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Ukraine Is Ready for 'Diplomatic Solution,' Aide Says Bloomberg -- Maria Tadeo. - Duration: 02:02 - 3 hrs ago Ihor Zhovkva, a top foreign policy aide to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, says the country is open to finding a "diplomatic solution" to end the war with Russia. He says Zelenskiy is willing to meet Russia's Vladimir Putin. Zhovkva spoke to Bloomberg's Maria Tadeo. Link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/watch/ukraine-is-ready-for-diplomatic-solution-aide-says/vp-AAUQoou?ocid=U519DHP

European stocks rally on best day in nearly two years as Ukraine’s president cools to NATO membership 3/09/2022 - @jessica taylor/Agence France-Presse European stocks rallied on Wednesday, buoyed by an interview from Ukraine’s president in which he appeared to make major concessions. Volodymr Zelensky told ABC News on Tuesday that “I have cooled down regarding the question” of NATO membership and said he was open to dialogue on the fate of Eastern Ukraine republics, Donetsk and Lugansky, that Russia recognizes as independent. U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson this week said Ukraine had no “serious prospect” of NATO membership. Russia’s and Ukraine’s foreign ministers are due to meet Thursday in Turkey, Reuters reported. However, “While the contours of the end of this war are becoming visible, that doesn’t necessarily mean the fighting will stop any time soon,” said Arne Petimezas, senior analyst at AFS Group. Link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/european-stocks-rally-on-best-day-in-nearly-two-years-as-ukraines-president-cools-to-nato-membership/ar-AAUOPlF?li=BBnb7Kz

February 21, 2020 Turns out Hunter Biden was pretty useful for Burisma after all By Monica Showalter So much for that well-worn chestnut that Hunter Biden "did nothing wrong," heard so very frequently during President Trump's impeachment hearings. For an $83,000 a month retainer from Burisma, the corrupt Ukrainian gas company, (Betsy McCaughey says he ended up with a $1 million payday) young Hunter proved to be very able and willing to make himself useful. Look at this sequence of events that came about as a result of Hunter sitting on the Burisma board: According to National Review: So the $83,000 a month retainer paid for something, and these emails suggest that Burisma got its money's worth. Which would explain why Hunter got the board seat in the first place. A cashiered ex-Navy guy, he only got into the Navy at all based on the strings his dad, Vice President Joe Biden pulled for him. After the booze and the strippers and the cocaine washed him out of the Navy, he somehow ended up in that Burisma board seat, zero energy experience, zero Ukraine experience, zero consulting experience, all for that princely $83,000 a month paycheck. With a story like this, now we know what he had to sell - a pay-to-play game that guaranteed access for any corrupt company that would put him on the payroll, goosing their access and influence to the State department and its policymakers. Hillarious Clinton ran the State department on a pay to play basis, up until her departure in 2013, and apparently her successors were little different. Here's McCaughey's sequence of events as a reminder of just how this all worked: It signals that President Trump was right to withold aid to Ukraine until this kind of behavior could be sorted out. Democrats impeached him for that. This new information now shows that what they were really doing was covering up for a massive pattern of Democrat corruption. Image credit: Ben Stanfield, via Flickr // CC BY-SA 2.0 So much for that well-worn chestnut that Hunter Biden "did nothing wrong," heard so very frequently during President Trump's impeachment hearings. For an $83,000 a month retainer from Burisma, the corrupt Ukrainian gas company, (Betsy McCaughey says he ended up with a $1 million payday) young Hunter proved to be very able and willing to make himself useful. Look at this sequence of events that came about as a result of Hunter sitting on the Burisma board: According to National Review: So the $83,000 a month retainer paid for something, and these emails suggest that Burisma got its money's worth. Which would explain why Hunter got the board seat in the first place. A cashiered ex-Navy guy, he only got into the Navy at all based on the strings his dad, Vice President Joe Biden pulled for him. After the booze and the strippers and the cocaine washed him out of the Navy, he somehow ended up in that Burisma board seat, zero energy experience, zero Ukraine experience, zero consulting experience, all for that princely $83,000 a month paycheck. With a story like this, now we know what he had to sell - a pay-to-play game that guaranteed access for any corrupt company that would put him on the payroll, goosing their access and influence to the State department and its policymakers. Hillarious Clinton ran the State department on a pay to play basis, up until her departure in 2013, and apparently her successors were little different. Here's McCaughey's sequence of events as a reminder of just how this all worked: It signals that President Trump was right to withold aid to Ukraine until this kind of behavior could be sorted out. Democrats impeached him for that. This new information now shows that what they were really doing was covering up for a massive pattern of Democrat corruption.

