BidenBurisma
Key Points
- Biden used $1b in US aid to prompt the removal of Ukrainian Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin in 2015.
- The US State Department, under Obama at the time, had an official policy position for Shokin's removal.
- Some believe Biden was attempting to protect Ukrainian energy company Burisma, the board of which his son, Hunter Biden, had joined in 2014.
- The State Department memo calling for Shokin's removal was dated November 25, 2015.
- The meeting between Biden and Poroshenko which led to Shokin's removal was in December 2015.
- The memo claimed Shokin was "widely regarded as an obstacle to fighting corruption, if not a source of the problem."
- The memo was published by John Solomon, a conservative commentator who still holds that Joe Biden was acting in Hunter's interests.
- Solomon believes Shokin was investigating Burisma.
- Biden acknowledges he used the $1b aid package to get Shokin fired.
- Hunter Biden was appointed to the board of Burisma, one of Ukraine's biggest oil and gas companies, in May 2014, holding the position until his resignation in April 2019.
- Shokin claims he was removed from office "at the insistence of the then Vice President Biden because I was investigating Burisma."
- There are no records showing the prosecutor general [Shokin] was actively investigating Burisma at the time.
- Devon Archer, one of Hunter's business partners, told a congressional committee it wasn't in the company's interest for him to be fired.
- Joe Biden has insisted he "never talked business" with his son.
Overview Article
Republican efforts to impeach President Joe Biden suffered a blow after fresh evidence emerged showing his bid to remove Ukrainian Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin in 2015 represented U.S. government policy.
Then-Vice President Biden met Petro Poroshenko, the Ukrainian president at the time, in December 2015, after which he claimed he'd threatened to withhold $1 billion in U.S. aid to Kyiv, unless Shokin was removed from his post, which he subsequently was.
Some conservatives have suggested Biden was attempting to protect Ukrainian energy company Burisma, the board of which his son, Hunter Biden, had joined in 2014, by moving against Shokin. However a pre-meeting memo prepared for Biden by the State Department, dated November 25, 2015, made it clear that removing Shokin was the Obama administration's policy.
The document called for Shokin's "removal," claiming he was "widely regarded as an obstacle to fighting corruption, if not a source of the problem." This document was published by John Solomon, a conservative commentator who has argued Biden did call for Shokin's removal to advance his son's business activities, on his Just The News website.
Speaking to Sean Hannity on Fox News, Solomon argued Biden was motivated by wanting to help his son, despite the memo showing moving against Shokin was U.S. government policy.
He said: "The Biden White House knew that this Shokin investigation posed a political threat to the family, a personal threat to Joe Biden's son's company, the company paying him a million dollars a year.
"And it's in that moment when all this is happening that Joe Biden flips the switch and goes from the recommendation giving the billion dollars to you're not getting the billion dollars until you fire Shokin and son of a b, they fire Shokin."
Biden later recalled his meeting with Poroshenko, stating: "I said, you're not getting the billion. I'm going to be leaving here in, I think it was about six hours. I looked at them and said: I'm leaving in six hours. If the prosecutor is not fired, you're not getting the money.
"Well, son of a b****. He got fired. And they put in place someone who was solid at the time."
Hunter Biden was appointed to the board of Burisma, one of Ukraine's biggest oil and gas companies, in May 2014, holding the position until his resignation in April 2019.
Shokin would later tell Fox News he was removed from office "at the insistence of the then Vice President Biden because I was investigating Burisma."
There are, however, no records showing the prosecutor general was actively investigating Burisma at the time with Devon Archer, one of Hunter's business partners, recently telling a congressional committee it wasn't in the company's interest for him to be fired. In August, Biden insisted he "never talked business" with his son.
ChatGPT Research
What evidence is there that links Shokin to an investigation of Burisma?
As of my last update in January 2022, Viktor Shokin was a former Prosecutor General of Ukraine who was in office from February 2015 until his ousting in March 2016. One of the companies that fell under the scope of investigations during his term was Burisma Holdings, a Ukrainian energy company. Hunter Biden, the son of U.S. President Joe Biden, was a board member of Burisma from 2014 to 2019.
However, there has been some debate over how actively Shokin was investigating Burisma. Critics, including some Western governments and organizations, accused Shokin of not being aggressive enough in pursuing corruption cases in general. This lack of action on corruption was cited as a reason for his removal from office, a move that was supported by multiple Western nations, including the United States. Joe Biden, who was then Vice President, was among those calling for Shokin's removal, and he has publicly stated that he pressured the Ukrainian government to fire Shokin by threatening to withhold $1 billion in U.S. loan guarantees.
Shokin himself has claimed that he was removed because of his interest in investigating Burisma, though evidence to substantiate a rigorous or active investigation into Burisma during his tenure is limited. In interviews and affidavits, Shokin has said that his office had specific plans to investigate Burisma that were stymied by his removal.
As of the last information I have, no definitive evidence has conclusively proved whether Shokin was actively and effectively investigating Burisma. This matter has been the subject of considerable controversy, especially in the context of U.S. politics and the first impeachment trial of President Donald Trump. During that impeachment, Trump was accused of improperly asking the Ukrainian government to launch investigations into Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
It is important to consult multiple reliable sources and think critically when evaluating claims related to this issue, as it has been highly politicized. Please check the most current and credible sources for the latest information.
Was Burisma subsequently found to have been involved in things that an investigation by a Prosecutor General of Ukraine would have found to be inappropriate or illegal?
As of my last update in January 2022, the situation surrounding Burisma Holdings—a Ukrainian natural gas production and exploration company—and any potential wrongdoing remains complicated and is subject to ongoing scrutiny and interpretation.
Viktor Shokin's successor, Yuriy Lutsenko, initially indicated that there were no cases against Hunter Biden, but later his office did look into Burisma for issues related to its tax records and licenses. However, these investigations were reportedly focused on the period before Hunter Biden joined the company's board in 2014. Ultimately, there has been no definitive evidence presented to the public that Burisma was engaged in activities that were illegal or inappropriate during the time Hunter Biden was associated with the company.
That said, Burisma has faced scrutiny over the years. Mykola Zlochevsky, the founder of Burisma, had previously served as Ukraine's Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, and there were questions about whether the company had improperly obtained licenses during that time. Zlochevsky was also subject to various investigations related to corruption and money laundering, and at times had fled Ukraine. However, it is important to clarify that scrutiny of Zlochevsky and Burisma doesn't necessarily implicate Hunter Biden or suggest that he was involved in any wrongdoing.
The controversy surrounding Burisma has often been cited in political contexts, especially in the United States, which can make it challenging to untangle the factual basis of the case from its political interpretations. Various investigations and inquiries into the issue have not conclusively proven that Burisma engaged in illegal activities while Hunter Biden was on the board, and no charges have been filed against him.
For the most current information, it would be prudent to consult a range of credible sources, as new developments could have occurred after my last training data in January 2022.