…
and we have to be prepared for people who are critics, are opponents, to say,
‘Well,
what about? What about Hunter Biden?
’”
26
Indeed, Kent testified further that he
“
would have advised any American not to get on the boardof Zlochevsky
’
s company.
”
27
The Committees are also aware of at least one other senior StateDepartment official, Amos Hochstein, who raised concerns directly to Vice President Bidenabout potential conflicts of interest relating to Hunter Biden
’
s role on Burisma
’
s board.
28
Although Hochstein declined to testify about the substance of his conversation with VicePresident Biden,
29
the New Yorker reported that Hochstein
“did
not go so far as to recommendthat Hunter leave the board.
”
30
The Committees found that neither the Office of the VicePresident nor the State Department ever took any action following these complaints.
b.
In February 2015, Kent raised concerns about the perception of a conflict of interestregarding Hunter
Biden’s
role on
Burisma’s
board.
According to Kent, in early 2015 when he was still Acting Deputy Chief of Mission atthe U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, he learned that Hunter Biden was on the board of Burisma.
31
Kentstated,
“
[s]oon after that, in a briefing call with the National Security staff in the Office of theVice President on other matters, in February 2015, I raised my concern that Hunter Biden
’
sstatus as a board member could create the perception of a conflict of
interest.”
32
Kent continued:
25
Transcript of Interview at 224, S. Comm. on Fin. and S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. Interview ofGeorge Kent (July 24, 2020). [Hereinafter George Kent Testimony].
26
George Kent Testimony at 221.
27
George Kent Testimony at 110.
28
Transcript of Interview at 98, S. Comm. on Fin. and S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. Interview of Victoria Nuland (Sept. 3, 2020). [Hereinafter Victoria Nuland Testimony].
29
Amos Hochstein Testimony at 52-58.
30
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize His
Father’s
Campaign?
, New Yorker (July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
31
George Kent Testimony at 16.
32
George Kent Testimony at 16.
14I said that I had learned that Hunter Biden had been appointed to a board of this company, that I had just raised U.S. concerns aboutthe owner of the company, who we believed had been engaged inmoney-laundering.
…
[T]he bottom line was, I said I believethat this creates the perception of a potential conflict ofinterest, given Vice President Biden
’
s role and his very strongadvocacy for anticorruption action, and that I thought thatsomeone needed to talk to Hunter Biden, and he should [step]down from the board of Burisma
.
33
When the Committees asked Kent who he spoke to in Vice President Biden
’
s office, hestated,
“
I can
’
t remember, to be perfectly honest. I don
’
t remember who I spoke to.
”
34
Kent toldthe Committees that, after raising this concern, he never heard anything back from the vice president
’
s office.
35
c.
Hunter
Biden’s
association with Burisma continued to be an
“awkward”
conflict ofinterest State Department officials had to manage.
Hunter Biden
’
s association with Burisma appeared in numerous State Departmentrecords, particularly when State officials discussed the company, its owner, and anticorruptionefforts in Ukraine. According to records reviewed by the Committees, in 2016, Kent mentionedHunter Biden when discussing Burisma with his colleagues. Kent told the Committees:
For me it
’
s preparing everybody for
“
what about-ism,
”
becausewe
’
re pushing what
’
s right, and we do what
’
s right, and we have to be prepared for people who are critics, are opponents, to say,
“
Well, what about?
What about Hunter Biden
?
”
So there was no time, as I
’
ve testified, that the U.S. government,the U.S. embassy ever made a decision about Zlochevsky orBurisma where we took the presence of a private citizen on the board into account. We made the decision on the merits. Butothers might think otherwise. And so everyone needed to be awareof what we were dealing with as we made the right decisions.
36
The extent to which Hunter Biden
’
s role on Burisma
’
s board affected U.S. policy towardUkraine is not clear. But what is clear from the records, however, is that State Departmentofficials, particularly Kent himself, regularly considered how Hunter Biden
’
s connection toBurisma might affect the execution of U.S. policy. Moreover, as described previously, thisincluded having to respond to Russian actors attempting to exploit Hunter
Biden’s
position on
33
George Kent Testimony at 128-29 (emphasis added);
see also
George Kent Testimony at 110.
34
George Kent Testimony at 128.
35
George Kent Testimony at 226.
36
George Kent Testimony at 221 (emphasis added).
15
Burisma’s
board to drive a wedge between Ukrainian and the U.S. in an effort to undermine U.S. policy toward Ukraine.For example, Kent raised Hunter Biden
’
s connection to Burisma during multiplediscussions over emails involving the Municipal Energy Reform Program (MERP).
37
In thoseemails, Kent asked his colleagues,
“
[H]ow have we traditionally treated/engaged Burisma
,given the Zlochevsky connection,
but also perhaps US involvement beyond Hunter Biden
?
”
38
In another email chain, Kent also pointed out that
“
[Zlochevsky] put Hunter Biden on theboard of his Burisma
Energy
company.”
39
When inquiring about the extent to which StateDepartment officials researched Burisma
’
s past, in order to determine whether to associate withthe company, Kent asked his colleagues whether any
‘“
know your partner
’
due diligence was
done”
before the partnership between MERP and Burisma was established.
40
Kent thendescribed old news stories involving the company:
“
Zlochevsky as a corrupt mal actor was a2014 story [and] his control of Burisma, and
the very sticky wicket of the Hunter Bidenconnection on Burisma
’
s board
was circulating in
2015.”
41
As part of that same email chain,Kent asked his colleagues if the U.S. government continues its association with Burisma:[W]ould we want an article on the front page of the WashingtonPost (and in this case, the Kyiv Post, and on the FB pages of SergiyLeshchenko and Mustafa Nayyem)
commenting about this publicprivate partnership with Burisma, the link to Hunter Biden,and the link to Zlochevsky
, who almost certainly paid off thePGO in December 2014 (I had the then First deputy PG Danylenkotell me the bribe was $7 million) to have the case against himclosed and his $23 million in assets frozen in the UK unfrozen?
42
37
Kent told the Committee that he mentioned Hunter
Biden’s
name in this context because he believed that
“all
U.S. Governmentofficials need to be aware of all the factors involved in an
issue.”
George Kent Testimony at 113. When asked why Kent did notraise the names of other individuals on
Burisma’s
board he said,
“the
one American that I was aware of that was on the board [inAugust 2016] was Hunter
Biden.”
George Kent Testimony at 114. The MERP was a program funded by the United StatesAgency for International Development (USAID). According to State Department documents, the MERP and Burisma enteredinto a Memorandum of Understanding on October 13, 2014. Email from Redacted, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to George Kent, et al.,U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Aug. 12, 2016, 16:47:00), [STATE-2019-18-0000357] (attaching Memorandum of Understanding between theMERP in Ukraine and Burisma Holdings Limited (Oct. 13, 2014), [STATE-2019-18-0000361-364]). Kent testified that,
“in
2015, there had been a set of awards given by this program implementer that had been funded by Burisma. They were planninganother set of awards, a second set of awards in mid-September [. . . .] We pulled the plug and there was no
second.”
GeorgeKent Testimony at 124. USAID
“withdrew
its [MERP] cooperation with
Burisma”
in September 2016. Email from Redacted,U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Dec. 6, 2016, 00:18:23 -0500), [STATE-2019-18-0001205] (attachingBriefing Checklist: Ambassador Yovan
ovitch’s
Meeting with Karen Tramontano, Blue Star Strategies [STATE-2019-18-0001207]).
38
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Jeffrey Cole, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Aug. 13, 2016, 3:26 PM) [STATE-2019-18-0000377-378].
39
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to John Herbst, Atlantic Council, and William Taylor, U.S. Inst. of Peace (Aug.29, 2016, 11:23 AM) [STATE-2019-18-0000365-368] (emphasis added).
40
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Deputy Mission Dir., U.S. Embassy Kyiv, et al. (Aug. 31, 2016, 21:55) [State-2019-18-0000398-399].
41
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Deputy Mission Dir., U.S. Embassy Kyiv, et al. (Aug. 31, 2016, 21:55) [State-2019-18-0000398-399] (emphasis added).
42
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Deputy Mission Dir., U.S. Embassy Kyiv, et al. (Aug. 31, 2016, 21:55) [State-2019-18-0000398-399] (emphasis added).
16So even though the total amount of time State Department officials spent accounting forHunter Biden
’
s association with Burisma is unclear, the records show that it was an issue thathad to be addressed repeatedly.
d.
More than one year after Kent reported his concerns about Hunter Biden to the vicep
resident’s
office, he once again raised the issue
—
this time to his superiors at theState Department.
On Sept. 6, 2016, Kent wrote an email to senior State Department officials, includingDeputy Assistant Secretary Bridget Brink and U.S. Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, and offeredhis contemporaneous view of Hunter Biden
’
s association with Burisma. Kent wrote,
“
thepresence of Hunter Biden on the Burisma board was very awkward for all U.S. officialspushing an anti-corruption agenda in Ukraine
.”
43
In testimony Kent expanded on thiscomment:I meant that people who talk the talk need to walk the walk, andfor the U.S. government, collectively, when we talk about the needto have high standards of integrity, again, as I
’
ve said, the presenceof [Hunter Biden] on the board created the perception of a potential conflict of interest.
44
The Committees learned, through document requests, that Victoria Nuland, then-Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, also received a forwarded copyof Kent
’
s September 2016 email outlining his concerns about Hunter Biden being on Burisma
’
s board. Nuland testified that she
“
was always open to hearing the concerns of subordinates andtrying to address them in an open and transparent
manner.”
45
Yet when the Committee asked Nuland to explain what actions she took when she received Kent
’
s email, she said that Kent
’
sconcerns about Hunter Biden were
“
clearly, way deep down in an email, late in
2016”
and
“
theywere not brought to my specific attention by George Kent, who is an old friend and had plenty ofopportunity to do so, had he so
wanted.”
46
Despite senior State Department officials clearly being made aware of the situation, Kent
’
s concerns remained unaddressed.
e.
Hochstein spoke to Vice President Biden about concerns relating to Hunter
Biden’s
role on
Burisma’s
board because, according to Hochstein, Russians were using it toadvance disinformation.
According to testimony and public reports, Hochstein, then-U.S. Special Envoy andCoordinator for International Energy Affairs, raised concerns about Hunter Biden
’
s role onBurisma
’
s board directly to Vice President Biden. Nuland told the Committees:
43
Email from George Kent, U.S. De
p’t
of St., to Bridget Brink, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Sept. 6, 2016, 09:55:14 -0400) [STATE-2019-18-0000345-347] (emphasis added).
44
George Kent Testimony at 220.
45
Victoria Nuland Testimony at 121.
46
Victoria Nuland Testimony at 121-22.
17
Amos Hochstein had had a conversation with the vicepresident and his staff about this
, and he also had anotherconversation on the plane ride to Ukraine for that December 2015trip.
47
Public reporting also confirms Hochstein
’
s discussion with Vice President Biden.According to one report,
“
Amos Hochstein, the Obama Administration
’
s special envoy forenergy policy, raised the matter with Biden, but did not go so far as to recommend that Hunterleave the
board.”
48
When Hochstein testified before the Committees, he declined on advice ofcounsel to testify about the substance of his conversation with Vice President Biden.
49
The NewYorker, however, reported that Hochstein
“did
not go so far as to recommend that Hunter leavethe
board.”
50
It is unclear how Vice President Biden responded to this conversation.According to Hochstein, he raised this issue with Vice President Biden because he wasconcerned that the Russians were using Hunter
Biden’s
role with Burisma to sowdisinformation.
51
Hochstein recounted that he spoke with Vice President Biden in the WestWing of the White House in October 2015.
52
When asked why he decided to raise the issue ofHunter
Biden’s
position on
Burisma’s
board with Vice President Biden, Hochstein testified:Hochstein: We were starting to think about a trip to Ukraine, and
I wanted to makesure that he [Vice President Biden] was aware that there was anincrease in chatter on media outlets close to Russians and corruptoligarchs-owned media outlets about undermining his message
—
totry to undermine his [Vice President Biden
’s
] message and includingHunter Biden being part of the board of Burisma
.
53
Hochstein also raised his concerns about Russian disinformation with Hunter Biden.Shortly after his conversation with Vice President Biden, Hunter Biden contacted Hochstein andasked to meet. According to Hochstein, Hunter became aware of
Hochstein’s
West Wingconversation with the Vice President, who had mentioned it to Hunter.
54
Hochstein describedwhat he and Hunter Biden discussed at this November 2015 meeting at a coffee shop inGeorgetown:
55
Question:
And could you expand on that? Why did you discuss Burisma with him[Hunter Biden]?
47
Victoria Nuland Testimony at 98.
48
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize his
Father’s
Campaign
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
49
Amos Hochstein Testimony at 52-58.
50
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize His
Father’s
Campaign?
, New Yorker (July 1, 2019).
51
Transcript of Interview at 50, S. Comm. on Fin. and S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. Interview of AmosHochstein Testimony (Sept. 17, 2020). [Hereinafter Amos Hochstein Testimony].
52
Id
. at 51.
53
Id
. at 112-13. (emphasis added).
54
Id.
at 117.
55
Id
.
at 118.
18Hochstein:
Well, he [Hunter Biden] asked me for a meeting. I think he wanted toknow my views on Burisma and Zlochevsky.
And so I shared with himthat the Russians were using his name in order to sowdisinformation
—
attempt to sow disinformation among Ukrainians
.
56
During the November 2015 conversation with Hunter Biden, Hochstein did notrecommend that Hunter leave
Burisma’s
board because he did not
“believe
that was my place tohave that discussion, one way or the
other.”
57
f.
Conclusion
Hunter Biden
’
s role on Burisma
’
s board hindered the efforts of dedicated career-serviceindividuals who were fighting for anticorruption measures in Ukraine. Because the vice president
’
s son had a direct link to a corrupt company and its owner, State Department officialswere required to maintain situational awareness of Hunter Biden
’
s association with Burisma.Unfortunately, U.S. officials had no other choice but to endure the
“
awkward[ness]
”
ofcontinuing to push an anticorruption agenda in Ukraine while the vice president
’
s son sat on the board of a Ukrainian company with a corrupt owner, earning tens of thousands of dollars amonth. As Kent testified, he
“
would have advised any American not to get on the board ofZlochevsky
’
s company.
”
58
Yet even though Hunter Biden
’
s position on Burisma
’
s board cast ashadow over the work of those advancing anticorruption reforms in Ukraine, the Committees areonly aware of two individuals who raised concerns to their superiors. Despite the efforts of theseindividuals, their concerns appear to have fallen on deaf ears.
56
Id
.
at 50 (emphasis added).
57
Id
.
at 117.
58
George Kent Testimony at 110.
19
V.
SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN KERRY FALSELY CLAIMED HE HAD NOKNOWLEDGE ABOUT HUNTER
BIDEN’S
ROLE ON
BURISMA’S
BOARD.a.
Introduction
On Dec. 8, 2019, a reporter asked former Secretary of State John Kerry about hisawareness of Hunter Biden on Burisma
’
s board during his time at the State Department.
59
Kerryresponded,
“
I had no knowledge about any of that. None. No.
”
60
The reporter pressed for moreinformation and Kerry said,
“
What would I know about any
—
no. Why would I know about anycompany or any individual? No. The answer is no. No communication. No
nothing.”
61
Testimony and documents obtained by the Committees call into question the accuracy of Kerry
’
sstatement. On May 13, 2014, the day after Hunter Biden joined
Burisma’s
board, Secretary
Kerry’s
stepson, Christopher Heinz
—
who was also Hunter
Biden’s
business partner
—
emailedto inform
Kerry’s
chief of staff, and to distance himself, from that decision. Moreover, in May2014, Secretary Kerry
’
s chief of staff, David Wade, briefed him about press inquiries specificallyrelating to Heinz, Hunter Biden, and Burisma. Separately, State Department officials wrote thatthey sent the secretary articles with the headlines,
“
Biden
’
s son joins Ukrainian gas company
’
s
board,”
“Biden
’
s son joins Ukrainian gas producer board,
”
and
“
White House says no issue withBiden
’
s son, Ukraine gas
company.”
62
Accordingly, these records suggest that Kerry did, in fact,know about Hunter Biden and Burisma.
b.
In May 2014, Wade, Secretary
Kerry’s
chief of staff, briefed him about pressinquiries relating to Heinz, Hunter Biden, and Burisma.
On May 13, 2014, State Department officials began fielding press inquiries relating toHunter Biden joining Burisma
’
s board and the extent to which Secretary Kerry
’
s stepson, Heinz,was involved. That day Heinz emailed Secretary
Kerry’s
chief of staff about Burisma
’
sannouncement in an apparent attempt to distance himself from Hunter Biden
’
s decision.
63
Heinz wrote to Special Assistant Matt Summers and Chief of Staff Wade:Apparently Devon [Archer] and Hunter [Biden] both joined the board of Burisma and a press release went out today. I cant tospeak [sic] why they decided to, but there was no investment byour firm in their company.
64
59
Amanda Golden (@amandawgolden), NBC
N
EWS
, Twitter (Dec. 8, 2019 2:28 PM),https://twitter.com/amandawgolden/status/1203758177726189574.
60
Id
.
61
Id
.
62
Emails between David Thorne and David Wade, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (May 13, 2014) [STATE-2019-18-0000733].
63
Christopher Heinz had business dealings with Hunter Biden and Devon Archer through their firm Rosemont Seneca.According to
Heinz’s
spokesman he
“strongly
warned Mr. Archer that working with Burisma was
unacceptable”
and
“[t]he
lackof judgment in this matter was a major catalyst for Mr. Heinz ending his business relationships with Mr. Archer and Mr.
Biden.”
Paul Sonne, Michael Kranish, Matt Viser,
The gas tycoon and the vice
president’s
son: The story of Hunter
Biden’s
foray intoUkraine
, T
HE
W
ASHINGTON
P
OST
(Sept. 28, 2019), https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/the-gas-tycoon-and-the-vice-presidents-son-the-story-of-hunter-bidens-foray-in-ukraine/2019/09/28/1aadff70-dfd9-11e9-8fd3-d943b4ed57e0_story.html.
64
Email from Chris Heinz to Matt Summers and David Wade, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (May 13, 2014),https://www.scribd.com/document/433436789/CU-v-State-FOIA-Doc-Ukraine;
see also
Alana Goodman,
John
Kerry’s
son cut
20Wade testified that he did not recall receiving this email from Heinz, but he did, to the best of his recollection, reach out to speak with Heinz the following day to
“
try to confirm sincewe were being asked whether he, or that Rosemont Seneca was buying or investing in
Burisma.”
65
Wade testified that he spoke to Heinz on May 14, 2014, and confirmed, based onlyon Heinz
’
s assurances, that
“
Rosemont Seneca was not involved
”
with Burisma.
66
According to Wade, that same day he spoke to Secretary Kerry and
“
let him know thatChris Heinz and Rosemont Seneca were not involved [with Burisma], that the media questions[about Rosemont Seneca buying or investing in Burisma] were inaccurate, and that Chris Heinzwas not buying or investing in a Ukrainian natural gas company, but that my understanding wasthat
…
Hunter Biden and Devon Archer, according to the stories, that that was accurate, that theywere
…
joining a
board.”
67
Wade confirmed that Secretary Kerry learned about Hunter Biden
’
sassociation with Burisma through him:Question: What was Secretary Kerry
’
s reaction to you informing him of these newsinquiries about Mr. Heinz and the additional information regarding Mr.Archer
’
s [and] Mr. Hunter Biden
’
s connection and involvement withBurisma?Wade: He knew nothing about it.
Question: So he learned about this information from you?Wade: I believe so, yeah.
Question: And when you told him that the information that you were able to confirmwith Mr. Heinz that Rosemont Seneca had
…
not invested or boughtBurisma, what was Mr. Kerry's reaction to that?Wade: If I recall, his reaction was that he was comfortable answering a pressquestion if he got it.. . . .Question: [T]hat he was comfortable answering the media question regarding what?Wade: Regarding
…
Christopher Heinz or Rosemont Seneca investing in
—
in aUkrainian natural gas company or buying a Ukrainian natural gas
business ties with Hunter Biden over Ukrainian oil deal
, T
HE
W
ASH
.
E
XAMINER
(Aug. 27, 2019),https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/john-kerrys-son-cut-business-ties-with-hunter-biden-over-ukrainian-oil-deal.
65
Transcript of Interview at 39, S. Comm. on Fin. and S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. Interview of DavidWade (Aug. 3, 2020). [Hereinafter David Wade Testimony].
66
David Wade Testimony at 41.
67
David Wade Testimony at 47.
21company.Question: And did you discuss with Mr. Kerry what his response to that type ofinquiry would have been?Wade: I'm sure
—
I'm sure I did. I don't
—
I don
’
t
…
remember those details ofthe conversation.
68
c.
In May 2014, State Department staff sent news articles to Secretary Kerry relatingto Hunter Biden and Burisma.
David Thorne, who served as a senior adviser to Secretary Kerry, informed Wade that hesent the following collection of press clips and articles to the secretary on May 14, 2014:
69
Thorne forwarded these clips to Wade and wrote,
“
I sent it to JK[.]
”
70
Wade told theCommittees that
“
JK
”
stood for
“
John Kerry.
”
71
The headlines of the articles that Thorne sent toKerry included,
“
Biden
’
s son joins Ukrainian gas company
’
s board,
”
“
Biden
’
s son joinsUkrainian gas producer
board,”
and
“
White House says no issue with Biden's son, Ukraine gas
company.”
72
68
David Wade Testimony at 50-51 (emphasis added).
69
Email from David Thorne, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to David Wade, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (May 16, 2014, 20:52:30 +0000), [STATE-2019-18-0000733].
70
Email from David Thorne, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to David Wade, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (May 16, 2014, 20:52:30 +0000), [STATE-2019-18-0000733].
71
David Wade Testimony at 79.
72
Thorne’s
email did not include the headlines of the articles, but it did contain links to the articles and a description of the articleincluding the publication date and the
author’s
name. Based on this information, the Committees were able to find the headlinesof the articles that Throne sent to Kerry. Emails between David Thorne, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., and David Wade, U.S.
Dep’t
of St.(May 16, 2014), [STATE-2019-18-0000733].
22
d.
Conclusion
Former Secretary Kerry
’s
December 2019 denial of having any knowledge about HunterBiden or Burisma is inconsistent with the evidence uncovered by the Committees. Kerry was briefed about Hunter Biden, Burisma and Heinz the day after Burisma announced Hunter Biden joined its board. Additionally, Secretary Kerry
’
s senior advisor sent him press clips and articlesrelating to Hunter Biden
’
s board membership. This appears to be yet another example of high-ranking Obama administration officials blatantly ignoring Hunter Biden
’
s association withBurisma.
23
VI.
STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS VIEWED ZLOCHEVSKY AS ACORRUPT,
“ODIOUS
OLIGARCH,
”
BUT VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN WASADVISED NOT TO ACCUSE ZLOCHEVSKY OF CORRUPTION.a.