Stunning. Damning. A left-wing group’s attempt to nail Rudy Giuliani has backfired in spectacular fashion after their FOIA request resulted in the US State Department releasing detailed accusations of corruption against the Bidens. Hoisted on their own petard. Responding to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit from the group American Oversight, the State Department on Friday night released almost 100 pages of records detailing efforts by Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani to investigate corruption, which include contacts with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) earlier this year. While American Oversight’s ‘gotcha‘ is that Giuliani had “multiple contacts” with Mike Pompeo and others while investigating Ukraine corruption, they completely ignore interview notes containing detailed allegations by former Ukraine Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin – who Joe Biden had fired, as well as his successor, prosecutor general Yuriy Lutsenko – who “believes Mr. Viktor Shokin the former Prosecutor General is honest.” Viktor Shokin:On a January 23, 2019 phone call between Shokin and Giuliani, Igor Fruman, Lev Parnas and George Boyle, Shokin said:”He was appointed to the position of General Prosecutor of Ukraine from 2015 until April of 2016, when he was removed at the request of Mr. Joseph Biden the Vice President of the United States.””He [Shokin] became involved in a case against Mr. Mykola Zlochevsky the former Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Ukraine. The case was opened as a result of Mr. Zlochevsky giving himself/company permits to drill for gas and oil in Ukraine. Mr. Zlochevsky is also the owner of Burisma Holdings.””Mr. Shokin stated that there are documents that list five (5) criminal cases in which Mr. Zlochevesky is listed, with the main case being for issuing illegal gas exploration permits. The following complaints are in the criminal case. Mr. Zlochevsky was laundering money Obtained assets by corrupt acts bribery Mr. Zlochevsky removed approximately twenty three million US dollars out of Ukraine without permission While seated as the Minister he approved two addition entities to receive permits for gas exploration Mr. Zlochevsky was the owner of two secret companies that were part of Burisma Holdings and gave those companies permits which made it possible for him to profit while he was the sitting Minister. “Mr Shokin further stated that there were several Burisma board appointments were made in 2014 as follows: Hunter Biden son of Vice President Joseph Biden Joseph Blade former CIA employee assigned to Anti-Terrorist Unit Alesksander Kwasnieski former President of Poland Devon Archer roomate to the Christopher Heinz the step-son of Mr. John Kerry United States Secretary of State “Mr. Shokin stated that these appointments were made by Mr. Slochevsky in order to protect himself.“ Shokin then details how in July 2015, “US Ambassador Geoffrey R. Pyatt told him that the investigation has to be handled with white gloves, which according to Mr. Shokin, that implied do nothing. On or about September 2015 Mr. Pyatt gave a speech in Odessa where he stated that the cases were not investigated correctly and that Mr. Shokin may be corrupt.” “Mr. Shokin further stated that on February of 2016 warrants were placed on the accounts of multiple people in Ukraine. There were requests for information on Hunter Biden to which nothing was received.” “It is believed that Hunter Biden receives a salary, commission plus one million dollars.” “President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko [who Joe Biden threatened to withhold $1 billion in US loan guarantees] told Mr. Shokin not to investigate Burisma as it was not in the interest of Joe and/or Hunter Biden. Mr. Shokin was called into Mr. Poroshenko’s office and told that the investigation into Burisma and the Managing Director where Hunter Biden is on the board, has caused Joe Biden to hold up one billion dollars in US aid to Ukraine. “Mr. Shokin stated that on or around April of 2016 Mr. Petro Poroshenko called him and told him he had to be fired as the aid to the Ukraine was being withheld by Joe Biden. Mr. Biden told Mr. Poroshenko that he had evidence that Mr. Shokin was corrupt and needed to be fired. Mr. Shokin was dismissed in April of 2016 and the US aid was delivered within one and one half months.” “On a different point Mr. Shokin believes the current Ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch denied his visa to travel to the US. Mr. Shokin stated that she is close to Mr. Biden. Mr. Shokin also stated that there were leaks by a person named Reshenko of the Ukrainian State Secret Service about the Manafort Black Book. Mr. Shokin stated that there is possible deceit in the Manafort Black Book.” Yuriy Lutsenko: Lutsenko takes Shokin’s interview one step further in a January 25 phone interview with Giuliani and associates – describing how Ukraine has two secretive units which are protected by a US Ambassador. “Mr. Lutsenko went on to explain that there is a unit called Specialized Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) which has under its purview National Anticorruption Bureau Ukraine (NABU) which investigates corruption cases that involved public figures from Mayors upward. He stated that the current US Ambassador protects SAP and NABU,” adding “His office has absolutely no control over SAP or NABU and can’t even ask what they are working on however they fall under his “control.” Of note, NABU was established in October 2014 “by Mr. George Kent who was the Deputy Chief to the Mission in Ukraine.” Bidens and Burisma Lutsenko “went on to say that he began looking at the same case Mr. