Just as starting reference point for us to discuss, , , , ,

https://www.nytimes.com/2015/1...hunter-biden-ties.html

Joe Biden, His Son and the Case Against a Ukrainian Oligarch

The New York Times
By James Risen
Dec. 8, 2015

WASHINGTON - When Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. traveled to Kiev , Ukraine, on Sunday for a series of meetings with the country's leaders, one of the issues on his agenda was to encourage a more aggressive fight against Ukraine's rampant corruption and stronger efforts to rein in the power of its oligarchs.

But the credibility of the vice president's anticorruption message may have been undermined by the association of his son, Hunter Biden, with one of Ukraine's largest natural gas companies, Burisma Holdings, and with its owner, Mykola Zlochevsky, who was Ukraine's ecology minister under former President Viktor F. Yanukovych before he was forced into exile.

Hunter Biden, 45, a former Washington lobbyist, joined the Burisma board in April 2014. That month, as part of an investigation into money laundering, British officials froze London bank accounts containing $23 million that allegedly belonged to Mr. Zlochevsky.

Britain's Serious Fraud Office, an independent government agency, specifically forbade Mr. Zlochevksy, as well as Burisma Holdings, the company's chief legal officer and another company owned by Mr. Zlochevsky, to have any access to the accounts.
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But after Ukrainian prosecutors refused to provide documents needed in the investigation, a British court in January ordered the Serious Fraud Office to unfreeze the assets. The refusal by the Ukrainian prosecutor general's office to cooperate was the target of a stinging attack by the American ambassador to Ukraine, Geoffrey R. Pyatt, who called out Burisma's owner by name in a speech in September.

"In the case of former Ecology Minister Mykola Zlochevsky, the U.K. authorities had seized $23 million in illicit assets that belonged to the Ukrainian people," Mr. Pyatt said. Officials at the prosecutor general's office, he added, were asked by the United Kingdom "to send documents supporting the seizure. Instead they sent letters to Zlochevsky's attorneys attesting that there was no case against him. As a result, the money was freed by the U.K. court, and shortly thereafter the money was moved to Cyprus."

Mr. Pyatt went on to call for an investigation into "the misconduct" of the prosecutors who wrote the letters. In his speech, the ambassador did not mention Hunter Biden's connection to Burisma.

But Edward C. Chow, who follows Ukrainian policy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the involvement of the vice president's son with Mr. Zlochevsky's firm undermined the Obama administration's anticorruption message in Ukraine.

"Now you look at the Hunter Biden situation, and on the one hand you can credit the father for sending the anticorruption message," Mr. Chow said. "But I think unfortunately it sends the message that a lot of foreign countries want to believe about America, that we are hypocritical about these issues."

Kate Bedingfield, a spokeswoman for the vice president, said Hunter Biden's business dealings had no impact on his father's policy positions in connection with Ukraine.
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"Hunter Biden is a private citizen and a lawyer," she said. "The vice president does not endorse any particular company and has no involvement with this company. The vice president has pushed aggressively for years, both publicly with groups like the U.S.-Ukraine Business Forum and privately in meetings with Ukrainian leaders, for Ukraine to make every effort to investigate and prosecute corruption in accordance with the rule of law. It will once again be a key focus during his trip this week."

Ryan F. Toohey, a Burisma spokesman, said that Hunter Biden would not comment for this article.

It is not known how Mr. Biden came to the attention of the company. Announcing his appointment to the board, Alan Apter, a former Morgan Stanley investment banker who is chairman of Burisma, said, "The company's strategy is aimed 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."

Joining the board at the same time was one of Mr. Biden's American business partners, Devon Archer. Both are involved with Rosemont Seneca Partners, an American investment firm with offices in Washington.

Mr. Biden is the younger of the vice president's two sons. His brother, Beau, died of brain cancer in May. In the past, Hunter Biden attracted an unusual level of scrutiny and even controversy. In 2014, he was discharged from the Navy Reserve after testing positive for cocaine use. He received a commission as an ensign in 2013, and he served as a public affairs officer.

Before his father was vice president, Mr. Biden also briefly served as president of a hedge fund group, Paradigm Companies, in which he was involved with one of his uncles, James Biden, the vice president's brother. That deal went sour amid lawsuits in 2007 and 2008 involving the Bidens and an erstwhile business partner. Mr. Biden, a graduate of Georgetown University and Yale Law School, also worked as a lobbyist before his father became vice president.

Burisma does not disclose the compensation of its board members because it is a privately held company, Mr. Toohey said Monday, but he added that the amount was "not out of the ordinary" for similar corporate board positions.

Asked about the British investigation, which is continuing, Mr. Toohey said, "Not only was the case dismissed and the company vindicated by the outcome, but it speaks volumes that all his legal costs were recouped."