Introduction
The State Department clearly viewed Burisma and its owner, Mykola Zlochevsky, ascorrupt, and did not want to have any association with either one. For example, as soon asDeputy Chief of Mission George Kent learned of a de minimis USAID arrangement withBurisma, and succeeded in severing that relationship. As U.S. officials pressed Ukrainianofficials to hold Zlochevsky accountable for his actions, Vice President Biden was
“
leading the policy
charge”
of pushing anticorruption measures in Ukraine, which included confrontingoligarchs.
73
Yet as staff prepared talking points for Vice President Biden to answer questionsabout whether he viewed Zlochevsky as corrupt, they suggested that he
“
not
…
get into namingnames or accusing
individuals.”
74
Biden
’
s spokeswoman told reporters,
“
the vice president doesnot endorse any particular company and has no involvement with this
company.”
75
This standsin stark contrast to the decision of then-Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt to call out Zlochevsky byname as an example of corruption in a September 2015 speech. Biden
’
s unwillingness toconfront a man whom State officials considered to be an
“
odious oligarch
”
76
demonstrated a lackof leadership, but also raises a serious question about why Vice President Biden would avoidlinking Zlochevsky with corruption.
b.
State Department officials viewed Zlochevsky and Burisma as corrupt.
According to testimony and documents obtained by the Committees, State Departmentofficials viewed Burisma and its owner, Zlochevsky, as corrupt. Insofar as the link betweenZlochevsky and corruption was not already clear to State Department officials, in early 2015they learned that Zlochevsky likely bribed Ukrainian prosecutors to interfere in a UnitedKingdom criminal proceeding against him, which was subsequently closed. (Section VII of thisreport will describe this bribe and its consequences in more detail.) In short, State Departmentofficials
’
understanding of Zlochevsky
’
s actions relating to the U.K. criminal case stronglyinfluenced their perspective of him and Burisma. Below are several examples of StateDepartment officials
sharing their perspective of Zlochevsky and Burisma:
“
Zlochevsky was viewed as corrupt
, not just in Ukraine but by the
USG/FBI[.]”
–
George Kent, Department of State, Sept. 2016
77
73
George Kent Testimony at 21; Victoria Nuland Testimony at 99.
74
Email from Kate Bedingfield, Off. of the Vice President, to Michael Carpenter, Off. of the Vice President, et al. (Dec. 6, 2015,6:04 PM) [STATE-2019-18-0000553-554].
75
James Risen,
Joe Biden,
His Son and the Case Against a Ukrainian Oligarch
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(Dec. 8, 2015),https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/world/europe/corruption-ukraine-joe-biden-son-hunter-biden-ties.html.
76
George Kent Testimony at 104.
77
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Bridget Brink, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Sept. 6, 2016, 9:55:14 -0400), [STATE-2019-18-0000345-347] (emphasis added).
24
“
[W]e have extensive concerns about corruption in Ukraine, and we believe Mr.Zlochevsky is an example
.”
–
Memo to then-U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine MarieYovanovitch, Dec. 2016
78
“Burisma's
owner was
a poster child for corrupt behavior
[.]”
–
George KentTestimony to the Committees
79
“I
would have advised any American not to get on the board of
Zlochevsky’s
com
pany.”
–
George Kent Testimony to the Committees
80
“The
proliferation of Ukrainian companies clearly (and not so clearly owned/controlled by
odious oligarchs or those who outright stole assets and absconded (likeZlochevsky)
is likely a long
one.”
–
George Kent, Department of State, Aug. 2016
81
“Throughout
2015 and 2016, U.S. officials, particularly those at the U.S. Embassy inK[y]iv, consistently pressed Ukrainian officials to
hold Zlochevsky to account andmade clear our negative view about Burisma
.”
–
George Kent Testimony to theCommittees
82
“…our
focus was on
[Zlochevsky’s]
corrupt acts
as minister when he abused the officeto award national gas exploration contracts to companies that he controlled through shell
companies.”
–
George Kent Testimony to the Committees
83
“[I]n
the case of former Ecology Minister Mykola Zlochevsky, the U.K. authorities hadseized $23 million in
illicit assets
that belonged to the Ukrainian
people.”
–
GeoffreyPyatt, then-U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Sept. 2015
84
The closing of the U.K. case against Zlochevsky was a
“gross
miscarriage of justice thatundermined months of U.S. assistance
…
[a]fter the FBI and MI5 spent months andarguably millions working to try to put together the first possible
asset recover case(against former Minister of Ecology Zlochevsky
)[.]”
–
George Kent, State Department,Aug. 2016
85
78
Email from Redacted, U.S. De
p’t
of St., to George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Dec. 6, 2016, 00:18:23 -0500), [STATE-2019-18-0001205] (attaching Briefing Checklist: Ambassador
Yovanovitch’s
Meeting with Karen Tramontano, Blue Star Strategies[STATE-2019-18-0001206-1208]).
79
George Kent Testimony at 21.
80
George Kent Testimony at 110.
81
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Jeffrey Cole, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Aug. 13, 2016, 3:26 PM), [STATE-2019-18-0000377-378] (emphasis added). When asked whether Kent considered Zlochevsky as an
“odious
oligarch,”
he responded,
“I
did.”
George Kent Testimony at 104.
82
George Kent Testimony at 20 (emphasis added).
83
George Kent Testimony at 110.
84
Remarks by U.S. Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt at the Odesa Financial Forum on September 24,2015, Geoffrey Pyatt, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Remarks-by-US-Ambassador-Geoffrey-Pyatt-at-the-Odesa-Financial-Forum-on-September-24-2015-ukraine.pdf (emphasis added).
85
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to William Taylor, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Aug. 29, 2016, 11:23 AM), [STATE-2019-18-0000372-374] (emphasis added).
25
“[The]
U.S. and U.K. were cooperating on a case to seize
[Zlochevsky’s]
corrupt assets
overseas (which had passed through the
U.S.).”
–
Geoffrey Pyatt, then-U.S. Ambassadorto Ukraine, Dec. 2015
86
There is
“
a moral hazard associated with publicly associating/promoting ourassistance projects with companies/individuals seen in Ukrainian society as
corrupt/compromised.”
–
George Kent on whether any U.S. agency should cooperate orassociate with Burisma or Zlochevsky, Aug. 2016
87
“[United
States Government (USG)] cooperation on the project
[with Burisma]
would make us look bad.
Not to mention the [Members of Parliament] on the energycommittee and
others would wonder how we speak about anti corruption [sic], butwork with those that were associated with corrupt practices
.”
–
Redacted StateDepartment official in an email to colleagues, Sept. 2016
88
“[There]
is a clear link between the company and its primary owner. . . . From therumors that we hear in the energy sector,
there is no sense that Burisma has changedhow it conducts its business
. . . .
I fall on the side of not having anything to do withthe company
to avoid undermining our broader efforts to promote transparency and
[anticorruption].”
–
Redacted State Department official in an email to colleagues, Sept.2016
89
c.
State Department officials viewed Vice President Biden as a
“warrior”
and
“leading
the policy
charge”
on anticorruption measures in Ukraine.
According to testimony, former State Department officials saw Vice President Biden as aleading U.S. figure who pushed for anticorruption measures in Ukraine. Kent testified,
“
VicePresident Biden was leading the policy charge, pushing President Poroshenko and PrimeMinister Yatsenyuk to take more decisive anticorruption
action.”
90
Ambassador Victoria Nulandcalled Vice President Biden a
“
warrior
”
on this issue and said,
“
I was proud to work with VicePresident Biden on Ukraine policy and especially on trying to help the Ukrainian period [sic]root out corruption in their
country.”
91
On December 9, 2015, Vice President Biden spoke in Ukraine in front of the parliamentof Ukraine, the Verkhovna Rada, and told the members that they are facing a
“
test of courage
”
86
Email from Geoffrey Pyatt, Ambassador to Ukraine, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Victoria Nuland, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Dec. 6,2015, 11:13:00 -0500), [STATE-2019-18-0000325] (emphasis added).
87
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Jeffrey Cole, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Aug. 13, 2016, 3:26 PM), [STATE-2019-18-0000377-378].
88
The project referenced in this email related to Bur
isma’s
association with the MERP. Email from Redacted, U.S.
Dep’t
of St.,to George Kent et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Sept. 1, 2016, 7:15 AM), [State-2019-18-0000505-506] (emphasis added). Kent wouldlater call the Burisma-MERP relationship as an
“ill
-advised USAID co-branding
effort.”
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
ofSt., to Jorgan Andrew, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Nov. 22, 2016, 00:46:32 -0500), [State-2019-18-0000479].
89
Email from Redacted, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to George Kent, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Sept. 1, 2016, 7:46 AM), [State-2019-18-0000505] (emphasis added).
90
George Kent Testimony at 21.
91
Victoria Nuland Testimony at 70.
26and have an
“
obligation
”
to Ukrainians to reform their country to
“
build a united, democraticUkrainian nation that can stand the test of
time.”
92
In doing so, Biden stated that Ukrainianshave
“
a historic battle against corruption.
”
93
He said
“
[o]ligarchs and non-oligarchs must play by the same
rules.”
94
Biden called on the Rada to
“
[s]eize the opportunity. Build a better futurefor the people of
Ukraine.”
95
Biden
’
s speech, which pushed anticorruption measures, was,according to Nuland,
“
very powerful and powerfully received by the Rada.
”
96
Yet, while VicePresident Biden called for members of the Rada to have courage to confront corruption inUkraine, the vice president
’
s staff was advising otherwise.
d.
Vice President
Biden’s
staff recommended he not link Zlochevsky with corruption.
Nuland told the Committees that by confronting oligarchs, the U.S. would send ananticorruption message.
97
Yet as Vice President Biden
’
s staff responded to press inquiriesrelating to Burisma and Zlochevsky, one staffer wrote,
“
I am concerned about getting intoanything relating to Mr. Zlochevsky
directly.”
98
Just a few days before the vice president gavehis December 2015 speech at the Rada pushing anticorruption measures, his staff preparedtalking points for him and included a response to the question:
“
Do you think Zlochevsky is
corrupt?”
99
His staff wrote:
I
’
m not going to get into naming names or accusing individuals.
We have been working consistently to push the Ukrainianleadership to make meaningful changes in the Prosecutor General
’
soffice and across the government to help ensure that the Ukrainian people are represented fairly and fully.
100
It is clear that members of Vice President Biden
’
s staff wanted to distance him from anindividual whom the State Department clearly believed was corrupt and an individual whoemployed his son. This stands in stark contrast to then-Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt, whoidentified Zlochevsky by name as a corrupt actor during a September 2015 speech in Odessa,Ukraine. But the Committees were not able to locate any public statements Vice President Bidengave from 2014 to 2016 in which he called Zlochevsky corrupt. Instead, in December 2015,
92
Remarks by Vice President Joe Biden to The Ukrainian Rada (Dec. 9, 2015), https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2015/12/09/remarks-vice-president-joe-biden-ukrainian-rada.
93
Id
.
94
Id
.
95
Id
.
96
Victoria Nuland Testimony at 96.
97
Victoria Nuland Testimony at 99.
98
Email from Kendra Barkoff, Off. of the Vice President, to Michael Carpenter, Off. of the Vice President, et al. (Oct. 23, 2015,10:00 AM), [STATE-2019-18-0000339-340].
99
Email from Kate Bedingfield, Off. of the Vice President, to Michael Carpenter, Off. of the Vice President, et al. (Dec. 6, 2015,11:13 AM), [STATE-2019-18-0000553-554].
100
Email from Kate Bedingfield, Off. of the Vice President, to Michael Carpenter, Off. of the Vice President, et al. (Dec. 6, 2015,6:04 PM), [STATE-2019-18-0000553-554] (emphasis added). Ambassador Pyatt recommended changing the last sentence ofthat answer to
“Something
like
‘…
begin rooting out the cancer of corruption that has done so much over the years to hold backeconomic growth and sap the confidence of Ukrainians in those who govern
them.’”
Email from Geoffrey Pyatt, Ambassador toUkraine, to Kate Bedingfield, Off. of the Vice President, et al. (Dec. 6, 2015, 11:13 AM), [STATE-2019-18-0000553].
27Biden
’
s spokeswoman told reporters,
“
the vice president does not endorse any particularcompany and has no involvement with this
company.”
101
e.
Conclusion
In his December 2015 speech at the Rada, Vice President Biden told members to havecourage to confront corruption and change the course of history for their country. Yet when itcame to calling out an individual whom the State Department viewed as a
“
corrupt
”
and
“
odious
oligarch,”
Vice President Biden
’
s staff advised him to not accuse Zlochevsky of corruption. InDecember 2015, while in Ukraine, Biden did not link Zlochevsky with corruption and did notdemonstrate the same level of courageousness that he encouraged Ukrainian political leaders to pursue.Several witnesses highlighted efforts by certain U.S. officials to enable a successfulinvestigation of Zlochevsky, and also noted that the U.S. decision to condition a $1 billion loanguarantee was made in part because of the then-Ukrainian prosecutor
general’s
failure to pursuea case against Zlochevsky. But at the end of the day, between 2014 through 2017, despite theconcerted effort of many U.S. officials, not one of the three different Ukrainian prosecutorgenerals held Zlochevsky accountable.
101
James Risen,
Joe Biden, His Son and the Case Against a Ukrainian Oligarch
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(Dec. 8, 2015),https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/world/europe/corruption-ukraine-joe-biden-son-hunter-biden-ties.html.
28
VII.
WHILE HUNTER BIDEN SERVED ON
BURISMA’S
BOARD,
BURISMA’S
OWNER, ZLOCHEVSKY, ALLEGEDLY PAID A $7 MILLION BRIBE TO
UKRAINE’S
PROSECUTOR
GENERAL’S
OFFICE TO CLOSE THE CASE.
On May 12, 2014, Burisma trumpeted the addition of Hunter Biden to its board ofdirectors, stating,
“Biden
will be in charge of the [Burisma]
Holdings’
legal unit and will providesupport for the Company among international
organizations.”
102
In that same press release,Hunter Biden stated,
“As
a new member of the Board, I believe that my assistance in consultingthe company on matters of transparency, corporate governance and responsibility, internationalexpansion and other priorities will contribute to the economy and benefit the people ofUkraine.
”
103
The
company’s
release went on to say that, Hunter was
“a
well-known publicfigure,
”
but the release did not mention
Hunter’s
connection to a more well-known public figure,his father, the vice president of the United States.
104
When Hunter Biden joined
Burisma’s
board in May 2014, the prosecutor general ofUkraine was Oleh Makhnitskyi. Makhnitskyi served as the acting prosecutor general for only afew months before resigning from the post.
105
His resignation gave way to Vitaly Yarema, whoon June 19, 2014, became the prosecutor general of Ukraine.
106
George Kent, a career diplomat who served in a number of roles at the State Departmentover his career, including several tours in Ukraine, did not hold Prosecutor General Yarema orhis team in high regard. In fact, he testified,
“[Yarema’s]
team failed to bring a single prosecution over a seven-month period, and
which allegedly took a bribe from
[Burisma’s
owner] Zlochevsky to close the case against him and collapse our effort to recover the $23million frozen in the United Kingdom
”
107
a.
Allegations that Zlochevsky bribed
Ukraine’s
Prosecutor General Office
In January 2015, Kent arrived in Kyiv and learned that the U.S. embassy was notcommunicating with the
Ukraine’s
Prosecutor
General’s
Office (PGO).
108
Shortly after hisarrival, Kent asked a Department of Justice (DOJ) official posted at U.S. Embassy Kyiv to set upa high-level meeting with the PGO. According to Kent, the goal of this meeting was for U.S.officials to raise the money-laundering case against
Burisma’s
owner, Zlochevsky.
109
Kent
102
Press Release, Burisma Holdings, Hunter Biden joins the team of Burisma Holdings (May 12, 2014),https://web.archive.org/web/20140606004334/http://burisma.com/hunter-biden-joins-the-team-of-burisma-holdings/.
103
Id
.
104
Id
.
105
Interfax-UKRAINE, Ukrainian president dismisses Makhnitsky as acting prosecutor general(June 18, 2014), https://web.archive.org/web/20140714162034/http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/209973.html.
106
Interfax-UKRAINE, MPs agree to Yarema's appointment as prosecutor general
(June 19, 2014), https://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/210045.html.
107
Nicholas Fandos, Kenneth P. Vogel, and Michael D. Shear,
Senior State Dept. Ukraine Expert Says White House Sidelined Him
,
T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(Nov. 13, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/15/us/politics/impeachment-george-kent-state.html; George Kent Testimony at 24 (emphasis added).
108
George Kent Testimony at 128.
109
George Kent Testimony at 128-29.
29secured a Feb. 3, 2015,
110
appointment with the First Deputy Prosecutor General, who was the
“number
two prosecutor in the country at the time, Anatoliy
Danylenko.”
111
Kent testified that, during the Feb. 3, 2015 meeting with the PGO, he
“confronted
theFirst Deputy Prosecutor General, Anatoliy Danylenko,
demanding to know who had paid thebribe and how much it was. I also demanded that the case against Zlochevsky beresumed
.”
112
During testimony, Kent provided the Committees additional insight into what occurredduring the Feb. 3, 2015, meeting at the PGO:When I asked the question [to Danylenko],
‘How
much was the[Zlochevsky] bribe and who took
it?’
[Danylenko] laughed and said,
‘That’s
exactly what President Poroshenko asked us last
week.’
AndI [Kent] said,
‘So
what did you tell the President [Poroshenko
]?’
and[Danylenko] said,
‘Seven
million dollars and last May [2014], before we came into
office.’
113
Kent apparently did not believe that
Zlochevsky’s
bribe occurred in May 2014. Heresponded to Mr. Danylenko,
“
Nice try, but the letter that someone
—
some prosecutor in youroffice [PGO] wrote was signed in late December [2014], sixmonths after you all
[Yarema’s
team] came into office
.”
114
On Feb. 10, 2015, one week after
Kent’s
conversation with the PGO, President Poroshenkodismissed General Prosecutor Yarema and other members of his team.
115
b.
George Kent reporting of the
Zlochevsky’s
bribe allegation to U.S. officials
Kent told the Committees that after the meeting with Danylenko, the DOJ official at U.S.Embassy Kyiv reported the allegation
—
that Zlochevsky paid the PGO a $7 million bribe
—
tothe FBI.
116
At this time, the Committees are seeking an explanation from the FBI about what, ifany, actions they took after receiving this information from U.S. Embassy Kyiv.Kent testified that it was not until sometime after the Feb. 3, 2015, meeting with the PGOthat he became aware that Hunter Biden was on the board of Burisma.
117
110
George Kent Testimony at 20.
111
George Kent Testimony at 129.
112
George Kent Testimony at 20 (emphasis added).
113
George Kent Testimony at 130 (emphasis added).
114
Id
. (emphasis added).
115
Id
.
116
George Kent Testimony at 131.
117
George Kent Testimony at 16.
30After Kent learned of the alleged Zlochevsky bribe, he became aware of Hunter
Biden’s
connection to Burisma. Soon after, Kent spoke with Vice President
Biden’s
office about hisconcerns. This conversation occurred sometime between Feb. 3 and Feb. 14, 2015, when Kentended up on a phone call with a staffer from Vice President
Biden’s
office.
118
He could notrecall the exact date of the phone call,
119
and when asked whether he apprised the staffer for VicePresident Biden about
Zlochevsky’s
alleged bribe, Kent testified,
“I
can’t
remember
—
to be perfectly honest, I
don’t
remember who I spoke
to.”
120
Kent told the Committees he did notmemorialize this February 2015 phone call with Vice President
Biden’s
office.
121
Despite not recalling whether he mentioned the alleged Zlochevsky bribe to VicePresident
Biden’s
office, or to a member of the Obama National Security Council, over the years,Kent did mention his knowledge of the alleged Zlochevsky bribe to high-ranking StateDepartment officials. For example, on Aug. 31, 2016, Kent told State Department colleaguesthat
“[Zl
ochevsky]
who almost certainly paid off the PGO in December 2014
(I had the thenFirst deputy PG Danylenko tell me the bribe was $7 million) to have the case against him closedand his $23 million in assets frozen in the UK
unfrozen?”
122
c.
Conclusion
Based on Kent
’
s testimony, the alleged $7 million bribe from Zlochevsky to Ukraine
’
sPGO likely occurred while Hunter Biden was on Burisma
’
s board. Hunter Biden has stated thathis position on the board was to
“
consult on matters of transparency, corporate governance andresponsibility[.]
”
123
The Committees requested information from the FBI about what, if any,actions it took in regard to this allegation.
124
The FBI has not yet responded to that request.
118
George Kent Testimony at 127.
119
Id
.
120
George Kent Testimony at 129.
121
George Kent Testimony at 226.
122
Email from George Kent, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Deputy Mission Dir., U.S. Embassy Kyiv, et al., (Aug. 31, 2016, 9:55 PM),[State-2019-18-0000398-399] (emphasis added).
123
Press Release, Burisma Holdings, Hunter Biden joins the team of Burisma Holdings (May 12, 2014),https://web.archive.org/web/20140606004334/http://burisma.com/hunter-biden-joins-the-team-of-burisma-holdings/.
124
Letter from Ron Johnson, Chairman, S, Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Charles Grassley, Chairman,S. Comm. on Fin., to Hon. Christopher A. Wray, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation,
Dep’t
of Justice. (Sep. 15, 2020).
31
VIII.
HUNTER BIDEN: A U.S. SECRET SERVICE PROTECTEE WHILE ON
BURISMA’S
BOARD
When Vice President Biden traveled overseas on Air Force Two, he was oftenaccompanied by members of his family.
125
Hunter Biden joined his father on a number of tripsand, as the son of the vice president, he could enroll as a protectee and receive armed protectionfrom the U.S. Secret Service (USSS). In an effort to determine how much of Hunter Biden
’s
scheduled travel occurred as a protectee and whether that overlapped with his private businessdealings, the Committees requested and received documents from the USSS detailing Hunter
Biden’s
scheduled travel as a protectee.
126
The Committees found that Hunter Biden scheduled travel as a protectee after joiningBurisma
’
s board in May 2014.
127
The Committees also determined that Hunter Biden declinedUSSS protection after a scheduled July 8, 2014, trip to Michigan City, Ind.
128
At this time, theCommittees have not determined why Hunter Biden declined USSS protection after July 8, 2014.
a.
Hunter Biden, USSS protectee
According to USSS records, Hunter Biden enrolled as a protectee starting in January2009, after his father was elected vice president.
129
He remained a protectee for about 4.5 years,and records indicate an extensive amount of scheduled foreign travel as a protectee. Althoughthe majority of his trips were domestic, the Committees identified nearly 70 trips that HunterBiden scheduled to foreign countries while he was a protectee.
