Former u.S. Ambassador to ukraine marie yovanovitch has made serious accusations against u.S. President donald trump as part of an investigation into his possible impeachment from office.
She was removed as ambassador in may because of "unsubstantiated and false claims by people with clearly questionable motives," she told the U.S. Congress on friday (local time). Trump called the ukraine affair a "one-sided witch hunt" underway in the u.S. On twitter on saturday.
U.S. Democrats in house of representatives led investigation that could lead to impeachment proceedings against trump. Yovanovitch had been questioned in a non-public hearing in the U.S. Congress. She posted her introductory statement on the internet, which was distributed by U.S. Media outlets. The deputy secretary of state told her that trump had lost confidence in her and that there had been a "targeted campaign" against her, yovanovitch said. Since summer 2018, the auben department has been under pressure from trump to remove her from her post – even though the department has seen no wrongdoing on her part, she explained.
Democrats accuse trump of abusing his office to get the government in ukraine to interfere in the u.S. Election campaign in his favor. Trump encouraged ukrainian president volodymyr selenskyj to investigate in a phone call in july that could hurt trump’s rival, democrat joe biden. Biden is currently the most promising democratic presidential contender for the 2020 election. Trump also wants to run again. The weibe house refuses to cooperate with any democrat investigations.
The U.S. Government had accused yovanovitch on 20. May prematurely recalled from her post. According to media reports, she is said to have opposed efforts by trump’s personal lawyer rudy giuliani to pressure ukraine into providing information about biden. She had left her post as ambassador to kiev on 22. August 2016 inaugurated.
Trump on saturday addressed a report in the "new york times" that prosecutors were investigating giuliani in connection with ukraine and the recall of yovanovitch. "So now they’re going after the legendary "crime boy" and the rudest burgermeister in NYC history, rudy giuliani," trump tweeted. This is "shameful". Giuliani may seem a bit rough at times, but he is a "great guy and a wonderful lawyer". There was initially no official confirmation of the investigation.
Yovanovitch pointed out in her 10-page declaration that some events at the center of the affair did not occur during her time in office. To this end, she paid trump’s phone call with selenskyj on 25. July, in which the u.S. President encouraged his colleague to investigate biden’s son hunter’s earlier actions in ukraine. Yovanovitch said she had never met or spoken to hunter biden. In her meetings with joe biden, she said, she never discussed his son or burisma, the gas company for which hunter biden worked at one time.
The chairman of the intelligence committee in the house of representatives, adam schiff, expressed confidence on friday that he would be able to provide more "relevant testimony" in the coming days. Among other things, the U.S. Ambassador to the european union, gordon sondland, is scheduled to be heard next week.