In response to Mr. Pyatt's criticism of the Ukrainian handling of Mr. Zlochevsky's case, Mr. Toohey said that "strong corporate governance and transparency are priorities shared both by the United States and the leadership of Burisma. Burisma is working to bring the energy sector into the modern era, which is critical for a free and strong Ukraine."

Vice President Biden has played a leading role in American policy toward Ukraine as Washington seeks to counter Russian intervention in Eastern Ukraine. This week's visit was his fifth trip to Ukraine as vice president.

Ms. Bedingfield said Hunter Biden had never traveled to Ukraine with his father. She also said that Ukrainian officials had never mentioned Hunter Biden's role with Burisma to the vice president during any of his visits.

"I've got to believe that somebody in the vice president's office has done some due diligence on this," said Steven Pifer, who was the American ambassador to Ukraine from 1998 to 2000. "I should say that I hope that has happened. I would hope that they have done some kind of check, because I think the vice president has done a very good job of sending the anticorruption message in Ukraine, and you would hate to see something like this undercut that message."


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Dora Hates You

Biden was just doing what all dem hacks do, cashing out. He was nearing the end of his term, it seemed certain (to the idiot class, at least) that Hillary would be president for the next 8 years, eliminating any further political career for him, and he decided to take the money and run. Good, old Trump messed up a lot of people's plans. Bless him.

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I :heart; Q

Somebody in the Justice dept. should really make this a priority...

Especially seeing how well the Hillary investigation is going...

-------------------------
GOP:

Gaslight
Obstruct
Project

Two for one deal if trump AND biden go down.

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“It is the heart of US policy to use fascism to preserve capitalism while claiming to be saving democracy from communism “ - Michael Parenti

Biden will go down. Trump will be on the 2020 ballot. So, you will be 50% happy. I will be 100% happy. There is a reason that conservatives are happier people than progs.

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I :heart; Q

you dont have anyone better than trump in mind for 2020?


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I troll 2L.com to be a better person in real life

The action that Joe Biden took to replace the top prosecutor made it more likely the gas company would be investigated. The Russian gas company owner had ties to the former president of Ukraine, the corrupt POS that Manafort worked for to advance Russian interests in Ukraine.

However, Hunter's interest in a Russian gas company presents an apparent conflict of interest. It was a bad judgment call, for Joe Biden to let that happen. That's why families with international business interests should have no roles in government.

Biden will be fine.

tspank gladly admitting he support's "good old Trump"

Access Hollywood tape



He's a shameful joke of a man. Right up tspank's alley (barf)

Edited: 10/01/2019 at 09:15 AM by Greensleeves

Nope. Can't think of anyone who would be better.

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I :heart; Q

Like Bush working for the Saudis?

Hey pops, your memory sucks.



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I was right.

Can't think, can't think of anyone or can't think of anyone else? This here is the trump derangement syndrome demonstrated. Good work Tpap. I like to think that even the worst of us can still contribute as a perfect example.

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"One of the reasons why propaganda tries to get you to hate government is because it's the one existing institution in which people can participate to some extent and constrain tyrannical unaccountable power." Noam Chomsky.

Looks like thats happening right now.

Mooshelle claims she wont run but the establishment has other ideas!

Wow!

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion...lle-obama-run-liz-peek

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The REAL truth is....both of the forum idiots are OWNED.
-BOTH of them have no clue who their owner is.
-They are both card carrying narcissists.
^These are PROVED facts.

Yeah, they are getting desperate. I have to take Ms. Obama at her word. She and her husband looted this country and made themselves extremely wealthy. I see her as the type that will sit back and enjoy the spoils. Michelle, I suspect, actually has some brains. She can probably see that she would get blasted in an election.

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I :heart; Q

Who in their right mind would believe a word from Lyin Fox News? lol

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I was right.

Hunter Biden accepting a job that

he had no qualifications for,

but simply because he was Joe Biden's son

is Absolutely corrupt!

--Sincerely,

Senior White House Advisor Ivanka Trump

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GOP:

Gaslight
Obstruct
Project

^^^^ LOL

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When America was "great"

VP Biden wasn't going to win the nomination anyway, and since there is zero evidence he did anything wrong and his son cashing in a little wouldn't have hurt much in the General against President Pence should I be wrong about that.

But I'm not. he was slipping steady, he's already fallen into second place behind Senator Warren. He will drop out after the first couple of big primaries that he doesn't win.
Thanks Joe, you did a lot for us, you deserve a break. (after you get out there and bust your ass getting Democrats elected everywhere).




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"The truth is incontrovertible.
malice may attack it,
ignorance may deride it,
but in the end,
there it is." -Sir Winston Churchill

A little bit more fuel for the fire, , , , ,



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Dora Hates You

More fuel here!

MORONS!



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The REAL truth is....both of the forum idiots are OWNED.
-BOTH of them have no clue who their owner is.
-They are both card carrying narcissists.
^These are PROVED facts.

The fake Christian promoting more lies, imagine that. lol

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I was right.