130
Hunter Biden, here identified by the USSS using his full name, Robert H. Biden, scheduled foreign travel as a protectee to awide array of foreign cities:
Arrival Date
Departure Date
City/Country
Protectee
6/14/2009 6/19/2009 Addis Ababa,EthiopiaRobert H. Biden6/20/2009 6/22/2009 Mumbai, India Robert H. Biden9/14/2009 9/17/2009 Buenos Aires,ArgentinaRobert H. Biden
125
Josh Lederman,
Biden’s
trip to China with son Hunter in 2013 comes under new scrutiny
, NBC
N
EWS
(Oct. 2, 2019),https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/biden-s-trip-china-son-hunter-2013-comes-under-new-n1061051.
126
Letter from Ron Johnson, Chairman, S, Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Charles Grassley, Chairman,S. Comm. on Fin., to Mr. James M. Murray, Director, U.S. Secret Serv.,
Dep’t
of Homeland Sec. (Feb. 5, 2020); Letter fromFaron K. Paramore, Assistant Dir., U.S. Secret Serv., U.S. D
ep’t
of Homeland Sec., to Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. onHomeland Sec. and Gov. Affairs, and Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin. (Apr. 6, 2020).
127
Protectee Visits Detail Reports for Robert H. Biden, U.S. Secret Serv., Date Range: January 1, 2008 - January 31, 2017. TheU.S. Secret Service cannot confirm that the trips occurred or if protection was provided for the entirety of the trip due to the ageof the records at issue.
128
Id
.
129
Id
.
130
Protectee Visits Detail Reports for Robert H. Biden, U.S. Secret Serv., Date Range: January 1, 2008 - January 31, 2017. TheU.S. Secret Service cannot confirm that the trips occurred or if protection was provided for the entirety of the trip due to the ageof the records at issue. The nearly 70 trips to foreign countries includes travel to cities within one foreign country.
3211/9/2009 11/12/2009 Madrid, Spain Robert H. Biden5/5/2010 5/7/2010 Brussels, Belgium Robert H. Biden8/9/2010 8/14/2010 Copenhagen,DenmarkRobert H. Biden8/15/2010 8/24/2010 Johannesburg, SouthAfricaRobert H. Biden4/16/2011 4/20/2011 Taipei, Taiwan Robert H. Biden5/15/2011 5/16/2011 Monterrey, Mexico Robert H. Biden10/19/2011 10/21/2011 Hong Kong Robert H. Biden11/1/2011 11/4/2011 Bogota, Colombia Robert H. Biden11/10/2011 11/14/2011 Abu Dhabi, UAE Robert H. Biden2/15/2012 2/18/2012 Moscow, Russia Robert H. Biden3/20/2013 3/22/2013 Dublin, Ireland Robert H. Biden7/30/2013 8/1/2013 Milan, Italy Robert H. Biden8/1/2013 8/6/2013 Florence, Italy Robert H. Biden10/31/2013 11/5/2013 Abu Dhabi, UAE Robert H. Biden12/2/2013 12/4/2013 Tokyo, Japan Robert H. Biden12/5/2013 12/6/2013 Seoul, South Korea Robert H. Biden12/6/2013 12/9/2013 Manila, Philippines Robert H. Biden4/3/2014 4/6/2014 Lake Como, Italy Robert H. BidenJoe Biden has been asked about his son, Hunter, joining him on foreign trips to Chinawhile he was vice president.
131
In response to questions about whether this arrangement was aconflict of interest, Joe Biden has told the media,
“
I have never spoken to my son [Hunter] abouthis overseas business
dealings.”
132
The USSS records indicate Hunter Biden scheduled at leastsix trips to China while a protectee, including a trip to Beijing in May 2014 right before he joined Burisma
’
s board:
Arrival Date
Departure Date
City/Country
Protectee
131
Josh Lederman,
Biden’s
trip to China with son Hunter in 2013 comes under new scrutiny
, NBC
N
EWS
(Oct. 2, 2019),https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/biden-s-trip-china-son-hunter-2013-comes-under-new-n1061051.
132
Id
.
334/6/2010 4/9/2010 Beijing, China Robert H. Biden4/20/2011 4/22/2011 Beijing, China Robert H. Biden6/13/2013 6/14/2013 Shanghai, China Robert H. Biden6/14/2013 6/15/2013 Beijing, China Robert H. Biden12/4/2013 12/5/2013 Beijing, China Robert H. Biden5/7/2014 5/8/2014 Beijing, China Robert H. BidenDuring his December 2013 trip to China, during which Hunter Biden flew on Air Force Two,Hunter Biden admitted he met with a Chinese banker.
133
According to news reports, HunterBiden appeared to be conducting his own private business during this specific trip and wasworking to secure a deal in the hopes of creating a Chinese equity fund.
134
b.
Hunter Biden, USSS protectee and Burisma board member.
According to USSS records, Hunter Biden was a protectee at the time he joinedBurisma
’
s board in May 2014.
135
Hunter Biden scheduled at least seven trips after he joinedBurisma
’
s board on May 13, 2014.
136
These trips took him to the foreign cities of Doha, Qatar,and Paris, France, and stateside to New York, Newark, N.J., and Michigan City, Ind.:
137
Arrival Date
Departure Date
City/Country
Protectee
5/11/2014 5/14/2014 Doha, Qatar Robert H. Biden5/27/2014 5/28/2014 New York, NY, USA Robert H. Biden5/28/2014 5/28/2014 Newark, NJ, USA Robert H. Biden5/29/2014 5/30/2014 Paris, France Robert H. Biden6/7/2014 6/10/2014 Paris, France Robert H. Biden6/21/2014 6/27/2014 Mich. City, IN, USA Robert H. Biden6/29/2014 7/8/2014 Mich. City, IN, USA Robert H. Biden
133
Id
.
134
Id
.
135
Protectee Visits Detail Reports for Robert H. Biden, U.S. Secret Serv., Date Range: January 1, 2008 - January 31, 2017. TheU.S. Secret Service cannot confirm that the trips occurred or if protection was provided for the entirety of the trip due to the ageof the records at issue.
136
Id
.
137
Id
.
34The Committees did not determine why Hunter Biden declined USSS protectionfollowing the July 8, 2014, trip in Michigan City. But it should be noted that, the day before hislast trip as a protectee, Time published an article describing Bu
risma’s
ramped up lobbyingefforts to U.S. officials and
Hunter’s
involvement in
Burisma’s
board.
138
The Committeesrequested additional information from the USSS about the lack of records after July 8, 2014.The USSS did not provide greater detail other than Hunter Biden declined protection.
c.
Conclusion
Hunter Biden scheduled hundreds of trips while he was a protectee. He was a Burisma board member while a protectee. Whether Hunter Biden conducted additional private businessdealings while a protectee is unknown. Further, the Committees do not know why Hunter Bidendeclined USSS protection, and whether or not media scrutiny was a factor for Hunter to decline protection in July 2014.
138
Michael Scherer,
Ukranian Employer of Joe
Biden’s
Son Hires a D.C. Lobbyist
, TIME (Jul. 7, 2014).https://time.com/2964493/ukraine-joe-biden-son-hunter-burisma/.
35
IX.
OBAMA ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS AND A DEMOCRAT LOBBYINGFIRM HAD CONSISTENT AND SIGNIFICANT CONTACT WITH FORMERUKRAINIAN OFFICIAL ANDRII TELIZHENKO.a.
Introduction
Despite claims from Ranking Member Peters, Ranking Member Wyden and Democratleadership, the Committees reject all assertions that this investigation has been influenced byRussian disinformation. To be crystal clear, the Committees
’
work has focused only on Obamaadministration records from the State Department, National Archives and RecordsAdministration, Department of Justice, other federal agencies, and the U.S. consulting firm BlueStar Strategies, as well as interviews with current and former U.S. government officials. TheCommittees have spoken with one foreign national about his ties to the Obama administration, aDNC operative, and Blue Star Strategies.In 2016, Andrii Telizhenko was an official at the Ukrainian embassy in Washington.
139
In that position, Telizhenko met several times with Obama administration officials, a consultantfor the Democratic National Committee,
140
and the Democrat lobbying firm, Blue Star Strategies(which later employed him from 2016 to 2017). Blue Star Strategies officials continued tocontact and request his assistance as recently as the summer of 2019.
b.
Communication and meetings between Obama administration officials andTelizhenko.
As far as the Committees are aware, the majority of
Telizhenko’s
interactions withObama administration officials occurred during 2015 and 2016. The Committees possessrecords of some of these communications from their request to the National Archives.
141
According to documents, on July 19, 2013, Telizhenko attended a meeting at the WhiteHouse with two other Ukrainians to meet with Lyn Debevoise.
142
At that time, Telizhenko wasthe counselor to a deputy of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine
’
s Parliament.
143
It is unknown whatwas discussed at this meeting.
139
The Committees attempted to obtain
Telizhenko’s
Blue Star Strategies documents that are subject to a non-disclosureagreement, but Democrat obstruction shielded Blue Star Strategies from providing these relevant documents.
140
Kenneth Vogel and David Stern,
Ukrainian efforts to sabotage Trump backfire
, Politico (Jan. 11, 2017).
141
Letter from Ron Johnson, Chairman, S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff., and Charles Grassley, Chairman,S. Comm. on Fin., to Hon. David S. Ferriero, Archivist,
Nat’l
Archives and Records Admin, (Nov. 21, 2019).
142
Email from Waves Request, U.S. Secret Serv. to Marisa Donelson (Jul. 11, 2013, 1:18 PM), [000064].
143
Email from Andrii Telizhenko, Counsellor to the Deputy of Verhovna Rada, to Lyn Debevoise (Aug. 5, 2013, 8:39 AM),[000217].
36On July 21, 2015,
Telizhenko was scheduled to meet in the Old Executive OfficeBuilding with Michael Carpenter,
144
who was a foreign policy advisor to Vice PresidentBiden.
145
It is unknown what was discussed at this meeting.
c.
January 2016 Ukrainian delegation visit to
Obama’s
White House.
Telizhenko
’
s interactions with Obama administration officials became more frequentstarting in January 2016. According to a document with a DOJ logo, a Ukrainian delegation thatincluded senior-level Ukrainian prosecutors arrived in Washington on Jan. 18, 2016. The agendashows that their first official meeting was confirmed for Jan. 19, 2016, at the White House, from11 a.m. to noon with
“
Eric Ciaramella, Elizabeth [sic] Zentos and others TBD, National SecurityCouncil.
”
146
144
Email from Andrii Telizhenko to Frances Castro (Jul. 21, 2015, 10:01 AM), [000140].
145
Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy & Global Engagement, Michael Carpenter, https://global.upenn.edu/penn-biden-center/person/michael-carpenter. Michael Carpenter served in the White House as a foreign policy advisor to Vice President JoeBiden as well as on the National Security Council as Director for Russia.
146
Email from Eric Ciaramella,
Nat’l
Sec. Council, to Catherine Croft, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Jan. 19, 2016, 7:26 PM), [001753](attaching Agenda for Examination of the U.S. Adversarial Criminal Justice System for senior-level Ukrainian prosecutors (Jan.18, 2016 to Jan. 23, 2016), [001755]).
37In the middle of the night on Jan. 19, 2016, Telizhenko contacted Elisabeth Zentos, a member ofthe Obama
administration’s
National Security Council (NSC) asking to join the NSC-Ukrainiandelegation meeting scheduled at 11 a.m. that morning.
147
It is not known if Zentos responded toTelizhenko
’
s email, but she did forward Telizhenko
’
s request to her colleague on the NSC, EricCiaramella, after the Jan. 19, 2016, meeting.
148
According to Telizhenko
’
s email to Zentos,Artem Sytnyk, Nazar Kholodnickiy, and David Sakvarelidze, among others, were listed as participants in the meeting with the NSC.
149
147
Email from Andrii Telizhenko to Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (Jan. 19, 2016, 12:22 AM), [000074].
148
Email from Elisabeth Zentos, National Security Council to Eric Ciaramella,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (Jan. 19, 2016, 9:42 PM),[000074].
149
Email from Andrii Telizhenko to Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (Jan. 19, 2016, 12:22 AM), [000074].
38Over the next two days, Jan. 20-21, 2016, the Ukrainian delegation was scheduled tomeet with a slew of U.S. officials, including representatives of the DOJ Office of the InspectorGeneral, the DOJ, the FBI and the Department of State.
150
At this time, the Committees have not confirmed whether all the scheduled meetingentries on the agenda occurred. Further, despite the Committees
’
efforts, no U.S. officials haveconfirmed what was discussed at any of these January 2016 meetings with the senior-levelUkrainian prosecutors.
151
d.
Interactions between Obama NSC official Elisabeth Zentos and Andrii Telizhenko.
The Committees interviewed Zentos and during that interview discussed her interactionswith Telizhenko. Zentos testified that she didn
’
t
“
remember exactly when [she] firstcommunicated with [Telizhenko], but [she] believe[s] it was while [she] was working at the U.S.Embassy in Kyiv, so it would have been between 2012 and
2014.”
152
Zentos was lesscooperative than any other witness the Committees interviewed. She refused to provide the
150
Email from Eric Ciaramella,
Nat’l
Sec. Council, to Catherine Croft, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Jan. 19, 2016, 7:26 PM), [001753](attaching Agenda for Examination of the U.S. Adversarial Criminal Justice System for senior-level Ukrainian prosecutors (Jan.18, 2016 to Jan. 23, 2016), [001755-001756]).
151
Transcript of Interview at 174-75, S. Comm. on Fin. and S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. Interview ofElisabeth Zentos (July 20, 2020), [Hereinafter Elisabeth Zentos Testimony].
152
Elisabeth Zentos Testimony 182.
39names of officials to whom she directly reported, nor would she name individuals who reportedto her, either at the NSC or the State Department.
153
In relation to her meetings and communications with Telizhenko, starting in January2016, Zentos testified that she met and communicated with Telizhenko as
“
he was arepresentative of the Ukrainian Government. Part of my job was to be in touch with theUkrainian
Government.”
154
During the spring of 2016, records indicate, Zentos and Telizhenkowould meet at coffee shops, among other venues, around Washington, and they met at least onetime while in Ukraine. Overall, records indicate that they would meet a number of times duringthe first half of 2016. For example, on Feb. 9, 2016, less than a month after the White Housemeeting, Zentos and Telizhenko met at Cosi in Washington.
155
It is not known what wasdiscussed at this meeting. In addition, on Feb. 23, 2016, Telizhenko and Zentos emailed aboutmeeting. In her reply, Zentos asked,
“
Ok if I bring my colleague Eric, who works on Ukrainewith
me?”
She ended the email by asking,
“
[D]id you get Trump
’
s autograph for me?
”
156
153
Elisabeth Zentos Testimony at 34 and 38.
154
Elisabeth Zentos Testimony at 187.
155
Email from Andrii Telizhenko to Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (Feb. 9, 2016, 2:07 PM), [000021].
156
Emails between Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council, and Andrii Telizhenko (Feb. 23, 2016), [000058].
40On March 1, 2016, Zentos and Telizhenko agreed over email to meet on March 3, 2016, at aWashington bar called The Exchange. Before the planned meeting, Zentos told Telizhenko,
“
I
’
llsee if my colleague Eric is up for
joining.”
When asked whether
“Eric”
was Ciaramella, Zentosdeclined to answer. This meeting ultimately occurred on March 4, 2016, but it is unclear whatwas discussed.
157
Additional meetings between Zentos and Telizhenko included:
March 4, 2016:
Zentos and Telizhenko met at
Swing’s
coffee house in Washington.
158
Telizhenko emailed Zentos after the meeting and discussed how an individual wasseeking a meeting with Obama NSC official Charles Kupchan.
157
Emails between Andrii Telizhenko and Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (Mar. 1, 2016), [000113-000114].
158
Emails between Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council, and Andrii Telizhenko (Mar. 4, 2016), [000018-000019].
41
March 10, 2016:
Telizhenko emailed Zentos asking to meet that afternoon for fiveminutes. Based on the email, it appears they met at 5 p.m. that day at Cosi.
159
Despitethis email, Zentos testified,
“I
do not remember if this occurred. As you can probably seefrom the email, Mr. Telizhenko likes to ask me to meet. I
don’t
remember if this specificmeeting
happened.”
160
April 13, 2016:
Zentos and Telizhenko apparently met.
161
When asked about thismeeting, Zentos testified,
“I
do not recall when any specific meeting was with Mr.
Telizhenko.”
162
Zentos said this despite her own email to Telizhenko saying,
“No
worries! Just got here. See you
soon.”
163
May 4, 2016:
Zentos and Telizhenko apparently met.
164
July 9, 2016:
Zentos emailed Telizhenko suggesting they meet. The email suggestedthat Zentos was in Ukraine at this time, and Zentos testified that she joined Secretary
Kerry’s
delegation to Ukraine around this time.
165
Zentos does not recall if she metTelizhenko while she was in Ukraine despite emails indicating she planned to seeTelizhenko and he was
“downstairs
in the
lobby”
on the next day.
166
159
Emails between Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council, and Andrii Telizhenko (Mar. 10, 2016), [000043-000045].
160
Elisabeth Zentos Testimony at 193.
161
Emails between Andrii Telizhenko and Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (Apr. 13, 2016), [000161].
162
Elisabeth Zentos Testimony at 195.
163
Id
.
164
Emails between Andrii Telizhenko and Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (May 4, 2016), [000109-000111].
165
Elisabeth Zentos Testimony at 198.
166
Emails between Andrii Telizhenko and Elisabeth Zentos,
Nat’l
Sec. Council (July 9, 2016), [000275-000276].
42
e.
Blue Star
Strategies’
relationship with Andrii Telizhenko.
Burisma hired Blue Star Strategies, a Democrat lobbying firm, in November 2015.
167
BlueStar was founded by Chief Executive Officer Karen Tramontano and Chief Operating OfficerSally Painter. Both Tramontano and Painter interacted with Telizhenko when he was an officialat the Ukraine embassy, and Blue Star eventually employed Telizhenko starting in July 2016.
168
Telizhenko
’
s contract with Blue Star overlapped with the firm
’
s representation of Burisma.
169
Blue Star refused to provide Telizhenko
’
s documents from his time as a contractor to theCommittees, and it refused the
Committees’
request to release Telizhenko from his non-disclosure agreement.
167
Transcript of Interview at 17, S. Comm. on Fin. and S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. Interview of KarenTramontano (Aug. 28, 2020). [Hereinafter Karen Tramontano Testimony].
168
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 57.
169
Transcript of Interview at 151, S. Comm. on Fin. and S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. Interview of SallyPainter (Aug. 31, 2020). [Hereinafter Sally Painter Testimony].
43March 2016 was a pivotal month for Blue Star and its work for Burisma. In response tocalls for his termination by then-Vice President Biden, Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin wasabout to be removed, and Blue Star increased its outreach to, and meetings with, both U.S.officials and Ukrainian officials.
170
On March 21, 2016, a Blue Star employee emailed StateDepartment official Amos Hochstein to request a meeting with CEO Tramontano, COO Painter,and John Buretta, a private attorney, to discuss
“
a sensitive energy matter ahead of [Ukraine]President Poroshenko
’
s upcoming visit to DC next week.
”
171
The next day, on March 22, 2016, Vice President Biden called President Poroshenkoabout U.S. loan guarantees.
172
As Blue Star officials waited for a response from Hochstein, they met with Ukrainianofficials. Specifically, Tramontano testified that she and Painter met with Ukrainian officials onMarch 22, 2016 at the Ukraine embassy.
173
Telizhenko joined this meeting, and Tramontanotestified that Burisma was a topic of discussion:Question
:
So at this point in this discussion you referenced with Mr. Telizhenko, youhad not brought up Burisma specifically?Tramontano:
Oh. No,
we had
—
I
’
m sorry.
To be clear, yes, we had brought upBurisma
, and my
—
we did not bring up, you know, specific cases thatwere pending.Question: I understand. And did you just bring up Burisma to Mr. Telizhenko, or didthis come up in your meeting with Ms. [Oksana] Shulyar?Tramontano:
It came up in our meeting [March 22, 2016] with Ms. Shulyar thatMr. Telizhenko attended.
We had the meeting to inform them of theclients we had, including Burisma, and the meetings that we were seeking.
So, yes, it [Burisma] came up in that discussion
.
174
170
Tramontano told the Committees that Blue Star Strategies engaged in
“government
relations
assistance”
for Burisma. Oddly,Painter said the exact opposite. See, Karen Tramontano Testimony at 39; Sally Painter Testimony at 39. Moreover, whenquestioned whether Blue Star Strategies engaged in
“government
relations
assistance”
in Ukraine on behalf of Burisma, Painterimplied that it did:
“I
mean, we were engaging with the government,
yes.”
Sally Painter Testimony at 40. In addition, bothTramontano and Painter denied that they lobbied the U.S. Government on behalf of Burisma and denied that they intended toinfluence U.S. policy with respect to Burisma; however, that testimony is contradicted by Amos
Hochstein’s.
See
KarenTramontano Testimony at 48
(“We
didn’t
lobby the U.S.
government.”)
and 49
(“In
our representation of Burisma, we did not tryto influence U.S. policy with respect to
Ukraine.”)
and Sally Painter Testimony at 43 (Question:
“When
meeting with U.S.government officials, did you intend to influence U.S. policy towards
Burisma?”
Answer:
“No.”)
and 167
(“I
do not considerthem to be lobbying. I consider that to be exploring to understand the position of the U.S.
government.”)
compared to Amos
Hochstein’s
Testimony at 138
(“They
did not like my answer, and they tried to convince me
otherwise.”).
171
Email from Sean Keeley, Blue Star Strategies, to Amos Hochstein, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Mar. 21, 2016), [STATE-2019-18-0001124].
172
Press Release, The White House Off. of the Vice President, Readout of Vice President
Biden’s
Call with President PetroPoroshenko of Ukraine (Mar. 22, 2016), https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/03/22/readout-vice- president-bidens-call-president-petro-poroshenko-ukraine.
173
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 123.
174
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 124-25 (emphasis added).
44According to documents, after their meeting at the Ukraine embassy, Tramontano repliedto Telizhenko, asking him about scheduling a meeting with the Prosecutor General forUkraine.
175
Her email also informed Telizhenko that Buretta, an attorney and former DOJofficial, planned to be in Ukraine for a day.
176
Additionally, the day after their meeting, Painter sent Shulyar and Telizhenko an emailwith the subject line:
“
Many Thanks.
”
Painter
’
s March 23, 2016, email noted,
“
As Karen said, please think of us as an extension of your team. We are available to be helpful in any
way.”
177
Further, Painter said that Blue Star was working with
“
Morgan Williams on their piece of the[Ukrainian] President
’
s visit and would be honored to help set up something for Mr. Lozhkin
178
with Denis McDonough, the President
’
s Chief of Staff, or with anyone else he is interested in
meeting.”
179
Blue Star did not produce these company records to the Committees; instead, theCommittees received them from Telizhenko.
180
175
Karen Tramontano Testimony at Exhibit 9.
176
Id
.
177
Email from Sally Painter, Blue Star Strategies, to Oksana Shulyar and Andrii Telizhenko (Mar. 23, 2016).
178
“Mr.
Lozhkin”
most likely refers to Boris Lozhkin who served as the Head of the Presidential Administration for Ukrainefrom June 2014 to August 2016.
See
World Jewish Congress, Boris Lozhkin, https://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/bio/boris-lozhkin.
179
Email from Sally Painter, Blue Star Strategies, to Oksana Shulyar and Andrii Telizhenko (Mar. 23, 2016).
180
Id
.
45On March 24, 2016
—
three days after Blue Star requested a meeting to
“
discuss asensitive energy
matter”
and two days after meeting with Telizhenko and Shulyar
—
Painter andBuretta met with Hochstein at the State Department.
181
According to Painter, during this March2016 meeting with Hochstein, she provided him a summary of Blue
Star’s
December 2015meeting with Ambassador Pyatt.
182
She also told the Committees that Buretta providedHochstein a briefing on the U.K. court case.
183
Hochstein testified that he decided to meet withBlue Star officials,
“Because
until that meeting I was still under the impression from the firstmeeting that they were looking to conduct a report. I was
–
I
didn’t
have an issue with meetingwith them again and hearing where they were in their
process.”
184
He did not recall Blue Star providing him a report but they gave him a verbal view of where they stood and they also tried to
“convince”
him to change his position.
185
181
Email from Redacted, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Amos Hochstein, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Mar. 22, 2016, 10:43:00 -0400), [STATE-2019-18-0001125].
182
Sally Painter Testimony at 116.
183
Sally Painter Testimony at 117.
184
Amos Hochstein Testimony at 131-32.
185
Amos Hochstein Testimony at 132-33, 138.
46
f.
Blue Star takes
Telizhenko’s
recommendation to remove
Burisma’s
name to securea June 2016 meeting with the PGO.
While strategizing about how to secure a June 2016 meeting with Ukraine
’
s Prosecutor
General’s
Office, Blue Star officials and Telizhenko discussed how they should craft the meetingrequest to the PGO. Blue Star sought this meeting to discuss the ongoing PGO cases againstBurisma and Zlochevsky. On June 7, 2016, Telizhenko offered his advice in an email toTramontano:I wanted to recommend to, in the official request letter, to take awayMr. Zlochevsky
’
s company name and his name. Just request ameeting an [sic] put just the topics you wanted to discuss, expect[sic] Zlochevsky. I will brief you more when you come to Kiev, but because the President [Poroshenko] does not really like Zlochevsky(he has personal issues), Mr. Lutsenko will deny the meeting if hisname stays in the letter. You can raise the issue during the meeting, but on the official letters I would recommend to remove it. I spoketo the chief of staff. He is ready to meet, but please take off the nameof the company and his name.
186
On June 10, 2016, Tramontano replied to Telizhenko, saying,
“
Thank you for your assistance. Ihope you received the revised
letter.”
187
Tramontano testified that some of Telizhenko
’
s recommendations were adopted:
188
Question: Did Blue Star make the changes to the letter that was sent to theProsecutor General that Mr. Telizhenko recommended?Tramontano:
John Buretta made the changes.Question: And what changes did Mr. Buretta make?
186
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 136-37.
187
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 139.
188
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 139-140.
47Tramontano:
As I recall, and I believe this document is in the submission, he changedthe agenda items
to take the name of the company [Burisma] off theagenda items
.
189
On June 22, 2016, Tramontano, Buretta and Burisma
’
s Vadym Pozharskiy met with ProsecutorGeneral Lutsenko.
190
g.
Blue Star official communicates with Telizhenko in 2019.
Blue Star
’
s contract with Telizhenko ended in May 2017, yet Blue Star officialscontinued to communicate with Telizhenko.Tramontano testified that after ending the contract with Telizhenko,
“
we remained incontact, I would say, you know, from time to time. When he came to Washington, he would, youknow, let us know. But I haven
’
t talked to him in quite some time, I would say.
”
191
When askedif this was the same for Painter, Tramontano replied,
“
I would think it
’
s the same.
”
192
Further,when Tramontano was asked whether Painter communicated more with Telizhenko, sheresponded,
“
I don
’
t even know how to answer that question. I
’
m sorry[.]
”
193
When the Committees interviewed Painter, she explained how she communicated withTelizhenko:Question: How did you communicate with Mr. Telizhenko?Painter: We communicated by email and on the telephone.Question: By telephone, you mean phone calls?Painter: Yes.
194
At that point of the interview, Painter failed to mention that she communicated via WhatsAppwith Telizhenko.
195
The Committees have obtained some images of WhatsApp messages between Painter (white colored boxes) and Telizhenko (green colored boxes) starting in April2019 and ending in August 2019. These texts show that Blue Star and Telizhenko maintainedconsistent contact even after he left their employment and that Blue Star continued to rely on hisadvice.
189
Id
. (emphasis added).
190
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 140.
191
Karen Tramontano Testimony at 161.
192
Id
.
193
Id
.
194
Sally Painter Testimony at 150.
195
Sally Painter failed to produce any WhatsApp communications to the Committees, and the communications were provide byAndrii Telizhenko.
48
Messages exchanged between Sally Painter (white background) and Andrii Telizhenko (green background)
196
196
WhatsApp messages between Sally Painter, Blue Star Strategies, and Andrii Telizhenko (on file with Comms.).
49
Messages exchanged between Sally Painter (white background) and Andrii Telizhenko (green background)
197
197
Id
.
50
Messages exchanged between Sally Painter (white background) and Andrii Telizhenko (green background)
198
198
Id
.
51
Messages exchanged between Sally Painter (white background) and Andrii Telizhenko (green background)
199
199
Id
.
52When the Committees presented these WhatsApp messages to Painter, she confirmed that thesemessages were authentic:Question: Did you text with Andrii Telizhenko?Painter: I believe so, yes.
Question: Do these appear to be messages between yourself and Mr.Telizhenko?Painter:
Yes.
Question: How often do you text with Mr. Telizhenko?Painter: I can't quantify. I don't recall the number.
200
Painter did not provide these WhatsApp messages to the Committees despite repeated requests.When asked whether she still possessed these messages with Telizhenko, Painter testified,
“
I donot keep my WhatsApp messages
.”
And when questioned why she
doesn’t
keep the messages,Painter said,
“
I like to get rid of them. It makes me know that I finished a task. So I get ridof my texts and my WhatsApp and any of my traffic like that. I like to have a clean file
.”
201
When asked why she was communicating with Telizhenko in July 2019, Painter testified,
“
We had a fine rapport, and he would communicate with me periodically
.
”
202
According to these messages, on April 30, 2019, Painter told Telizhenko to
“
please Take[sic] blue star off
resume.”
The Committees asked Painter about this message:Question
:
It sounds like you're ordering him to do that [Remove Blue Star from hisresume]. No?
Painter:
As I stated before
—
this will be the third time
—
Mr. Telizhenko wasworking more and more with Mr. Giuliani, and we had a conversationabout whether it would hurt him with the Republicans if he had Blue Staron his résumé. So this is not a characterization of our conversation.
Question:
So is that connected to the message you sent above on April 26, 2019, thatsays,
“
Have you seen what Solomon has written about what you said?
”
Painter:
I don't think the
—
I can't comment on that because I don't think this is anaccurate representation of the chain of events.
200
Sally Painter Testimony at 153-54 (emphasis added).
201
Sally Painter Testimony at 157 (emphasis added).
202
Sally Painter Testimony at 158 (emphasis added).
53Question:
So you
’
re advising Mr. Telizhenko how to better work with Rudy Giulianiand Republicans?Painter:
Ironically, Mr. Telizhenko was asking my advice.
203
In another message, on June 18, 2019, Painter messaged Telizhenko,
“
Complaint filed.
”
TheCommittees asked Painter about this message and she explained:Question: On June 18th, 2019, you wrote
“
Complaint filed.
”
What is this referenceto?Painter: I don't recall.Question: You have no recollection?Painter: I do not.Question: Why would you have to tell Mr. Telizhenko that a complaint was filed?Painter
:
I don't recall.
204
h.
Conclusion
The Obama administration and the Democrat lobby shop Blue Star Strategies hadconsistent and extensive contact with Andrii Telizhenko over a period of years. Yet despitethese well-documented contacts with Democratic officials, Democrats have attempted to impugnthis investigation for having received some Blue Star-related records from him. SomeDemocrats have even (incorrectly) identified Telizhenko as the Committee
s’
“s
tar
witness.”
205
Although he produced a small number of Blue Star-related records to the Committees, theCommittees never interviewed him as part of this investigation.
206
Nonetheless, Democrats haveclaimed that Telizhenko is involved in a Russian disinformation campaign. Even though almostall of the Committees
’
records are from U.S. agencies and U.S. officials or persons, Democratshave repeatedly misconstrued the facts of this investigation. In doing so, they conveniently haveignored their own long history of meeting with Telizhenko and his year-long work for aDemocrat lobby shop. If Democrats are concerned that Telizhenko presents any risk ofadvancing disinformation, it is notable that the Ranking Members have not expressed anycuriosity about his work with the Obama administration or Blue Star Strategies.
203
Sally Painter Testimony at 161.
204
Sally Painter Testimony at 156.
205
Ranking Member Ron Wyden, Wyden Takes to Senate Floor to Address Russian Disinformation in Flawed CongressionalInvestigation, 2020 Election (Sept. 16, 2020), https://www.finance.senate.gov/wyden-takes-to-senate-floor-to-address-russian-disinformation-in-flawed-congressional-investigation-2020-election.
206
The Committees received a small number of records from Telizhenko related to his communications with and subsequentwork for Blue Star Strategies. Ranking Member Peters and Ranking Member Wyden have access to these records but haverefused to receive or review them. Had they done so, they would have observed that the State Department, National Archives,and Blue Star Strategies (after it received a subpoena) produced most of the same records to the Committees. They also wouldhave noticed the emails and text messages that Blue Star failed to produce to the Committees.
54
55
X.
THE MINORITY FALSELY ACCUSED THE CHAIRMEN OF ENGAGING IN ARUSSIAN DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGN AND USED OTHER TACTICS TOINTERFERE IN THE INVESTIGATION.a.
Introduction
Since the majority began its investigation, the Ranking Members have attempted tomischaracterize its scope in an effort to cast doubt on its eventual findings. They have done so,in part, by spreading an unfounded conspiracy theory rooted in a foreign-sourced influencecampaign publicly identified by the Intelligence Community (IC).
207
Specifically, Democrats,not just the Ranking Members, relied upon materials and statements from foreign nationals whoare attempting to influence U.S. politics to levy unsupported and demonstrably inaccurateallegations linking the majority
’
s investigation to those same unreliable foreign nationals.As part of their efforts, Democrats laundered their unclassified speculation throughclassified analysis of intelligence reporting to fabricate a veneer of credibility in an effort toshield their claims from public scrutiny. Those false claims were then leaked to friendly mediaoutlets, which reported them as fact. Together, these networks of Democratic offices and liberal press outlets have worked to weave fact with fiction in order to construct a false narrativedesigned to undercut and discredit the Chairmen
’
s investigation and its eventual findings. In the process, Democrats relied upon and disseminated disinformation from foreign sources, such asUkrainian official Andriy Derkach, whom the IC has publicly warned are actively seeking toinfluence U.S. politics.
208
Thus the Democrats, specifically the Ranking Members, have engagedin a disinformation campaign, not Chairmen Grassley or Johnson.
b.
Beginnings of the investigation, early leaks, and unequal information sharing
On Nov. 15, 2019, Chairman Grassley and Chairman Johnson wrote a non-public letter tothe Department of Treasury
’
s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), seekingSuspicious Activity Reports (SARs) on individuals and entities, including Hunter Biden,Burisma Holdings (Burisma), and others. Although most of the letters sent during theinvestigation have been released to the public shortly after being transmitted, this letter was notreleased at the time because of the sensitive nature of the underlying records and the need toensure the integrity of the investigation with respect to those records. SARs often containevidence of potential criminal activities, such as money laundering and fraud, and at the time,there was no evidence that SARs existed for the individuals mentioned in the request.
209
Theletter was, however, shared with Ranking Member Pete
rs’
office. Just one week later, on Nov.
207
See
Press Release, Off. of the Dir. of
Nat’l
Intelligence, Statement by NCSC Director William Evanina: Election ThreatUpdate for the American Public (Aug. 7, 2020), https://www.dni.gov/index.php/newsroom/press-releases/item/2139-statement- by-ncsc-director-william-evanina-election-threat-update-for-the-american-public;
see also
, Opening Statement of Joshua Flynn-Brown, Deputy Chief Investigative Counsel for Chairman Grassley (Sept. 17, 2020).
208
See id
.
209
See
Off. of the Comptroller of the Currency, Suspicious Activity Reports (2013),https://www.occ.treas.gov/topics/supervision-and-examination/bank-operations/financial-crime/suspicious-activity-reports/index-suspicious-activity-reports.html.
5622, 2019, a copy of the letter was leaked to Reuters
,
which published an article containing a linkto a full and unredacted copy of the letter.
210
According to the Treasury, the
department’s
protocol requires stamping the document, which the leaked version did not contain.The next major leak came in February 2020, just one day after the Committees sent a public letter to the Secret Service requesting Hunter Biden
’
s travel records.
211
The Committeeshad requested the travel records in order to assess claims that Hunter Biden may have usedgovernment-sponsored travel to conduct private business. The leaks were unrelated to the SecretService letter but they were designed to undermine the Treasury request. For example, thesedisclosures to the media included the fact that the Treasury had been producing informationresponsive to the Committees
’
requests as well as the approximate date when the Treasury had begun its production to the Committees.
212
The Yahoo News article also stated,
“
[t]he senators
’
requests to the Treasury have borne fruit, according to the ranking Democratic senator on theFinance Committee, Ron Wyden of Oregon[.]
”
213
Senator Wyden
’
s spokesperson was alsoquoted as saying,
“
the Treasury Department [is] rapidly complying with Senate Republicanrequests
—
no subpoenas necessary
—
and producing
‘
evidence
’
of questionable origin.
”
214
TheYahoo News article stated that the Department of Treasury had
“
complied with Republicansenator
s’
requests for highly sensitive and closely held financial records about Hunter Biden andhis associates[.]
”
215
Further, on the same day the Yahoo News
article published, Buzzfeed Newsreported that the Committees had begun coordinating interviews with potential witnesses.
216
Contrary to the allegation that the Chairmen have not included the Ranking Members inthe Chairmen
’
s investigation, Ranking Member Wyden and Ranking Member Peters are not a party to the majority
’
s investigation. However, Chairman Grassley and Chairman Johnson haveincluded them in all document productions and interviews even though the Ranking Membershave failed to abide by the same principles of inclusion with respect to their investigations.
217
Asone example, on July 1, 2020, Ranking Member Wyden and Ranking Member Peters released aCOVID-19 report that included non-public government information that was not shared with
210
See
Richard Cowan and Valerie Volcovici,
U.S. Republican Senators ask Treasury for any Reports on Hunter Biden
, R
EUTERS
(Nov. 22, 2019), https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-impeachment-biden/u-s-republican-senators-ask-treasury-for-suspicious-activity-reports-on-hunter-biden-idUSKBN1XW254.
211
See
Letter from Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., and Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. andGovernmental Aff., to U.S. Secret Serv. (Feb. 5, 2020), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2020-02-05%20CEG%20RHJ%20to%20Secret%20Service%20%28Biden%20Travel%29.pdf ;
see also
Emma Loop,
Here’s
What’s
Happening In
Republicans’
Biden Ukraine Investigation
, B
UZZFEED
N
EWS
(Feb. 6, 2020),https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/emmaloop/republicans-biden-ukraine-investigation; Luppe B. Luppen,
Treasury Department Sent Information on Hunter Biden to Expanding GOP Senate Inquiry
, Y
AHOO
N
EWS
(Feb. 6, 2020),https://news.yahoo.com/treasury-department-sent-information-on-hunter-biden-to-expanding-gop-senate-inquiry-161846826.html.
212
See id
.
213
Luppe B. Luppen,
Treasury Department Sent Information on Hunter Biden to Expanding GOP Senate Inquiry
, Y
AHOO
N
EWS
(Feb. 6, 2020), https://news.yahoo.com/treasury-department-sent-information-on-hunter-biden-to-expanding-gop-senate-inquiry-161846826.html.
214
Id
.
215
Id.
216
Emma Loop,
Here’s
What’s
Happening In
Republicans’
Biden Ukraine Investigation
, B
UZZFEED
N
EWS
(Feb. 6, 2020),https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/emmaloop/republicans-biden-ukraine-investigation.
217
Email correspondences between Majority and Minority Staff (on file with Comms.).
57Chairman Grassley and Chairman Johnson or their staff.
218
The Ranking Members failed toinclude the Chairmen and their staff in all document production requests related to this review.
219
Moreover, Ranking Member Wyden and Ranking Member Peters provided Chairmen
’
s staffwith a draft of this report that totaled 30 pages in length and represented that it was the finalversion, to be publicly released.
220
Days later, the Ranking Members made public the
“
final
”
report, which was 98 pages in length, not the 30 pages that was represented to the Chairmen andtheir staff.
221
As another example, Ranking Member Wyden conducted a year-long investigation intoCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma with the HouseCommittee on Energy and Commerce, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, and theminority on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. On Sept. 9, 2020,at 6:16 p.m., Ranking Member Wyden
’
s staff notified Chairman Grassley
’
s staff that the reportwould be issued the following morning.
222
Ranking Member Wyden
’
s staff did not includeChairman Grassley
’
s staff in any document productions, witness interviews, report drafts, orcommunications relating to that investigation.Further, the Ranking Members have repeatedly made public previously undisclosed andnon-public information pertaining to the majority
’
s investigation. On Feb. 11, May 6, and July7, 2020, Ranking Member Wyden used the majority
’
s investigation to request sensitive materialsfrom the State Department relating to Ukraine.
223
In doing so, the May 6 and July 7 letters alsomade unauthorized releases of previously non-public information, including details regarding thenumber of documents produced by the State Department in response to Committe
es’
requests,information which they would not have known if they were not included in the document productions.
224
News outlets used that information to report that the administration wasresponding to the Chairmen
’
s requests with unusual speed, which was false.
225
Moreover, staff for the Chairmen and Ranking Members had a phone call with Victoria Nuland
’
s attorneys on Aug. 29, 2020. During the course of that phone call, staff for Ranking
218
See
Press Release, Spec. Comm. on Aging,
Casey,
Peters, Wyden Release New Report Detailing Trump
Administration’s
Failure to Protect Nursing Home Residents and Workers From COVID-19
(July 1, 2020), https://www.aging.senate.gov/press-releases/casey-peters-wyden-release-new-report-detailing-trump-administrations-failure-to-protect-nursing-home-residents-and-workers-from-covid-19-.
219
Email correspondences between Majority and Minority Staff (on file with Comms.).
220
Id
. (on file with Comms.).
221
See
S. Rep., COVID-19 IN NURSING HOMES How the Trump Administration Failed Residents and Workers, Spec. Comm.on Aging (July 2020), https://www.aging.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/COVID-19%20in%20Nursing%20Homes%20Final%20Report.pdf.
222
Email correspondences between Majority and Minority Staff (on file with Comms.).
223
See
Letter from Ranking Member Ron Wyden, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Feb. 11, 2020),https://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/021120%20Wyden%20Letter%20to%20Mike%20Pompeo%20RE%20Ukraine%20Follow%20Up.pdf; Letter from Ranking Member Ron Wyden, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (May 6, 2020),https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6883366-Wyden-to-Pompeo-05-06-2020.html; Letter from Ranking Member RonWyden, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (July 7, 2020),https://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/070720%20Wyden%20to%20Pompeo%20Third%20Ukraine%20Request.pdf.
224
See
id
.
225
See
Luppe B. Luppen,
Treasury Department Sent Information on Hunter Biden to Expanding GOP Senate Inquiry
, Y
AHOO
N
EWS
(Feb. 6, 2020), https://news.yahoo.com/treasury-department-sent-information-on-hunter-biden-to-expanding-gop-senate-inquiry-161846826.html.
58Member Wyden attempted to disclose to Nuland
’
s counsel the transcribed testimony of anotherwitness. The Chairmen
’
s staff immediately interceded to stop the communication and madeclear that such a disclosure would negatively affect the integrity of the investigation. In addition,the Ranking Member
s’
staff have had contact with counsel for the witnesses without theChairmen
’
s staff present; in the context of an investigation conducted by only the Chairmen andopposed by the Ranking Members, this unilateral contact raises concerns about anycommunications, purposeful or inadvertent, that might harm the integrity of the investigation.House Democrats have also tried to involve themselves in this inquiry. On May 21,2020, Representative Eliot Engel, who serves as Chairman of the House Committee on ForeignAffairs, wrote to the State Department to request that the documents provided to the SenateCommittees be provided to his committee as well.
226
(Of course, Ranking Member Wyden andRanking Member Peters received contemporaneous productions of all records provided to theCommittees.) Citing Ranking Member Wyden, Chairman Engel did not request the materials inconnection with any investigation of his own.
227
Instead, he merely requested all records thathave been produced to the Committees.
228
His inadequately predicated request appears to beanother effort to gather information for the purpose of running political interference. Further,Chairman Engel has subpoenaed records and, in an attempt to strong-arm Secretary Pompeo intoturning over documents, has threatened to initiate contempt proceedings against him.
229
Basedon communications with the State Department, Chairman Engel
’
s actions have directly interferedwith the State Department producing records to the Chairmen. On Sept. 18, 2020, the StateDepartment provided copies of records produced to the Committees to Chairman Engel without providing any prior notice to the Chairmen.
c.
Conspiracy theory claims
On July 13, 2020, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senator Mark Warner, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Representative Adam Schiff sent a letter, with a classified attachment, to theFBI to express a purported belief that Congress is the subject of a foreign disinformationcampaign.
230
In that letter, which was publicly released on July 20, 2020, they requested adefensive briefing on foreign efforts to interfere in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
231
Theclassified attachment included unclassified elements that, among other things, attempted
—
andfailed
—
to tie the joint Committee
s’
investigation to foreign disinformation.
226
Letter from Chairman Elliot Engel, U.S. H.R. Comm. on Foreign Aff., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (May 21, 2020),https://foreignaffairs.house.gov/_cache/files/5/7/577bfdef-657a-48d7-b8e9-1b91229daf5d/ 404E6B8B9F59DEDDBA792009808D9C91.5-21-2020.ele-letter-to-pompeo.pdf .
227
See
id
.
228
See id
.
229
See
Press Release, Chairman Elliot Engel, U.S. H.R. Comm. on Foreign Aff., Engel Announces Contempt Proceedings againstPompeo (Aug. 28, 2020), https://foreignaffairs.house.gov/2020/8/engel-announces-contempt-proceedings-against-pompeo.
230
Letter from Minority Leader Charles Schumer, Vice Chairman Mark Warner, S. Select Comm. on Intelligence, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Chairman Adam Schiff, H. Select Comm. on Intelligence, to Fed. Bureau of Investigation (July 13, 2020),https://intelligence.house.gov/uploadedfiles/20200713_big_4_letter_to_fbi_director_wray_-_defensive_briefing_signed.pdf.
231
Letter from Minority Leader Charles Schumer, Vice Chairman Mark Warner, S. Select Comm. on Intelligence, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Chairman Adam Schiff, H. Select Comm. on Intelligence, to Fed. Bureau of Investigation (July 13, 2020),https://intelligence.house.gov/uploadedfiles/20200713_big_4_letter_to_fbi_director_wray_-_defensive_briefing_signed.pdf;
seealso
Press Release, Nancy Pelosi Speaker of the House, Pelosi, Schumer, Schiff, Warner Send Letter to FBI Director RequestingDefensive Counterintelligence Briefing for All Members (July 20,2020), https://www.speaker.gov/newsroom/72020-2.
59One of those elements was an unclassified paragraph that summarized an open sourcedocument created by Russia-aligned Ukrainian Andriy Derkach, which mentions the Chairmenalong with other Republican senators and administration officials. In that document, theChairmen are labeled as individuals who are fighting against Ukrainian corruption and undertheir pictures is an envelope icon. The Democrats speculated that the envelope icon possiblysuggests that the Chairmen
might
have received information from this Ukrainian national.Liberal media outlets picked up that reference, clearly from a leak, even though the Chairmenhad not received any information from that Ukrainian national, including any alleged tapes.Those media outlets reported that the Chairmen had in fact received information from Derkach,which is false.
232
Indeed, clicking on the envelope icon in the document produces a collection of public letters the Chairmen have sent during the investigation, not any additional documents thatDerkach allegedly sent to them. Although the Democrat
s’
letter and attachment from July 13targeted the Chairmen
’
s investigation, they were not copied on the letter and were not grantedaccess to the classified portion until two weeks after it was sent to FBI and one week after portions of it were publicly reported.On July 16, mere days before the
Democrats’
July 13 letter became public, RankingMember Peters and Ranking Member Wyden wrote to the Chairmen to request a briefing fromthe
FBI’s
Foreign Influence Task Force and other relevant members of the IC on matters relatedto the
Committees’
investigation.
233
On July 28, 2020, the Chairmen responded to the RankingMembers and reminded them that in March 2020, the FBI and relevant members of the IC had briefed the Committees regarding the investigation and provided assurances at that time thatthere was no reason that the Committees should not continue their investigation.
234
Thoseassurances were provided with knowledge of public reporting that Andrii Telizhenko providedrecords to the Committees. Notably, Telizhenko had extensive and consistent contact withObama administration officials and a DNC consultant, and worked for the U.S.-based Democratfirm Blue Star Strategies on matters relevant to the Committees
’
investigation. As such, the onlyrecords he provided to the Committees related to his work for Blue Star Strategies and hisinteractions with Obama administration officials. Additionally, during that briefing, the agenciesmade clear to the Committee
s’
staff that they did not have any additional information to provideand that the relevant written products, which members have had access to for months, speak forthemselves. Subsequently, on Aug. 6, 2020, Chairman Grassley and Chairman Johnson receivedanother briefing from the FBI on behalf of the IC, in which the FBI stated that it is notattempting to
“quash,
curtail, or
interfere”
in the investigation in any way.
232
See
Natasha Bertrand, Andrew Desiderio, and Kyle Cheney,
Democrats: Packets sent to Trump allies are Part of Foreign Plotto Damage Biden
, P
OLITICO
(July 23, 2020), https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/23/democrats-letters-to-trump-allies-are-foreign-plot-to-damage-biden-380217;As the Chairmen have repeatedly said, they and their staff have not received, relied upon,or solicited information from Derkach.
233
Letter from Ranking Member Ron Wyden, S. Comm. on Fin., and Ranking Member Gary Peters, S. Comm. on HomelandSec. and Governmental Aff., to Chairman Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., and Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. on Homeland Sec.and Governmental Aff. (July 16, 2020),https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/200716_Letter_PetersWyden_IntelligenceBriefingRequest.pdf.
234
Letter from Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., and Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. on Homeland Sec. andGovernmental Aff., to Ranking Member Ron Wyden, S. Comm. on Fin., and Ranking Member Gary Peters, S. Comm. onHomeland Sec. and Governmental Aff. (July 28, 2020), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/sites/default/files/2020-07-28%20RHJ-CEG%20Letter%20to%20Peters-Wyden%20%28Defensive%20Briefing%29.pdf.
60On July 20, 2020, Politico reported on the contents of the Democrat
s’
July 13, 2020letter.
235
Unnamed sources for the article alleged that the classified attachment cited theinvestigation into Hunter Biden and others as
“
one of the sources of
…
concern.
”
236
Asubsequent Politico article, again citing unnamed sources, reported that in 2019, Derkachallegedly sent information to several members of Congress, including the Chairmen and RankingMember Wyden and Ranking Member Peters.
237
The article then further suggested that theseweak parallels reinforced the
“
suspicions
”
of some Democrats that the Committees
’
investigationwas
‘“
laundering
’
a foreign influence campaign to damage Biden.
”
238
The Politico article alsosuggested that Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs GeorgeKent and several other individuals have been the subject of Committee information requests.
239
The Chairmen repeatedly rejected claims that they had any engagement with Derkach. InAugust 2020, Derkach was publicly identified by the IC as a proponent of a foreign-sourcedinfluence campaign to influence the 2020 election. He was later sanctioned by the U.S.Department of Treasury for the same activity.
240
Chairman Grassley and Chairman Johnson praised the Treasury for imposing those sanctions.
241
Since the offices of Chairman Johnson and Chairman Grassley did not receive, and wereunaware of, the information that Derkach had allegedly sent, it is impossible that Derkach
’
sefforts could have shaped the Committee
s’
investigation in any way. Furthermore, it should now be clear that Derkac
h’s
core claims are in no way a part of the Committee
s’
investigative work.For example, according to media reports, Derkach is responsible for spreading allegations thatBurisma made direct payments to Joe Biden in the amount of $900,000, which were allegedlyfunneled to Biden through his son
’
s consulting firm, Rosemont Seneca Partners, and marked for
“
consultative services.
”
242
This claim about direct payments made to Joe Biden is not evaluatedin the Committee
s’
report of investigation, nor has it ever been cited as a predicate for any of theCommittee
s’
information requests. However, during the Chairmen
’
s staff interview of GeorgeKent, Ranking Member Peter
s’
staff inserted into the interview record the same Derkach-created
235
See
Natasha Bertrand, Kyle Cheney, and Andrew Desiderio,
Dem leaders demand FBI briefing on 'foreign interferencecampaign' targeting lawmakers
, P
OLITICO
(July 20, 2020), https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/20/democrats-fbi-briefing-foreign-interference-campaign-373134.
236
See
id
.
237
See
Natasha Bertrand, Andrew Desiderio, and Kyle Cheney,
Democrats: Packets sent to Trump allies are Part of Foreign Plotto Damage Biden
, P
OLITICO
(July 23, 2020), https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/23/democrats-letters-to-trump-allies-are-foreign-plot-to-damage-biden-380217. As the Chairmen have repeatedly said, they and their staff have not received, relied upon,or solicited information from Derkach.
238
See
id
.
239
See
Natasha Bertrand, Andrew Desiderio, and Kyle Cheney,
Democrats: Packets sent to Trump allies are Part of Foreign Plotto Damage Biden
, P
OLITICO
(July 23, 2020), https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/23/democrats-letters-to-trump-allies-are-foreign-plot-to-damage-biden-380217.
240
See
Press Release, Off. of the Dir. of
Nat’l
Intelligence, Statement by NCSC Director William Evanina: Election ThreatUpdate for the American Public, (Aug. 7, 2020), https://www.dni.gov/index.php/newsroom/press-releases/item/2139-statement- by-ncsc-director-william-evanina-election-threat-update-for-the-american-public;
see also
Press Release, U.S.
Dep’t
of theTreasury, Treasury Sanctions Russia-Linked Election Interference Actors (Sept. 10, 2020),
https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm1118.
241
Press Release, Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., Grassley, Johnson Praise Trump Admin Actions AgainstForeign Disinformation & Election Interference (Sept. 10, 2020), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley- johnson-praise-trump-admin-actions-against-foreign-disinformation.
242
Mark Moore,
Giuliani claims Ukrainian company paid Joe Biden $900,000 in lobbying fees
, N
EW
Y
ORK
P
OST
(Oct. 10, 2019),https://nypost.com/2019/10/10/giuliani-claims-ukrainian-company-paid-joe-biden-900000-in-lobbying-fees/.
61document that Democrats relied on in their July 13 letter to falsely accuse the Chairmen ofrelying on disinformation.
243
Kent described Derkach
’
s document as disinformation, butRanking Member Peter
s’
staff used it anyway.
244
Thus, the Ranking Members introduceddisinformation into the record, not the Chairmen.
245
In summary, the Democrat
s’
July 13, 2020, letter relied on foreign disinformation tocreate a false and harmful innuendo about the Chairmen
’
s oversight work. That innuendo wasthen wrapped in a classified attachment in an apparent effort to fabricate a veneer of credibilityand shield their analysis from public scrutiny before being disseminated to news media, whichreported their speculation as fact. Ironically, the Democrats relied on and disseminated foreign-sourced disinformation to falsely accuse Republicans of relying on that same foreign-sourceddisinformation.Despite its inaccuracies, the Democrat
s’
false narrative has continued to be picked up,amplified and circulated by a broad network of Democrat-friendly media outlets and Democraticmembers of Congress. MSNBC has reported extensively on the Derkach allegations.
246
Further,on Aug. 7, 2020, Senator Richard Blumenthal published an op-ed in
The Washington Post
inwhich he repeated many of these baseless allegations as if they were fact.
247
He wrote:[I]t now appears that
…
disinformation and deception are gaining atoehold in Congress as well: On Wednesday, The Post reported thatSen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), chairman of the Homeland Security andGovernmental Affairs Committee, is moving ahead with aninvestigation into presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe
Biden’s
family using documents provided to the senator by the sonof a former KGB officer.
Johnson’s
actions are of such concern tothe CIA, according to news reports, that the agency has refused to brief him. Think of it: Congress may become a forum for debunkedconspiracy theories peddled by Kremlin proxies. There is no excusefor perpetuating Russian disinformation in the U.S. Senate, just asthere is there is no excuse for barring the American public fromlearning more about the genuine foreign threats to the Novemberelection.
248
Senator Blumenthal
’
s reference to documents provided by a former KGB officer is a reference tothe debunked conspiracy theory that Derkach sent documents to the Chairmen. His reference tothe Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) briefing relates to false allegations spread in an Aug. 5,2020, Politico article that suggested that the CIA has refused to cooperate with an offer to brief
243
George Kent Testimony at 150.
244
George Kent Testimony at 156.
245
George Kent Testimony at 150.
246
See
Steve Benen,
Dems fear foreign influence campaign is using Ron Johnson probe
, MSNBC (July 21, 2020),https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/dems-fear-foreign-influence-campaign-using-gop-s-ron-johnson-n1234509.
247
See
Sen. Richard Blumenthal,
The threat to U.S. elections is real, and frightening. The public has a right to know
, T
HE
W
ASHINGTON
P
OST
(Aug. 7, 2020),
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-threat-to-us-elections-is-real-and-frightening-the-public-has-a-right-to-know/2020/08/07/366dba0e-d8dd-11ea-930e-d88518c57dcc_story.html.
248
Id
.
62the Committees because its officers have
“
deep skepticism of the probe[.]
”
249
In reality, the CIAdeclined to provide a briefing because it considers any additional briefings to be
unnecessary
.The FBI is the lead agency for the IC in matters related to foreign election interference, and theFBI already has repeatedly briefed the Committees on behalf of the IC. As previously noted, at aMarch 2020 briefing, which included the Ranking Member
s’
staff, the FBI informed theCommittees that there was no reason they should not continue with their investigation. On Aug.6, 2020, the FBI reiterated the same to the Chairmen.The Chairmen responded to Senator Blumenthal, as well as Senator Chris Van Hollen
’
sfalse statements regarding the investigation.
250
In their response, the Chairmen reasserted thatthey have not received any information from Derkach and that their focus is on governmentrecords from the Obama administration and records from a Democrat lobby shop. The Chairmenalso noted to both senators that for years the senators peddled and pushed the now-debunkedRussian collusion narrative and used the
“
Steele dossier
”
—
a Democrat bought-and-paid-fordocument filled with Russian disinformation
—
to do so.
251
Senators Blumenthal and VanHollen never responded to the Chairmen.
d.
Ongoing leaks
While these false narratives have developed and spread, leaks to the media havecontinued. The same team of writers responsible for the above-referenced July 23, 2020,Politico
article have published several other pieces that contained leaked Committee informationrelated to the Ukraine investigation. On July 16, 2020, Politico published the names ofindividuals who the Committees requested to interview, including David Wade, Antony Blinken,Amos Hochstein, Victoria Nuland and Catherine Novelli.
252
The article detailed areas of interestfor the investigation and stated that subpoenas could be issued as soon as July 22, 2020.
253
Noneof this information was made public by the Chairmen. Although the sources for the leakedinformation contained in the article are unknown, the article states that a spokesman forChairman Johnson declined to comment on ongoing discussions with witnesses and ChairmanGrassley has not confirmed to the media any interviewees, whether potential or actual.
254
OnJuly 22, Politico published an article stating that the Committees had secured an interview withDeputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs George Kent.
255
Thearticle contained non-public scheduling details and indicated that Kent could be interviewed as
249
See
Andrew Desiderio and Natasha Bertrand,
CIA Steers Clear of Senate Republican Probe into Bidens
, P
OLITICO
(Aug. 5,2020), https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/05/cia-biden-senate-probe-391479.
250
Press Release, Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., Grassley, Johnson to Colleagues: Stop Spreading Foreign-Sourced Falsehoods (Aug. 20, 2020), https://www.finance.senate.gov/chairmans-news/grassley-johnson-to-colleagues-stop-spreading-foreign-sourced-falsehoods.
251
See
Press Release, Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., IG Footnotes: Serious Problems with Dossier Sources
Didn’t
Stop
FBI’s
Page Surveillance (Apr. 15, 2020), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/ig-footnotes-serious- problems-dossier-sources-didn-t-stop-fbi-s-page-surveillance.
252
Natasha Bertrand and Andrew Desiderio,
Senate Republicans Eye Subpoenas of Biden Advisers in Burisma Probe
, P
OLITICO
(July 16, 2020), https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/16/joe-biden-advisers-burisma-subpoenas-366358.
253
Id
.
254
Id
.
255
Natasha Bertrand,
Senate Republicans Secure Impeachment Witness who Flagged Concern about Hunter Biden
, P
OLITICO
(July 22, 2020), https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/22/republicans-impeachment-witness-hunter-biden-378495.
63early as July 24, 2020.
256
e.
Preferential treatment
Throughout this investigation, the Ranking Members have tried to create the narrativethat the Chairmen have received preferential treatment from the executive branch. The RankingMembers have asserted that the executive branch has been too quick and too thorough in itsresponses to Committee information requests.
257
Ranking Member Wyden has made thisallegation repeatedly and has said they are legitimate efforts to raise awareness of a
“
doublestandard of Trump administration cooperation with
Congress.”
258
The suggested implication isthat the Trump administration is working to quickly release information to the Committees because the investigation includes Hunter Biden, the son of Joe Biden, President Trump
’
s political opponent in the 2020 presidential election.Allegations suggesting the existence of a double standard ring hollow. By no stretch hasthe Trump administration responded to all of the Committee
s’
requests in a timely manner. TheChairmen have dozens of outstanding requests related to the investigation, and on literallyhundreds of occasions, the Chairmen
’
s staff have had to remind the executive branch, particularly the State Department, to comply with their requests.
259
Indeed, in some cases, theCommittees have received relevant records from the administration
after
interviewing witnesseswho could have been asked about the information. That is the absence of cooperation.Finally, recently released emails show that in the past, Democrats have exhibited the verytype of behavior they are now accusing Republicans of engaging in. These documents showofficials in the Obama administration scrambling to produce highly sensitive documents inresponse to requests made by Democrat offices on Capitol Hill during the final days of theObama administration and before President Trump assumed office. In one email on Jan. 13,2017, a State Department staffer pointedly remarked,
“
The clock is ticking.
”
260
That same day,another urged,
“
Both Senators [Cardin and Warner] want the package by Thursday Jan.
19.”
261
256
Id
.
257
See
Letter from Ranking Member Ron Wyden, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (May 6, 2020),https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6883366-Wyden-to-Pompeo-05-06-2020.html; Letter from Ranking Member RonWyden, S. Comm. on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (July 7, 2020),https://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/070720%20Wyden%20to%20Pompeo%20Third%20Ukraine%20Request.pdf;Letter from Ranking Member Ron Wyden, S. Comm. on Fin., to Fed. Bureau of Investigation (Aug. 17, 2020),https://www.finance.senate.gov/download/081720-wyden-wray-fbi-letter; Letter from Ranking Member Ron Wyden, S. Comm.on Fin., to U.S.
Dep’t
of Just. (Aug. 24, 2020),https://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/082420%20Wyden%20Letter%20to%20AG%20Barr%20RE%20Halkbank%20Follow-up.pdf.
258
See
Emma Loop,
Here’s
What’s
Happening In
Republicans’
Biden Ukraine Investigation
, B
UZZFEED
N
EWS
(Feb. 6, 2020),https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/emmaloop/republicans-biden-ukraine-investigation.
259
See
Letters from Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., and Chairman Ron Johnson, S. Comm. on Homeland Sec.and Governmental Aff., to U.S.
Dep’t
of St., U.S.
Dep’t
of Just., Fed. Bureau of Investigation, Off. of the Dir. of Nat.Intelligence, and Cent. Intelligence Agency (July 28, 2020) (on file with Comms.) (Each letter indicates that there is a number ofoutstanding requests for records and information from each respective department.).
260
Email from Naz Durakoglu, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Kerem Bilge, Eric Green, and Maria Germano, U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Jan. 13,2017, 10:56 a.m. EST) (on file with Comms.).
261
Email from Naz Durakoglu, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Elizabeth Lawrence, Hera Abbasi, Kerem Bilge, Katherine Harris, EricGreen, Christopher Robinson, et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Jan. 18, 2017, 3:10 p.m. EST) (on file with Comms.).
64As the deadline for President Trump
’
s inauguration approached, on Jan. 18, one of the sameindividuals wrote,
“
Is it possible for me to act as the courier and drop [the information] off to theHill tomorrow? There is a time sensitivity to these
docs.”
262
f.
Conclusion
Many of the allegations Democrats have made against Republicans
—
that they arerelying on foreign disinformation, that they are carrying out a politicized investigation in aneffort to bring down their political opponents, and that they are working covertly with theexecutive branch to quickly release sensitive information for political reasons
—
reflect the very patterns of behavior that Democrats themselves have engaged in, and continue to engage in, on aregular basis.Let us not forget how the Democratic National Committee and the Hillary Clintoncampaign paid for the Steele dossier, which was created by a foreign national, a former MI6employee, and is based on Russian government sources.
263
Some of those Russian governmentsources were part of the Russian presidential administration and supported Hillary Clinton.
264
Moreover, in January 2017 and February 2017, the FBI received reporting, some from the IC,that assessed portions of the Steele dossier were the product of a Russian disinformationcampaign.
265
That
’
s no surprise, since the Russian Intelligence Services were also aware of thedossier in early 2016 before the FBI opened Crossfire Hurricane. Thus, the Steele dossier wasthe perfect vehicle for disinformation to affect multiple elections and to sow discord and chaos.Yet Democrats had no qualms about disseminating information from the dossier far and wide,reading parts of the dossier into the congressional record, and using its allegations as the basisfor years of investigations and false claims against the Trump administration. Moreover, sincethe Chairmen made public in April 2020 the fact that the Steele dossier contained Russiandisinformation, it does not appear that any Democrats have commented upon this revelation orexpressed concern about their previous reliance on Russian disinformation. Here, the Democratsare again relying on unverified foreign disinformation to falsely accuse their political rivals ofdoing the same.Congressional oversight can and should be nonpartisan. It should be focused on exposingwrongdoing regardless of who is involved and on ensuring transparency and accountability ingovernment on behalf of the American people. Efforts to discredit legitimate oversight,especially using foreign disinformation to sow discord, only serves to benefit our foreignadversaries at the expense of our own democratic institutions.
262
See
Email from Julia Frifield, U.S.
Dep’t
of St., to Hera Abbasi, Anthony Wier, Rori Kramer, Lauren Gillis, Zachary Schram,et al., U.S.
Dep’t
of St. (Jan. 5, 2017 9:52 a.m. EST) (on file with Comms.).
263
See
Press Release, Chairman Charles Grassley, S. Comm. on Fin., IG Footnotes: Serious Problems with Dossier Sources
Didn’t
Stop
FBI’s
Page Surveillance (Apr. 15, 2020), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/ig-footnotes-serious- problems-dossier-sources-didn-t-stop-fbi-s-page-surveillance.
264
See
id
.
265
See id
.
65
XI.
HUNTER BIDEN
’
S AND HIS FAMILY
’
S FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS WITHUKRAINIAN, RUSSIAN, KAZAKH, AND CHINESE NATIONALS RAISECRIMINAL CONCERNS AND EXTORTION THREATS.
Hunter Biden was paid as much as $50,000 per month to serve on the board of Burisma, aUkrainian natural gas company with a corrupt owner, while his father was the public face of theObama
administration’s
Ukraine policy.
266
But Burisma was not the only example of HunterBiden seeking to monetize his family name. During the course of our investigation, ChairmanGrassley and Chairman Johnson uncovered additional examples of Hunter Biden, other familymembers, and their business associates pursuing financial arrangements with foreign nationals invarious parts of the world.The Treasury records acquired by the Chairmen show potential criminal activity relatingto transactions among and between Hunter Biden, his family, and his associates with Ukrainian,Russian, Kazakh and Chinese nationals. In particular, these documents show that Hunter Bidenreceived millions of dollars from foreign sources as a result of business relationships that he builtduring the period when his father was vice president of the United States and after. In additionto providing new and descriptive details about the nature, origin and extent of payments fromBurisma Holdings to Hunter Biden, the documents acquired by the Committees also shed lighton a much broader array of questionable financial transactions involving Hunter Biden, othermembers of the Biden family, and their associations with foreign nationals. These foreignnationals have questionable backgrounds that have been identified as being consistent with arange of criminal activities, including but not limited to organized prostitution and/or humantrafficking, money laundering, fraud, and embezzlement.
267
The following transactions are designed to illustrate the financial associations betweenand among subjects in the inquiry. Much has been reported about Hunter Biden and DevonArcher and their corporate entities and foreign and domestic financial associations. Thetransactions discussed below do not illustrate the full extent of the material the Committees possess. The transactions discussed below are designed to illustrate the depth and extent of somequestionable financial transactions. Moreover, the financial transactions illustrate seriouscounterintelligence and extortion concerns relating to Hunter Biden and his family. TheCommittees will continue to analyze the records in their possession.
266
Paul Sonne, Michael Kranish, and Matt Viser,
The gas tycoon and the vice
president’s
son: The story of Hunter
Biden’s
forayinto Ukraine
, T
HE
W
ASHINGTON
P
OST
(Sept. 28, 2019), https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/the-gas-tycoon-and-the-vice-presidents-son-the-story-of-hunter-bidens-foray-in-ukraine/2019/09/28/1aadff70-dfd9-11e9-8fd3-d943b4ed57e0_story.html; Polina Ivanova, Maria Tsvetkova, et al.,
What Hunter Biden did on the board of Ukrainian energycompany Burisma
, R
EUTERS
(Oct. 18, 2019), https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hunter-biden-ukraine/what-hunter-biden-did-on-the-board-of-ukrainian-energy-company-burisma-idUSKBN1WX1P7.
267
There is extensive public reporting concerning Hunter
Biden’s
alleged involvement with prostitution services. Records on filewith the Committees do not directly confirm or refute these individual reports. However, they do confirm that Hunter Biden sentthousands of dollars to individuals who have either: 1) been involved in transactions consistent with possible human trafficking;2) an association with the adult entertainment industry; or 3) potential association with prostitution. Some recipients of thosefunds are Ukrainian and Russian citizens. The records note that it is a documented fact that Hunter Biden has sent funds to non-resident alien women in the United States who are citizens of Russia and Ukraine and who have subsequently wired funds theyhave received from Hunter Biden to individuals located in Russia and Ukraine. The records also note that some of thesetransactions are linked to what
“appears
to be an Eastern European prostitution or human trafficking ring
.”
66
a.
Burisma Holdings Limited
On April 15, 2014, Burisma Holdings (Burisma), a Ukrainian private oil and gascompany owned by corrupt Ukrainian oligarch Mykola Zlochevsky, sent two wires totaling$112,758.15 to Rosemont Seneca Bohai LLC.
268
Rosemont Seneca Bohai is an apparent shellentity owned by Hunter
Biden’s
long-time business associate, Devon Archer, which was firstregistered in Delaware on Feb. 13, 2014.
269
According to Real Clear Politics, on the following day, April 16, 2014, Archer visitedVice President Biden at the White House.
270
One week later, on April 22, 2014, Vice PresidentBiden appeared with Ukrainian Prime Minister Arsemy Yasenyuk
and addressed Ukrainianlegislators in Kyiv regarding
Russia’s
actions in Crimea.
271
That same day, Burisma announcedthat Archer had joined its board of directors.
272
In the wake of Vice President
Biden’s
visit, the press described him as
“
the public face of the
administration’s
handling of
Ukraine.”
273
The earliest payment from Burisma related to Hunter Biden appears to have been made toBoies, Schiller, and Flexner LLP (Boies Schiller), the Washington law firm where he wasemployed as a counsel in 2014.
274
On May 7, 2014, mere weeks after Vice President Biden tooklead of the Obama
administration’s
Ukraine policy, Burisma sent Boies Schiller a payment of$250,000.
275
Approximately one week later, on May 12, 2014, Hunter Biden joined Archer on
Burisma’s
board of directors.
276
Burisma made a second payment to Boies Schiller on Sept. 16,2014, in the amount of $33,039.77.
277
Both the May 7 and Sept. 16 payments state in thetransaction notes that they were
“for
Legal and Consulting
Services.”
278
268
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
1 (on file with Comms.).
269
See
id
.
270
Betsy McCaughey,
Joe Biden Must Explain His Ukraine Dealings
, R
EAL
C
LEAR
P
OLITICS
(Jan. 29, 2020),https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2020/01/29/joe_biden_must_explain_his_ukraine_dealings_142255.html.
271
Press Release, The White House Off. of the Vice President, Remarks by Vice President Joe Biden at a Meeting with UkrainianLegislators (Apr. 22, 2014), https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/04/22/remarks-vice-president-joe- biden-meeting-ukrainian-legislators;
see also
Press Release, The White House Off. Of the Vice President, Remarks to the Press by Vice President Joe Biden and Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk (Apr. 22, 2014),
https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/04/22/remarks-press-vice-president-joe-biden-and-ukrainian-prime-minister-arse.
272
Press Release, Burisma Holdings, US Financier and Board Member Devon Archer on Maximizing Growth for BurismaHoldings (Apr. 22, 2014), https://burisma-group.com/eng/news/us-financier-and-board-member-devon-archer-on-maximizing-growth-for-burisma-holdings/.
273
Susan Crabtree,
Joe Biden emerges as
Obama’s
trusty sidekick
, W
ASHINGTON
E
XAMINER
(Apr. 25, 2014),https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/joe-biden-emerges-as-obamas-trusty-sidekick.
274
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.);
see also
George Mesires,
A Statement on behalf of Hunter Biden, datedOctober 13, 2019
, M
EDIUM
(Oct. 13, 2019), https://medium.com/@george.mesires/a-statement-on-behalf-of-hunter-biden-dated-october-13-2019-d80bc11087ab.
275
Id
.
276
Press Release, Burisma Holdings, Hunter Biden joins the team of Burisma Holdings (May 12,2014), https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU00/20191211/110331/HMKP-116-JU00-20191211-SD984.pdf.
277
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.).
278
Id
.
67Payments from Burisma to Boies Schiller have been the subject of past news reporting.
279
According to Hunter
Biden’s
attorney, George Mesires, at
Biden’s
urging, Boies Schiller performed the following services for Burisma:[E]ngaged Nardello & Co., a leading global investigative firm, toassess, among other things,
Burisma’s
corporate structure andgovernment practices. Burisma agreed to pay the legal expenses ofBoies Schiller to support Hunter in developing corporate reforminitiatives.
280
However, according to statements made at the time by both Hunter Biden and Burisma, thesewere Hunter
Biden’s
responsibilities as a member of
Burisma’s
board of directors. In a pressrelease issued on May 12, 2014, Biden stated:I believe that my assistance in consulting the Company on mattersof transparency, corporate governance and responsibility,international expansion and other priorities will contribute to theeconomy and benefit the people of Ukraine.
281
Alan Apter, the chairman of
Burisma’s
board of directors, also said
“[t]he
company’s
strategy isaimed at the strongest concentration of professional staff and the introduction of best corporate practices, and
we’re
delighted that Mr. Biden is joining us to help us achieve these
goals.”
282
It is unclear whether any of the funds sent from Burisma to Boies Schiller were used to pay for services that Hunter Biden was supposed to provide to Burisma as a member of the board. Additionally, if Burisma was paying Boies Schiller for consulting services provided bythird-party firm Nardello & Co, as Mesires has indicated, it remains unclear why Hunter Bidendid not provide or arrange those services himself, on his own time, in exchange for thecompensation he was receiving from Burisma as a member of the board.Between May 15, 2014 and Feb. 12, 2016, Burisma sent another 48 wires to RosemontSeneca Bohai, totaling $3,489,490.78.
283
Of the 48 transactions, 39 are described as
“Co
nsulting
Services”
and 39 of the 48 are in the amount of $83,333.33, with the last of the paymentsoccurring on Feb. 12, 2016.
284
Between June 5, 2014, and Oct. 5, 2015, Rosemont Seneca Bohaisent 38 wires totaling $701,979 to three of Hunter
Biden’s
bank accounts.
285
These transfers
279
See
Kenneth P. Vogel and Iuliia Mendel,
Biden Faces Conflict of Interest Questions That Are Being Promoted by Trump and Allies
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(May 1, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/01/us/politics/biden-son-ukraine.html.
280
George Mesires,
A Statement on behalf of Hunter Biden, dated October 13, 2019
, M
EDIUM
(Oct. 13, 2019),
https://medium.com/@george.mesires/a-statement-on-behalf-of-hunter-biden-dated-october-13-2019-d80bc11087ab
.
281
Press Release, Burisma Holdings, Hunter Biden joins the team of Burisma Holdings (May 12,2014), https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU00/20191211/110331/HMKP-116-JU00-20191211-SD984.pdf.
282
Id
.
283
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
1 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
3 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
4 (on file with Comms.).
284
Id
.
285
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
1 (on file with Comms.).
68may represent the final step in the flow of funds from Burisma to Rosemont Seneca Bohai toBiden during this period.The nature of the payment arrangement between Biden and Burisma appears to havechanged over time. In May 2016, Hunter
Biden’s
business partner, Archer, and five others werearrested and criminally charged in a scheme to defraud investors and a tribal entity of millions ofdollars.
286
Starting Jan. 25, 2016, Burisma began sending regular payments for Biden to hisWashington law firm, Owasco PC (Owasco).
287
Owasco was incorporated on Jan. 19, 2006, listsan agent address in Washington, and lists its executing officer and governor as Robert HunterBiden.
288
Payments from Burisma to Owasco continued throughout most of 2016 and ceased eightdays after Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the Nov. 8, 2016 presidential election.
289
Between Jan. 25, 2016, and Nov. 16, 2016, Burisma sent nine wires totaling $752,054.99 toOwasco with each of the nine transactions listing
“Owasco,
PC/Robert
Biden”
as the recipient.
290
Of the nine, two payments were for $83,333.33, five were for $83,333 one was for $84,992.33,and one was for $83,731.
291
The records acquired by the Committees show the last documented payment was made on Nov. 16, 2016.
292
Biden continued to serve on
Burisma’s
board ofdirectors until April 2019.
293
In addition to being the owner of Burisma, Zlochevsky made at least two large cashtransfers to Burisma during the time that Archer and Biden served on its board of directors.
294
On April 30, 2014, around the dates when Archer and Hunter Biden first joined
Burisma’s
boardof directors, Zlochevsky wired $12.3 million from another one of his companies, BrocitiInvestments Limited (Brociti), to Burisma.
295
Brociti is based in Kyiv, Ukraine, and is registeredin Limassol, Cyprus.
296
Zlochevsky sent another wire from Brociti to Burisma on April 20,2015, in the amount of $212,000.
297
It’s
unclear exactly how much, if any, of the funds wired byZlochevsky on April 30, 2014, and April 20, 2015, were used to cover the payments made fromBurisma to Rosemont Seneca, Owasco, and Boies Schiller. However, these transactions,
286
Press Release, U.S.
Dep’t
of Just., Seven Defendants Charged In Manhattan Federal Court With Defrauding A NativeAmerican Tribe And Investors Of Over $60 Million (May 11, 2016), https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/seven-defendants-charged-manhattan-federal-court-defrauding-native-american-tribe-and.
287
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.).
288
See
Owasco P.C., OpenCorporates, https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_dc/EXTUID_2684079. Owasco P.C. wasincorporated in January 2006; Eric Schwerin was a governor and executing officer, and Hunter Biden was an agent. In December2019, both Schwerin and Hunter Biden rescinded those affiliations with Owasco.
See
Events for Owasco P.C., OpenCorporates,https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_dc/EXTUID_2684079/events.
289
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
5 (on file with Comms.).
290
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
5 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.)
.
291
Id
.
292
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
5 (on file with Comms.).
293
Kenneth P. Vogel and Iuliia Mendel,
Biden Faces Conflict of Interest Questions That Are Being Promoted by Trump and Allies
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(May 1, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/01/us/politics/biden-son-ukraine.html.
294
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.).
295
Id
.
296
Lobbying registration, ML Strategies, https://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=getFilingDetails&filingID=C4C8E1E0-861C-4F02-B73E-0FE6578BD4D8&filingTypeID=1.
297
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.).
69including those to Biden and his companies, were identified for potential financial criminalactivity.
b.
Russia
Hunter Biden and his associate, Archer, had a financial relationship with Russian businesswoman
Elena Baturina. Baturina is the former wife of the late Yuri Luzhkov, who wasthe mayor of Moscow and was fired in 2010 by then-Russian president Dmitry Medvedev overcorruption allegations.
298
Baturina became
Russia’s
only female billionaire when her plasticscompany, Inteko, received a series of Moscow municipal contracts while her husband wasmayor.
299
According to reporting,
“Luzhkov
used his position as mayor to approve over 20 realestate projects that were built by a Baturina-owned construction company and ultimatelygenerated multibillion-ruble profits for his
family.”
300
In addition, a Russian investigation led toa criminal case against the former head of the Bank of Moscow, Andrey Borodin, who
“allegedly
used money from the Moscow City Budget to lend money to shell companies, which ultimatelytransferred $443 million to Baturina.
”
301
On Feb. 14, 2014, Baturina wired $3.5 million to a Rosemont Seneca Thornton LLC(Rosemont Seneca Thornton) bank account for a
“Consultancy
Agreement DD12.02.2014.
”
302
Rosemont Seneca Thornton is an investment firm co-founded by Hunter Biden that wasincorporated on May 28, 2013 in Wilmington, Del.
303
According to
The Financial Times
,Rosemont Seneca Thornton is a consortium that consists of Rosemont Seneca Partners and theThornton Group, a Massachusetts-based firm.
304
In June 2009, Biden co-founded RosemontSeneca Partners with Archer and Christopher Heinz.
305
The Thornton
Group’s
website statesthat it has offices in Boston and Beijing, lists Rosemont Seneca Partners among its list ofalliances and clients, and includes photographs from multiple events attended by HunterBiden.
306
298
David Filipov,
Yuri Luzhkov, transformative Moscow Mayor, dies at 83
, T
HE
W
ASHINGTON
P
OST
(Dec. 10, 2019),https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/yuri-luzhkov-transformative-moscow-mayor-dies-at-83/2019/12/10/158ed11c-1b3f-11ea-8d58-5ac3600967a1_story.html; Christian Eriksson and Margot Gibbs,
Russia’s
richest woman quits role at London
Mayor’s
charity after Finance Uncovered investigation,
F
INANCED
U
NCOVERED
(Sept. 26, 2019)
,
https://www.financeuncovered.org/investigations/yelena-baturina-be-open-mayors-fund-for-london-sadiq-khan-corruption
.
299
Id
.
300
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
6 (on file with Comms.).
301
Id
.
302
Id
.
303
Rosemont Seneca Thornton, LLC, OpenCorporates, https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_de/5341255;
see also
AimeWilliams, Sun Yu, and Roman Olearchyk,
Hunter
Biden’s
web of interests
, F
INANCIAL
T
IMES
(Oct. 9, 2019),https://www.ft.com/content/3904f888-e8ef-11e9-a240-3b065ef5fc55.
304
Aime Williams, Sun Yu, and Roman Olearchyk,
Hunter
Biden’s
web of interests
, F
INANCIAL
T
IMES
(Oct. 9, 2019),https://www.ft.com/content/3904f888-e8ef-11e9-a240-3b065ef5fc55.
305
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize his
Father’s
Campaign?
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
306
Contact, Thornton Group, http://www.thorntonai.com/english/contact.html; Alliances/Clients, Thornton Group,http://www.thorntonai.com/english/alliances.html; Press Release, Thornton Group, Thornton Group brings Rosemont Senecaexecutives to visit Chinas financial/fund industry executives (Apr. 12, 2010),http://www.thorntonai.com/english/newscount.asp?ArticleID=282; Press Release, Thornton Group, Thornton Group meets withsenior financial holding executives from Taiwan (May 24, 2011),http://www.thorntonai.com/english/newscount.asp?ArticleID=288; C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
6 (on file with Comms.).
70Separately, between May 6, 2015 and Dec. 8, 2015, Baturina sent 11 wires in the amountof $391,968.21 to a bank account belonging to BAK USA LLC (BAK USA).
307
Nine of the 11transactions, totaling $241,797.14 were sent from Batur
ina’s
accounts to a Rosemont SenecaThornton bank account, which then transferred to the money to BAK USA.
308
The 11transactions all listed
“Loan
Agreement”
in the payment details section.
309
BAK USA was astartup technology company headquartered in Buffalo, N.Y., that produced tablet computers incooperation with unnamed Chinese business partners.
310
BAK USA filed for bankruptcy onMarch 29, 2019, with a reported loss of $39 million.
311
These transactions were identified because of
Baturina’s
reported criminal activity.
c.
Kazakhstan
On April 22, 2014, Vice President Joe Biden appeared with Ukrainian Prime MinisterArsemy Yasenyuk
and addressed Ukrainian legislators in Kyiv regarding
Russia’s
actions inCrimea.
312
The same day, Novatus Holding PTE. LTD. (Novatus Holding), a private holdingcompany in Singapore, used a Latvian bank to wire $142,300 to
Archer’s
company, RosemontSeneca Bohai.
313
The currency transaction report states,
“For
Rosemont Seneca Bohai LLC,
…
For a
Car.”
314
According to a Securities and Exchange Commission report, Kenges Rakishev ofKazakhstan is the sole shareholder of Novatus Holding and has a business address associatedwith a company in Kazakhstan called SAT & Company.
315
Rakishev is the son-in-law of now-retired Kazakhstan politician, Imangali Tasmagambetov.
316
At the time that Rakishev sent themoney to Rosemont Seneca Bohai, Tasmagambetov was serving as the mayor of Astana (nowcalled Nur-Sultan), the capital city of Kazakhstan.
317
Tasmagambetov is reportedly a longtime
307
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
6 (on file with Comms.).
308
Id
.
309
Id
.
310
Samantha Christmann,
Microsoft contract is a boon for Buffalo tablet-maker BAK USA
, BUFFALO
NEWS (Mar. 16, 2016),https://buffalonews.com/business/local/microsoft-contract-is-a-boon-for-buffalo-tablet-maker-bak-usa/article_a31de7bd-81c1-5646-89dc-032333a9c9cd.html.
311
Local News,
Former tablet maker BAK USA reports more than $39 million loss in Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing
, WKBW
B
UFFALO
(Apr. 11, 2019), https://www.wkbw.com/news/local-news/former-tablet-maker-bak-usa-has-more-than-39-million-loss.
312
Press Release, The White House Off. of the Vice President, Remarks by Vice President Joe Biden at a Meeting with UkrainianLegislators (Apr. 22, 2014), https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/04/22/remarks-vice-president-joe- biden-meeting-ukrainian-legislators;
see also
Press Release, The White House Off. Of the Vice President, Remarks to the Press by Vice President Joe Biden and Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk (Apr. 22, 2014),
https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/04/22/remarks-press-vice-president-joe-biden-and-ukrainian-prime-minister-arse.
313
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
4 (on file with Comms.).
314
Id.
315
U.S.
S
EC
.
AND
E
XCH
.
C
OMM
’
N
, Schedule 13D, Net Element International, Inc.,https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1499961/000119312512418766/d422610dsc13d.htm.
316
Olzhas Auyezov,
Kazakh Leader Promotes Daughter, Confident in Reshuffle,
R
EUTERS
(Sept. 13, 2016),https://www.reuters.com/article/us-kazakhstan-president-daughter/kazakh-leader-promotes-daughter-confidant-in-reshuffle-idUSKCN11J1JR;
see also
Dmitry Solovyov and Mariya Gordeyeva,
Kazkommertsbank finalizes deal to buy stake in BTA Bank,
R
EUTERS
(Feb. 6, 2014), https://www.reuters.com/article/us-kazkommertsbank-btabank-idUSBREA150VD20140206.
317
Joshua Kucera,
Kazakhstan’s
Defense Minister Fired After Six Months On Job
, E
URASIANET
(Oct. 24, 2014),https://eurasianet.org/kazakhstans-defense-minister-fired-after-six-months-on-job.
71confidant of then-President Nursultan Nazarbayev.
318
Tasmagambetov has since served as primeminister of Kazakhstan as well as Kazakh ambassador to Russia.
319
At the time of Vice President
Biden’s
visit to Kyiv, there were divided opinions inKazakhstan over
Russia’s
annexation of Crimea and the international situation had producedtension in the region generally.
320
Nazarbayev’s
government reportedly shifted positions overtime, and Nazarbayev reportedly made some statements supportive of
Russia’s
actions.
321
Given
Rakishev’s
close connection to political leadership in Kazakhstan, the tense political situation,Hunter
Biden’s
longstanding relationship with Archer and involvement in transactions withRosemont Seneca Bohai, and the fact that the payment was timed perfectly with Vice President
Biden’s
visit to Kyiv to discuss U.S. sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Crimea, theApril 22, 2014 payment from Rakishev to Rosemont Seneca Bohai raises serious questions. It isunclear why a foreign company, Novatus Holding, would purchase a $142,300 car for RosemontSeneca Bohai when the company does not deal in vehicles.
d.
China
Hunter Biden and Devon Archer engaged in numerous financial transactions withChinese nationals who had deep connections to the Communist Chinese government. TheseChinese nationals included Ye Jianming, founder of CEFC China Energy Co. Ltd (CEFC) andchairman of the board for its subsidiary, the China Energy Fund Committee (CE Fund). Theyalso included Gongwen Dong, who was Ye Jianmi
ng’s
associate and reportedly executedtransactions for his companies.
Ye’s
connections to the Communist government are extensiveand, as explained below, he has been previous affiliations with the
People’s
Liberation Army.Based on the information received by the Committees, Ye was also financially connected to VicePresident
Biden’s
brother, James Biden. Thus, there exists a vast web of corporate connectionsand financial transactions between and among the Biden family and Chinese nationals.
i.
Hunter Biden Has Extensive Financial Connections to the ChineseGovernment.
Hunter Biden has extensive connections to Chinese businesses and Chinese foreignnationals that are linked to the Communist government. Those contacts bore financial fruit whenhis father was vice president and after he left office. For example, in June 2009, Hunter Bidenhad co-founded Rosemont Seneca Partners with Archer and Heinz.
322
During 2010-2011, as arepresentative of Rosemont Seneca, Hunter Biden networked with representatives fromChinese state-owned enterprises and representatives of the Boston-based Thornton Group,
318
Olzhas Auyezov,
Kazakh Leader Promotes Daughter, Confident in Reshuffle,
R
EUTERS
(Sept. 13, 2016),https://www.reuters.com/article/us-kazakhstan-president-daughter/kazakh-leader-promotes-daughter-confidant-in-reshuffle-idUSKCN11J1JR.
319
Galiya Khassenkhanova,
Kazakh President reshuffles key government positions
, T
HE
A
STANA
T
IMES
(Dec. 19, 2019),https://astanatimes.com/2019/12/kazakh-president-reshuffles-key-government-positions/.
320
Ryskeldi Satke,
Kazakhstan Opposition Fears
Ukraine’s
“Russian
Spring”
, T
HE
D
IPLOMAT
(Apr. 12, 2014),https://thediplomat.com/2014/04/kazakhstan-opposition-fears-ukraines-russian-spring/.
321
Id
.
322
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize his
Father’s
Campaign?
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
72which today describes itself as
“a
cross-border capital
intermediary.”
323
On its currentwebsite, the Thornton Group includes among its alliances and clients a variety of Chinesestate-owned enterprises, including actors linked to Ye Jianming and his associates.
324
Ye Jianming is a Chinese businessman and a frequent figure in Hunter
Biden’s
financialdealings in China. Based on public reports that were available in 2015, when his contact withBiden began to ramp up, Ye was a founder of CEFC China Energy Co. Ltd (CEFC) and servedas chairman of the board for its subsidiary, the China Energy Fund Committee (CE Fund).
325
CEFC had a reported income estimated at $33.4 billion, according to 2013 figures that wereavailable at the time.
326
Although CEFC reportedly remained a private company until state-owned enterprises assumed control of it in 2018, reporting in 2017 indicated that it receivedfinancing from the China Development Bank,
“hired
a number of former top officials from state-owned energy
companies”
and had
“layers
of Communist Party committees across itssubsidiaries
—
more than at many private Chinese co
mpanies.”
327
Thus, it had significantconnections to the Communist government and its subsidiaries had associations with theThornton Group. For example, according to the Thornton
Group’s
website, its list of Chinese partners currently includes:the Agricultural Bank of China, the Bank of Beijing, the ChinaCouncil for the Promotion of International Trade, the Chinese
People’s
Institute of Foreign Affairs, the CAIFC, the ChinaElectricity Council, CITIC Group, China Life, the China StateConstruction Engineering Corporation, the China RailwayConstruction Corporation, the Council for Industrial andCommercial Development, the Chinese International EconomyCooperation Association, the China Mining Association, thegovernment-owned Founder Group, the Industrial andCommercial Bank of China Limited, and Peking University.
328
A Thornton Group press release dated April 12, 2010, provides an example of an early eventin China involving Rosemont Seneca Partners and the Thornton Group. It states thefollowing:Thornton Group and its US partner Rosemont Seneca ChairmanHunter Biden (the second son of the US Vice President Joe Biden)and other high-level officials visited Chinese financial institutions
323
See
About Us, Thornton, http://www.thorntonai.com/english/alliances.html;
see also
Press Release, Thorton Group, ThorntonGroup brings Rosemont Seneca executives to visit Chinas financial/fund industry executives (Apr. 12, 2010),http://www.thorntonai.com/english/newscount.asp?ArticleID=282; Press Release, Thorton Group, Thornton Group meets withsenior financial holding executives from Taiwan (May 24, 2011),http://www.thorntonai.com/english/newscount.asp?ArticleID=288.
324
See
Alliances/Clients, Thornton, http://www.thorntonai.com/english/alliances.html.
325
See
J. Michael Cole,
Unstoppable:
China’s
Secret Plan to Subvert Taiwan
, T
HE
N
ATIONAL
I
NTEREST
(Mar. 23, 2015),https://nationalinterest.org/feature/unstoppable-chinas-secret-plan-subvert-taiwan-12463.
326
See
id
.
327
Chen Aizhu and Jan Lopatka,
China’s
CEFC has big ambitions, but little known about ownership, funding
, R
EUTERS
(Jan. 12,2017), https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cefc-china/chinas-cefc-has-big-ambitions-but-little-known-about-ownership-funding-idUSKBN14X0B5;
see
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
328
Alliances/Clients, Thornton, http://www.thorntonai.com/english/alliances.html.
73and fund companies from April 7th to 9th. Including ChinaInvestment Co., Ltd., National Council of Social Security Funds,China Life Asset Management Co., Ltd., Postal Savings Bank ofChina, Hillhouse Capital and Founder Group, etc., aiming to furtherdeepen mutual understanding and explore the possibility ofcommercial cooperation and opportunity. The Chinese companiesand financial institutions visited expressed a warm welcome toThornton Group and Rosemont Seneca, and hoped to strengthenexchanges, in-depth discussions and reach cooperation.
The delegation was led by James Bulger, Chairman of ThorntonGroup, and Lin Junliang, Chief Executive Officer, to visit and meetChinese personnel including: Gao Xiqing, General Manager andChief Investment Officer of China Investment Corporation, EquityAssets Department (Industrial Investment Department) of the National Council of Social Security Fund person in charge JiGuoqiang, Vice President Cui Yong of China Life AssetManagement Co. Ltd., Peng Zuogang, General Manager of PostalSavings Bank of China, Zhang Lei, Founder of Hillhouse Capital,Wei Xin, Chairman of Founder Group, and Xia Yangjun, VicePresident of Founder Group.
329
Pictures from the event posted by the Thornton Group show Hunter Biden standing withthe chairman of the Founder Group, general manager of the China Investment Corporation, thevice president of the China Life Asset Management Company, the general manager of the PostalSavings Bank, and others.
330
In 2012, Archer and Biden reportedly spoke with Jonathan Li of the Chinese privateequity fund Bohai Capital about the possibility of forming a company, Bohai Harvest RST(Shanghai) Equity Investment Fund Management Co. (BHR), that would invest Chinese capitalin companies outside of China.
331
BHR was eventually formed as an investment fund and isreportedly
“controlled
and funded primarily by large Chinese government-owned shareholders
”
and is 80% controlled by Chinese entities.
332
That list of entities includes the governme
nt’s
postal savings bank, with which Hunter Biden had networked in 2011, its main development bank, as well as the Bank of China.
333
Hunter Biden served on its board of directors and
329
Press Release, Thornton Group, Thornton Group brings Rosemont Seneca executives to visit Chinas financial/fund industryexecutives (Apr. 12, 2010), http://www.thorntonai.com/english/newscount.asp?ArticleID=282. (Translation provided byGoogle.).
330
See
id
.
331
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize his
Father’s
Campaign?
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
332
See
James T. Areddy,
What We Know About Hunter
Biden’s
Dealings in China
, T
HE
W
ALL
S
TREET
J
OURNAL
(Oct. 4, 2019),https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-we-know-about-hunter-bidens-dealings-in-china-11570181403
.
333
See
James T. Areddy,
What We Know About Hunter
Biden’s
Dealings in China
,
T
HE
W
ALL
S
TREET
J
OURNAL
(Oct. 4, 2019),https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-we-know-about-hunter-bidens-dealings-in-china-11570181403;
see also
Press Release,Thornton Group, Thornton Group brings Rosemont Seneca executives to visit Chinas financial/fund industry executives (Apr. 12,2010), http://www.thorntonai.com/english/newscount.asp?ArticleID=282.
74
“
joined based on his interest in seeking ways to bring Chinese capital to international
markets.”
334
He served unpaid but reportedly acquired a 10% stake in the company in 2017.
335
Prior to its creation, in December 2013 and one month after the shareholders signed contractsrelating to the creation of the company, Hunter Biden reportedly flew aboard Air Force Two withthen-Vice President Biden to Beijing.
336
While in China, Hunter Biden reportedly helpedarrange for Li to
“shake
hands”
with Vice President Biden.
337
Afterward, Hunter Biden met withLi for what was reportedly a
“social
meeting.”
338
After the China trip,
BHR’s
business licensewas reportedly approved.
339
In September 2014, BHR had become a private equity shareholder in SinopecChemical Commercial Holding Company Limited, a subsidiary of Sinopec.
340
Sinopec isreportedly the second largest oil and gas company in China and the largest refiner of oil inAsia.
341
In 2016, Ye announced at a board meeting that he wanted CEFC
“to
become asecond Sinopec
…
by acquiring global assets and consolidating
‘
teapot
’
[independent]
refineries.”
342
Hunter
Biden’s
position of influence and connections to Chinese businessinterests, which were further strengthened while his father was vice president, most likelyappealed to Ye, a man who The New York Times has since described as
“[wanting]
access tothe corridors of power in
Washington.”
343
BHR’s
extensive connections to Chinese government intertwined its existence with thedecision-making of Communist party rulers. For example, the China Development Bank(CDB) is one member of a consortium that controls 30% of BHR.
344
Other members of that particular consortium are the
government’s
postal savings bank and the Bank of China.
345
Importantly, the CDB appears to have been connected to Ye
Jianming’s
CEFC. Recordsacquired by the Committees note that, according to reports, after CEFC and Ye fell out offavor with the Chinese government in 2018,
“at
the orders of President Xi Jinping, ChinaDevelopment Bank abruptly pulled its lines of credit on offshore bonds for
CEFC[.]”
346
Moreover, the former chairman of the CDB, Hu Huaibang, was accused in a 2018 court caseof helping a CEFC subsidiary to obtain billions in financing during his time at the CDB and of
334
Katie Glueck,
Hunter Biden to Leave Chinese Company Board, Addressing Appearance of a Conflict
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(Oct. 13, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/13/us/politics/hunter-biden-china.html.
335
Id
.
336
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize his
Father’s
Campaign?
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
337
Id
.
338
Id
.
339
Sharon LaFraniere and Michael Forsythe,
What We know About Hunter
Biden’s
Business in China
,
T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
340
Team, BHR Partners, https://web.archive.org/web/20180404080538/http://en.bhrpe.com/newsitem/276817011.
341
Chen Aizhu,
China's CEFC courts 'teapots' for first domestic refinery acquisition
, R
EUTERS
(Mar. 10, 2017),https://de.reuters.com/article/us-china-m-a-cefc-idUSKBN16H0G4.
342
Id
.
343
Alexandra Stevenson, David Barboza, Matthew Goldstein, and Paul Mozur,
A Chinese Tycoon Sought Power and Influence.Washington Responded.
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(Dec. 12, 2018), https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/12/business/cefc-biden-china-washington-ye-jianming.html.
344
James T. Areddy,
What We Know About Hunter
Biden’s
Dealings in China,
T
HE
W
ALL
S
TREET
J
OURNAL
(Oct. 4, 2019),https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-we-know-about-hunter-bidens-dealings-in-china-11570181403.
345
See
id
.
346
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
75channeling bribes on behalf of Ye while serving in a previous position at the Bank ofCommunications, another Chinese government entity.
347
Hunter
Biden’s
business associations in China were not limited to investment funds likeBHR and those additional connections created questionable associations with Communistgovernment elements. For example, in 2015, while his father was vice president, Hunter Bidenreportedly met with an aide to Ye.
348
In addition to the Communist government, Ye also hadreported connections and affiliations to the
People’s
Liberation Army (PLA).
349
For example,from 2003 to 2005, Ye reportedly served as deputy secretary general of the China Associationfor International Friendly Contacts (CAIFC), which is the public name for the PLA GeneralPolitical
Department’s
International Liaison Department.
350
Additionally, in 2014, under
Ye’s
leadership, CE Fund had co-organized events with the China Huayi Broadcasting Corporation(CHBC), a company incorporated by the PLA General Political Department.
351
The CEO ofCHBC, Wang Shu, was commander of the PLA General Political Department base
“[a]t
theforefront of applied psychological operations and propaganda directed against Taiwan,
”
whichwas managed by a training center that was funded by a subsidiary of CEFC.
352
The generalmanager of that subsidiary, Lan Huasheng, was deputy secretary general of
Ye’s
CE Fund.
353
Wang reportedly attended the 2014 CE Fund and CHBC event along with Xu Jialu, a manwho was associated with the
PLA’s
CAIFC as well as CE Fund and
China’s
ConfuciusInstitutes.
354
Huasheng served as executive director of CE
Fund’s
China Institute of CultureLimited (CIOC),
“a
nationally supported organization in charge of
‘promoting
Chinese
culture.’”
355
Accordingly, Ye and his associates had robust relationships with
China’s
military units, some of which were involved in matters in direct opposition to U.S. policy inthe region.
347
Tony Munroe, Cheng Leng, Engen Tham and Min Zhang,
Ex-chairman of China Development Bank under probe by graft-buster
, R
EUTERS
(July 31, 2019), https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-china-corruption/ex-chairman-of-china-development-bank-under-probe-by-graft-buster-idUKKCN1UQ0M3.
348
Alexandra Stevenson, David Barboza, Matthew Goldstein, and Paul Mozur,
A Chinese Tycoon Sought Power and Influence.Washington Responded.
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(Dec. 12, 2018),https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/12/business/cefc-biden-china-washington-ye-jianming.html. (The name of
Ye’s
aide and theexact date of the meeting have not been publically reported. The aforementioned meeting, and another meeting between HunterBiden and Ye that took place in May 2017, were confirmed by
“people
with direct knowledge of the meetings who were notauthorized to speak publicly because the meetings were
private.”).
349
J. Michael Cole,
Unstoppable:
China’s
Secret Plan to Subvert Taiwan
, T
HE
N
ATIONAL
I
NTEREST
(Mar. 23, 2015),https://nationalinterest.org/feature/unstoppable-chinas-secret-plan-subvert-taiwan-12463.
350
See
J. Michael Cole,
Unstoppable:
China’s
Secret Plan to Subvert Taiwan
, T
HE
N
ATIONAL
I
NTEREST
(Mar. 23, 2015),https://nationalinterest.org/feature/unstoppable-chinas-secret-plan-subvert-taiwan-12463;
see also
International LiaisonDepartment [China Association for International Friendly Contacts] General Political Department, F
EDERATION OF
A
MERICAN
S
CIENTISTS
(Nov. 26, 1997), https://fas.org/irp/world/china/pla/gpd_ild.htm.
351
J. Michael Cole,
Unstoppable:
China’s
Secret Plan to Subvert Taiwan
, T
HE
N
ATIONAL
I
NTEREST
(Mar. 23, 2015),https://nationalinterest.org/feature/unstoppable-chinas-secret-plan-subvert-taiwan-12463.
352
Id
.
353
Id
.
354
J. Michael Cole,
Unstoppable:
China’s
Secret Plan to Subvert Taiwan
, T
HE
N
ATIONAL
I
NTEREST
(Mar. 23, 2015),https://nationalinterest.org/feature/unstoppable-chinas-secret-plan-subvert-taiwan-12463. (According to records on file with theCommittees, it appears that Gongwen Dong, a mutual associate of Ye Jianming, James Biden, Sara Biden, and Hunter Biden,recently contributed to the Confucius Foundation Inc. On July 29, 2019, there was a wire for $5,000 from a Golden Coast AssetManagement LLC account that is linked to both Gongwen Dong and Shan Gao to the Confucius Foundation Inc. with memo,
“Gongwen
Dong.”)
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
8 (on file with Comms.).
355
J. Michael Cole,
Unstoppable:
China’s
Secret Plan to Subvert Taiwan
, T
HE
N
ATIONAL
I
NTEREST
(Mar. 23, 2015),https://nationalinterest.org/feature/unstoppable-chinas-secret-plan-subvert-taiwan-12463.
76It is unclear whether Hunter Biden was aware of
Ye’s
close relationship with the PLAor involvement in efforts to develop and spread Chinese propaganda at the time of his 2015meeting with
Ye’s
associate. However, public reporting did make those connections.
356
Hunter
Biden’s
connections with Ye continued into the summer of 2017, when he metwith Ye while soliciting donations for World Food Program USA in his capacity as a member ofits board of directors.
357
At the time, Ye continued to operate the CE Fund, which has since beenfound to have engaged in criminal activities.
358
During their interactions in 2017, Hunter Bidenreportedly agreed to assist Ye by using his contacts to help Ye locate potential investments forCEFC in the United States.
359
In keeping with that agreement, after meeting Ye, Hunter Bidenstated that he began working on a deal for Ye that involved a $40 million investment in a naturalgas project on Monkey Island in Louisiana that reportedly fell through the following year.
360
Around the same time that Hunter Biden began this work, Ye raised concerns with Hunter Bidenthat one of his associates, Patrick Ho, was under investigation by U.S. law enforcement.
361
Hunter Biden subsequently agreed to represent Ho.
362
On Sept. 8, 2017, a $9.1 billion deal was announced whereby
Ye’s
company, CEFC,would acquire a stake in the state-owned Russian energy company, Rosneft.
363
Ye’s
efforts toacquire a stake in Rosneft appear fully consistent with his vision of turning CEFC into a
“second
Sinopec”
with holdings across the world.
364
ii.
Hunter Biden and his Family had Extensive Financial Connections to Ye Jianming, Gongwen Dong and other Chinese Nationals.
On the same day that the impending Rosneft deal was announced, Hunter Biden andGongwen Dong, a Chinese national who has reportedly executed transactions for limited liabilitycompanies controlled by Ye Jianming, applied to a bank and opened a line of credit under the business name Hudson West III LLC (Hudson West III).
365
Hunter Biden, James Biden, andJames
Biden’s
wife, Sara Biden, were all authorized users of credit cards associated with the
356
See id
.
357
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize His
Father’s
Campaign?
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
358
See
Press Release, U.S.
Dep’t
of Just., Former Head of Organization Backed by Chinese Energy Conglomerate Sentenced toThree Years in Prison for International Bribery and Money Laundering Offenses (Mar. 25, 2019),https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-head-organization-backed-chinese-energy-conglomerate-sentenced-three-years-prison.
359
Adam Entous,
Will Hunter Biden Jeopardize His
Father’s
Campaign?
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORKER
(July 1, 2019),https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/08/will-hunter-biden-jeopardize-his-fathers-campaign.
360
Id
.
361
Id
.
362
Id
.
363
Olesya Astakhova and Chen Aizhu,
China invests $9.1 billion in Rosneft as Glencore, Qatar cut stakes
R
EUTERS
(Sept. 8,2017), https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rosneft-cefc-glencore/china-invests-9-1-billion-in-rosneft-as-glencore-qatar-cut-stakes-idUSKCN1BJ1HT.
364
See
Chen Aizhu,
China's CEFC courts 'teapots' for first domestic refinery acquisition
, R
EUTERS
(Mar. 10, 2017),https://de.reuters.com/article/us-china-m-a-cefc-idUSKBN16H0G4.
365
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
9 (on file with Comms.); s
ee also
Katherine Clarke,
A Top Chinese Oilman Vanishes, and a Manhattan Buying Binge Ends
, T
HE
W
ALL
S
TREET
J
OURNAL
(Oct. 25, 2018),
https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-top-chinese-oilman-vanishes-and-a-manhattan-buying-binge-ends-1540478781.
77account.
366
The Bidens subsequently used the credit cards they opened to purchase $101,291.46worth of extravagant items, including airline tickets and multiple items at Apple Inc. stores, pharmacies, hotels and restaurants.
367
The cards were collateralized by transferring $99,000from a Hudson West III account to a separate account, where the funds were held until the cardswere closed.
368
The transaction was identified for potential financial criminal activity. TheCommittees prepared the following chart which displays transactions related to the line of credit:
On 09/08/2017 a line of credit was opened for
$99,000.00
via an online application byGongwenDong & Hunter Biden05/25/2018 date of final payment of
$101,291.46
via cashiers check payable toHudson West III & Robert H. Biden
James B. Biden (Individual)
Role
:
SubjectAccounts: Two Credit Cards
Sara Jones Biden (Individual)
Role: SubjectAccounts: One Credit Card
Robert Hunter Biden (Individual)
Subject Type: Both Purchaser and PayeeAccounts: Two Bank Accounts and One Credit Card
GongwenDong (Individual)
Subject Type: Purchaser/Sender Accounts: One Bank Account
Hudson West III LLC (Investment Holding Company)
City/Country: New York, NYSubject Type: Payee/ReceiverAccounts: Two Bank Accounts and Four Credit Cards
Notes:
On 09/08/2017, Hunter Biden and GongWenDong applied online to CathayBank and opened a line of credit under the business name Hudson West III, LLC. The cardswere collateralized by transferring $99,000.00 from a Cathay Bank account to the HudsonWest III business account where the funds were held until the cards were closed. Theauthorized users of these credit cards include Hunter Biden, James Biden and Sara Bidenand each used the cards around the world to purchase $101,291.46. worth of extravagantitems to include airline tickets, multiple purchases at Apple Stores and pharmacies, as wellas hotels and restaurants.
Robert Hunter Biden (Individual)
Subject Type: Both Purchaser and PayeeAccounts: One Bank Account
Hudson West III was incorporated on April 19, 2016, more than a year before the creditcards were issued.
369
Hudson West III, which is now dissolved, changed ownership at someunknown point.
370
After that change, ownership was divided between Hunter
Biden’s
law firm,Owasco PC (50%) and Coldharbour Capital LLC (50%).
371
Although ownership in ColdharbourCapital is equally divided between two individuals, Mervyn Yan and Tian Zhang, it has a business address identified as the address of Gongwen Dong.
372
According to records on filewith the Committees, Hudson West III checking accounts were opened on Aug. 3, 2017, andSept. 6, 2017, with Yan and Robert Hunter Biden.
373
Gongwen Dong was a former signer,which suggests that at one time he was associated with Hudson West
III’s
bank accounts andfinances.
374
366
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
9 (on file with Comms.).
367
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
9 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
10 (on file with Comms.).
368
Id
.
369
See
Hudson West III, LLC, OpenCorporates, https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_de/6020436.
370
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
371
Id
.
372
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.);
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.);
see also
Coldharbour Capital, LLC
,
Opencorporates,
https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_ny/4703700.
373
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
374
Id
.
78On Aug. 4, 2017, CEFC Infrastructure Investment (US) LLC, a subsidiary of Ye
Jianming’s
CEFC China Energy Company that listed Gongwen Dong as its director, sent Hunter
Biden’s
law firm, Owasco, a payment for $100,000.
375
This transaction was identified for potential criminal financial activity.
376
One of the investment entities of CEFC InfrastructureInvestment is reportedly Shanghai Huaxin Group, a Chinese state-owned enterprise
“engaged
in petroleum
products.”
377
That company is owned by CEFC Shanghai International Group Ltd.,which is controlled by Shanghai Guosheng Group, another state-owned enterprise.
378
Accordingto reporting, CEFC Shanghai was a CEFC subsidiary linked to the aforementioned corruptionallegations involving the head of the China Development Bank.
379
These examples furtherillustrate the deep financial connections between Biden, Owasco, and the Chinese government.On Aug. 8, 2017, CEFC Infrastructure Investment wired $5 million to the bank accountfor Hudson West III.
380
These funds may have originated from a loan issued from the account ofa company called Northern International Capital Holdings, a Hong Kong-based investmentcompany identified at one time as a
“substantial
shareholder”
in CEFC International Limitedalong with Ye.
381
It is unclear whether Hunter Biden was half-owner of Hudson West III at thattime. However, starting on Aug. 8, the same day the $5 million was received, and continuingthrough Sept. 25, 2018, Hudson West III sent frequent payments to Owasco, Hunter
Biden’s
firm.
382
These payments, which were described as consulting fees, reached $4,790,375.25 in justover a year.
383
There are conflicting explanations for an additional $1 million sent to Hudson West III byCEFC Limited Foundation (CEFC Limited) on Nov. 2, 2017, that appears to have been refundedto CEFC Limited on Nov. 21, 2017 with a memo marked
“refund.”
384
According to records onfile with the Committees:[Records indicated that]
‘CEFC
paid the consultation fee to HW IIIfor the purpose of conducting a market investigation of [a] naturalgas project; however, the project was deemed unnecessary at thetime so CEFC Limited decided to postpone the market investigation.Therefore, HW III provided the refund to CEFC
Limited’
. Inanother email correspondence dated 4/2/2018, Mr. Biden stated thatthe incoming wire amounting to $1MM on 11/2/2017 from CEFCLimited foundation should have gone to Owasco LLC, however, he provided the wrong wire instructions, and due to the large amount
375
Id
.
376
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.).
377
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
378
Id
.
379
Zdravko Ljubas,
China Development
Bank’s
Ex-Chief Suspected of Graft
, O
RGANIZED
C
RIME AND
C
ORRUPTION
R
EPORTING
P
ROJECT
(Aug. 1, 2019), https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/10378-china-development-bank-s-ex-chief-suspected-of-graft.
380
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
381
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.).
382
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
383
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.);
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.).
384
Id
.
79the transactions was not corrected until 3/22/2018, which consistedof an outgoing wire for the same amount benefiting Owasco LLC.
385
On March 22, 2018, a $1 million payment was sent from Hudson West III to Owasco with amemo line for
“Dr
Patrick Ho Chi Ping
Representation.”
386
In his alternative explanation,Hunter Biden indicated that the misdirected $1 million was related to his representation of
Ye’s
associate, Patrick Ho.
387
These transactions illustrate the financial connections betweenGongwen
Dong’s
Hudson West III, Ye
Jianming’s
CEFC, and Hunter
Biden’s
Owasco. Bidenstated that:Boies Schiller Flexner is co-counsel for Dr. Patrick Ho
’
s case.Hudson West III LLC has no involvement with Patrick Ho ChiPing[
’
]s case and
won[’]t
expect further transaction related to Dr.Patrick Ho Chi Ping trail [sic] for Hudson West III LLC. OwascoLLC and co- Counsel Boies Schiller Flexner will represent Dr.Patrick Ho Chi Ping [at] trial.
388
During the same period, there is also evidence that Hunter Biden moved large sums ofmoney from his firm, Owasco, to James
Biden’s
consulting firm, the Lion Hall Group.
389
Between Aug. 14, 2017 and Aug. 3, 2018, Owasco sent 20 wires totaling $1,398,999 to the LionHall Group, a consulting firm that lists James Biden and his wife, Sara Biden, on the bankaccount.
390
This transaction was identified for potential criminal financial activity. Thesetransfers began less than one week after CEFC Infrastructure Investment wired $5 million toHudson West III and Hudson West III sent its first payment of $400,000 to Owasco.
391
Most ofthe payments from Owasco to the Lion Hall Group had vague notes in the memo lines, 15 ofwhich simply indicated that they were for further credit to James Biden; however, the memo linefor one of the payments read
“HW3,”
which indicates some of the transferred money could befrom Hudson West III.
392
When the bank contacted Sara Biden regarding the overall wireactivity, she stated that the Lion Hall Group and Owasco provide international and businessconsulting and that the Lion Hall Group was assisting Owasco with an international clientthrough a contract that had since terminated.
393
Sara Biden told the bank that she would not provide any supporting documentation, and she also refused to provide additional information tomore clearly explain the activity.
394
Consequently, the bank submitted the account for closure.
395
The Committees created the following chart with respect to this transaction.
385
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.).
386
Id
.
387
Id
.
388
Id
.
389
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
12 (on file with Comms.).
390
Id
.
391
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
12 (on file with Comms.);
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
392
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
12 (on file with Comms.).
393
Id
.
394
Id
.
395
Id
.
80
(20) wires ranging from$21,000.00 to $165,000.00 totaling
$1,398,999.00
From 08/14/2017
–
08/03/2018
Notes:
-
15 of the 20 transactions list, “FFC JAMES BIDENPAYMENT”
in the Originator to Beneficiary Informationsection.
Sara Jones Biden (Individual)
Role: SubjectAccounts: One Bank Account
The Lion Hall Group LLC (Consulting Organization)
City/Country: Merion Station, PARole: SubjectAccounts: One Bank Account
James B. Biden (Individual)
Role
:
Subject
Accounts: One Bank Account
OwascoPC (Finance & Insurance Industry)
Owner: R Hunter BidenAccounts: Two Bank Accounts
Hudson West III also sent funds directly to the Lion Hall Group. According to recordson file with the Committees, James B. Biden is the principal contact for the Lion Hall Group, and between January 2018 and October 2018, Hudson West III sent the Lion Hall Group outgoingwires totaling $76,746.15 with the memo,
“office
expense and
reimbursement.”
396
Thesetransactions illustrate a direct financial link between Hudson West III (which was connected toCEFC, the Chinese government, and Gongwen Dong) and James Biden.On Aug. 17, 2017, three days after the first transfer from Owasco to The Lion HallGroup, it was publicly announced that Ye
’s
CEFC Energy was in talks to purchase a stake in theRussian state-owned energy company Rosneft, which, as noted, later fell through.
397
Around the same time, there were also outgoing wires from Hudson West III to variousaccounts associated with Ye and Gongwen, including CEFC Infrastructure Investment,Coldharbour Capital (located at Gongwen
Dong’s
address),
Gongwen’s
personal bank account, aseparate bank account for Hudson West V, and Bo Jian Group Investment Company (a companywith a complex ownership structure controlled by Ye in which Gongwen Dong is also reportedlya part owner).
398
These transactions and the transacting entities begin to paint a mosaic of thecomplex corporate structure that existed between entities linked to Hunter Biden and hisassociates and family and Chinese companies linked to the Communist government.iii.
Financial Transactions by these Companies Illustrate a Complex Web ofCorporate Entities, Money Transfers and Potential Criminal Financial Activity.
The Committees were able to confirm that Hunter
Biden’s
associate, Gongwen Dong, isconnected to seven of the eight numbered Hudson West corporate entities. The exception is
396
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.).
397
Kane Wu,
Exclusive:
China’s
CEFC in early talks to buy Rosneft stake- sources
,
R
EUTERS
(Aug. 17, 2017),https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rosneft-m-a-china/exclusive-chinas-cefc-in-early-talks-to-buy-rosneft-stake-sources-idUSKCN1AX1CP.
398
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
81Hudson West II; however, that entity shares a permanent mailing address with Hudson West V,which has a bank account that is connected to Gongwen. Thus, it appears that Hudson West II ismost likely connected to him. The Hudson West entities are important entities in the flow offunds among and between Ye, Gongwen, and Hunter Biden and his associates. There arefrequent fund transfers across these numbered Hudson West entities, and transactions involvingall eight have been identified for potential criminal financial activity. For example, HudsonWest III was not the only Hudson West entity associated with CEFC,
Ye’s
business. Accordingto reporting, Hudson West V maintains an ownership interest in CEFC Infrastructure Investment,a subsidiary of CEFC.
399
By extension, this means Hudson West V is linked to Ye and theaforementioned $5 million payment to Hudson West III on Aug. 8, 2017.
400
Hudson West Valso reportedly had ownership in a series of other companies: Hudson West Partners LLC,Hudson West Aggregator LLC, Hudson West VIII LLC, and Hudson West VII LLC which begins to show the complex corporate structure at play.
401
Between July 2017 and November 2018, Hudson West V received wires totaling$20,310,396.79 with $20,893,505.07 leaving that same account.
402
All but $259,845 of the totalamount transferred out of the account went to U.S. bank accounts for various LLCs, most ofwhich were documented to be involved in the business of real estate investment andmanagement.
403
Several of those LLCs are also tied to Gongwen.
404
Twenty million dollars of the $20,310,396.79 going into the aforementioned HudsonWest V US account was transferred into that account from another Hudson West V account atthe Bank of China.
405
Between Feb. 9, 2017, and April 12, 2017, a Hudson West V Bank ofChina account received three incoming wires totaling $27,917,665.45 from an entity calledKaiyan US Fund III LP and one wire for $100,000 from a company called Foxwood AssetManagement Co. Limited.
406
Both Kaiyan US Fund III LP and Foxwood Asset Management CoLimited have addresses in Beijing.
407
On March 19, 2018, Kaiyan US Fund III LP also sent onewire for $50,551.79 directly to a different account for Hudson West V, which is included in theaforementioned $20,310,396.79 total of incoming wires for that account.
408
These transactions offer a window into a much larger web of transactions carried outamong a vast network of corporate entities, many with complex ownership structures, variouslyowned and operated by Gongwen Dong, Ye Jianming, an individual named Shan Gao, and otherindividuals associated with CEFC China energy, Chinese state-owned enterprises, and unknown
399
Id
.
400
See
id
.
401
Id
. Records indicate that the ownership structures of Gongwen
Dong’s
companies are extraordinarily complex, andsometimes unknown, and that many of his corporate entities have shifted over time. The same is true of Ye
Jianming’s
corporateentities. The complexities illustrate the challenges in fully knowing the depth and extent of potential criminal activity.
402
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
403
See
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.);
see also
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.);C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
13 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
14 (on file with Comms.).
404
Id
.
405
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
406
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.).
407
Id
.
408
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
2 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
82individuals based primarily in China.
409
Little is known about Shan Gao, other than the fact that banks found her, through complex ownership structures, to be the owner of multiple entitiesinvolved in the transactions.
410
For multiple entities involved in these transactions, banks werenot able to determine ownership at all.
411
As an example of the size and scope of the networks involving Gongwen, between Oct.23, 2017, and Dec. 20, 2018, Hudson West I, for which Gongwen is also listed as an accountsigner, received incoming wires totaling over $114 million and sent outgoing wires totaling over$113 million.
412
Between Jan. 25, 2018, and Dec. 28, 2018, Hudson West Aggregator, anotherLLC associated with Gongwen that was involved in three transactions with Hudson West V,received incoming transfers totaling more than $3 million and sent outgoing transfers totalingmore than $13 million.
413
Records examining these transactions by Gongwen and his associatesexplained:We opt to include wires, which appear to be conducted forinvestment purposes, as we believe that fund movement isultimately conducted in an effort to layer funds. Conclusion:Unusual movement of funds between various entities with acomplex ownership structures, at times involving funds originatingfrom Chinese [state-owned enterprises] SOE, Chinese based entitiesregistered with [a] high-risk tax heaven country, and [politicallyexposed persons] PEPs. It is to note that fund movement appears to be an effort to introduce foreign funds from unknown sources intoin [sic] the U.S. by investing in large projects and by purchasingluxury goods and properties. Total [] filing amounts to$902,200,297.
414
Certain transactions involving Hudson West III, CEFC Infrastructure, and Hudson West V wereamong those identified as potential efforts to layer funds.
415
409
See
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.);
see also
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.);C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
13 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
14 (on file with Comms.).
410
Id
. According to records on file with the Committees, Shan Gao is a resident of New York State whose permanent/mailingaddress matches the address of Gongwen Dong. C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
8 (on file with Comms.).
411
See
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.);
see also
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.);C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
13 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
14 (on file with Comms.).
412
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
413
Id
. (In addition to the aforementioned numbered Hudson West entities and Hudson West Aggregator, Hudson West PartnersLLC is another Hudson West entity with a bank account that is connected to Gongwen Dong.).
414
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
14 (on file with Comms.).
415
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
11 (on file with Comms.); C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
14 (on file with Comms.).
83iv.
Chinese Nationals Linked with Hunter Biden Faced Criminal Probes.
In November 2017, Ye
Jianming’s
associate and Hunter
Biden’s
reported client, PatrickHo, was arrested and charged with violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, internationalmoney laundering, and conspiracy to commit both.
416
The first call that he reportedly made wasto James Biden, who reportedly referred him to Hunter Biden.
417
Ho was convicted in March2019 on charges of money laundering, conspiracy, and violations of the Foreign CorruptPractices Act and was sentenced to three years in U.S. prison for his role in a multimillion-dollarscheme to bribe officials in Chad and Uganda in exchange for business advantages for CEFC,
Ye’s
company.
418
Department of Justice documents describe Ye as Patrick
Ho’s
boss and, again,note that
Ye’s
company supplied funding to the China Energy Fund Committee.
419
Ho workedas the secretary-general of the committee during the period when he was carrying out his illegalschemes.
420
In February 2018, it was reported that Ye was also under investigation in China for
“suspected
economic
crimes.”
421
Ye was subsequently detained, and to date, there have been noreports of his release.Shortly thereafter, on May 4, 2018, there were reports that the deal for CEFC to purchasea stake in Rosneft had fallen through.
422
The credit cards used by the Bidens for the $100,000spending spree were closed the same month, and the last payments for the account were made onMay 25, 2018.
423
It is not clear who made the fund transfer payments that were used to cover thecharges.
424
After Ye was detained by the Chinese government in February 2018, there were reportsthat Shanghai Guosheng Group, a Chinese agency reportedly controlled by
Shanghai’s
municipalgovernment, had taken over management and daily operations at CEFC.
425
Additionally, in
416
Press Release, U.S.
Dep’t
of Just., Head of Organization Backed By Chinese Energy Conglomerate And Former ForeignMinister of Senegal, Charged with Bribing High-Level African Officials (Nov. 20, 2017), https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/head-organization-backed-chinese-energy-conglomerate-and-former-foreign-minister.
417
Alexandra Stevenson, David Barboza, Matthew Goldstein, and Paul Mozur,
A Chinese Tycoon Sought Power and Influence.Washington Responded.
, T
HE
N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
(Dec. 12, 2018),https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/12/business/cefc-biden-china-washington-ye-jianming.html.
418
Press Release, U.S.
Dep’t
of Just., Patrick Ho, Former Head Of Organization Backed By Chinese Energy Conglomerate,Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison For International Bribery And Money Laundering Offenses (Mar. 25, 2019),https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/patrick-ho-former-head-organization-backed-chinese-energy-conglomerate-sentenced-3.
419
Press Release, U.S.
Dep’t
of Just., Former Head of Organization Backed by Chinese Energy Conglomerate Sentenced toThree Years in Prison for International Bribery and Money Laundering Offenses (Mar. 25, 2019),
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-head-organization-backed-chinese-energy-conglomerate-sentenced-three-years-prison.
420
Id
.
421
Benjamin Kang Lim,
China’s
CEFC chairman investigated for suspected economic crimes: source
, R
EUTERS
(Feb. 28, 2018),https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-cefc-probe-idUSKCN1GD3O9.
422
Javier Blas and Elena Mazneva,
Qatar Steps In to Buy Rosneft Stake After China Deal Collapses
,
B
LOOMBERG
(May 5, 2018
),
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-05-04/china-s-cefc-won-t-buy-rosneft-shares-from-glencore-led-group.
423
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
9 (on file with Comms.).
424
Id
. (The funds used to collateralize the account were returned in the form of a check payable to Hudson West III and RobertH. Biden and deposited back into the same account from which they were initially withdrawn.).
425
Josephine Mason and Aizhu Chen,
China’s
CEFC taken over by Shanghai government agency: SCMP report
, R
EUTERS
(Mar.2, 2018), https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-cefc-probe/chinas-cefc-taken-over-by-shanghai-government-agency-scmp-report-idUSKCN1GE0X3.
84March 2018, it was announced that the Chinese state-owned enterprise Citic Group wasnegotiating to take a stake of up to 49 percent in
CEFC’s
European unit.
426
Again, Citic is listedamong the Chinese partners and alliances of the Thornton group.
427
Following these Chinesegovernment takeovers, the payments from Hudson West III to Owasco appear to have continuedthrough September 2018.
428
e.
Conclusion
The records acquired by the Committees show that Hunter Biden and his family wereinvolved in a vast financial network that connected them to foreign nationals and foreigngovernments across the globe. Hunter Biden and Archer, in particular, formed significant andconsistent financial relationships with the corrupt oligarch Mykola Zlochevsky during their timeworking for Burisma and their firms made millions of dollars from that association while JoeBiden was vice president and the public face of the Obama
administration’s
Ukraine policy.Rosemont Seneca Thornton, an investment firm co-founded by Hunter Biden, received $3.5million in a wire transfer from Elena Baturina, who allegedly received illegal constructioncontracts from her husband, the former mayor of Moscow. Moreover,
Archer’s
apparent receiptof money for a car from Kenges Rakishev of Kazakhstan while Vice President Biden was inKyiv is especially concerning in light of the timing. And finally, Biden and
Archer’s
work withChinese nationals connected to the Communist regime illustrate the deep financial connectionsthat accelerated while his father was vice president and continued after he left office.Biden and Archer found willing partners in Chinese nationals connected to theCommunist regime. Their work in China began at least in 2009, with the creation of RosemontSeneca Partners with Heinz, Secretary of State John
Kerry’s
stepson. Then, several years later,Biden and Archer formed BHR with Bohai Capital and received their business license approvalin China shortly after Biden visited China with his father, Vice President Biden.Hunter B
iden’s
connections and financial associations appear to have acceleratedsignificantly after he associated himself with Ye Jianming, who had deep connections with theCommunist regime and PLA. However, that
didn’t
seem to have any impact on Hunter Biden,who made millions from the relationship. Indeed, Hunter Biden and his family, to include Jamesand Sara Biden, associated with other Chinese nationals such as Gongwen Dong. In one case,the three of them went on a $100,000 global spending spree after Gongwen Dong and HunterBiden opened a joint account. In addition, Hunter Biden received millions of dollars over a period of years from Gongwen
Dong’s
companies. According to records acquired by theCommittees, many of these transactions involved potential criminal financial activity.The records acquired by the Committees show consistent, significant and extensivefinancial connections among and between Hunter Biden, James Biden, Sara Biden, DevonArcher, and Chinese nationals connected to the Communist regime and PLA as well as otherforeign nationals with questionable backgrounds. These connections and the vast amount of
426
Chen Aizu,
CITIC Group in talks for up to 49 percent stake in CEFC unit
, R
EUTERS
(Mar. 20, 2018),https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-cefc-citic-group/citic-group-in-talks-for-up-to-49-percent-stake-in-cefc-unit-idUSKBN1GW0I8.
427
Alliances/Clients, Thornton Group, http://www.thorntonai.com/english/alliances.html.
428
C
ONFIDENTIAL
D
OCUMENT
7 (on file with Comms.).
85money transferred among and between them
don’t
just raise conflicts of interest concerns, theyraise criminal financial, counterintelligence and extortion concerns. The Committees willcontinue to evaluate the evidence in their possession.
86
XII.
CONCLUSION.
As the
Chairmen’s
report details, Hunter Biden
’
s role on Burisma
’
s board negativelyimpacted the efforts of dedicated career-service individuals who were fighting to push foranticorruption measures in Ukraine. Because the vice presiden
t’s
son had a direct link to acorrupt company and its owner, State Department officials were required to maintain situationalawareness of Hunter Bide
n’s
association with Burisma. Unfortunately, U.S. officials had noother choice but to endure the
“
awkward[ness]
”
of continuing to push an anticorruption agendain Ukraine while the vice presiden
t’s
son sat on the board of a Ukrainian company with a corruptowner. As George Kent testified, he
“
would have advised any American not to get on the boardof Zlochevsky
’
s company.
”
429
Yet, even though Hunter Biden
’
s position on Burisma
’
s boardcast a shadow over the work of those advancing anticorruption reforms in Ukraine, theCommittees are only aware of two individuals who raised concerns to their superiors. Despitethe efforts of these individuals, their concerns appear to have fallen on deaf ears.Former Secretary
Kerry’s
December 2019 denial of having any knowledge about HunterBiden or Burisma is inconsistent with the evidence uncovered by the Committees. Kerry was briefed about Hunter Biden, Burisma and Christopher Heinz the day after Burisma announcedHunter Biden joined its board. Additionally, Secretary Kerry
’
s senior advisor sent him pressclips and articles relating to Hunter Biden
’
s board membership. This appears to be yet anotherexample of high-ranking Obama administration officials blatantly ignoring Hunter Biden
’
sassociation with Burisma.Several witnesses highlighted efforts to enable a successful investigation of Zlochevsky,and also noted that the U.S. decision to condition a $1 billion loan guarantee was made in part because of the then-Ukrainian prosecutor
general’s
failure to pursue a case against Zlochevsky.But at the end of the day, between 2014 through 2017, despite the concerted effort of many U.S.officials, not one of the three different Ukrainian prosecutor generals held Zlochevskyaccountable.The Obama administration and the Democrat lobby shop Blue Star Strategies hadconsistent and extensive contact with Andrii Telizhenko over a period of years. Yet despitethese well-documented contacts with Democratic officials, Democrats have attempted to impugnthis investigation for having received some Blue Star-related records from Telizhenko. SomeDemocrats have even (incorrectly) identified Telizhenko as the Committee
s’
“
star
witness.”
430
Although he produced a small number of Blue Star-related records to the Committees, theCommittees never interviewed him as part of this investigation.
431
429
George Kent Testimony at 110.
430
Ranking Member Ron Wyden, Wyden Takes to Senate Floor to Address Russian Disinformation in Flawed CongressionalInvestigation, 2020 Election (Sept. 16, 2020), https://www.finance.senate.gov/wyden-takes-to-senate-floor-to-address-russian-disinformation-in-flawed-congressional-investigation-2020-election.
431
The Committees received a small number of records from Telizhenko related to his communications with and subsequentwork for Blue Star Strategies. Ranking Member Peters and Ranking Member Wyden have access to these records but haverefused to receive or review them. Had they done so, they would have observed that the State Department, National Archives,and Blue Star Strategies (after it received a subpoena) produced most of the same records to the Committees. They also wouldhave noticed the emails and text messages that Blue Star failed to produce to the Committees.
87Even though almost all of the Committees
’
records are from U.S. agencies and U.S.officials or persons, Democrats have repeatedly misconstrued the facts of this investigation andhave smeared it as a Russian disinformation campaign. In doing so, they conveniently haveignored their own long history of meeting with Telizhenko and his yearlong work for a Democratlobby shop. If Democrats are concerned that Telizhenko presents any risk of advancingdisinformation, it is notable that the Ranking Members have not expressed any curiosity abouthis work with the Obama administration or Blue Star Strategies.The records acquired by the Committees also show that Hunter Biden and his familywere involved in a vast financial network that connected them to foreign nationals and foreigngovernments across the globe. Hunter Biden and Devon Archer, in particular, formed significantand consistent financial relationships with the corrupt oligarch Mykola Zlochevsky during theirtime working for Burisma, and their firms made millions of dollars from that association whileJoe Biden was vice president and the public face of the Obama administration
’
s Ukraine policy.Rosemont Seneca Thornton, an investment firm co-founded by Hunter Biden, received $3.5million in a wire transfer from Elena Baturina, who allegedly received illegal constructioncontracts from her husband, the then-mayor of Moscow. Moreover, Archer
’
s apparent receipt ofmoney for a car from Kenges Rakishev of Kazakhstan while Vice President Biden was in Kyiv isespecially concerning in light of the timing. And finally, Biden and Archer
’
s work with Chinesenationals connected to the Communist regime illustrate the deep financial connections thataccelerated while Joe Biden was vice president and continued after he left office.The
Chairmen’s
investigation has faced many obstacles from the minority and fromexecutive agencies that have failed to comply with document requests. Accordingly, thereremains much work to be done
(Tierra Pura)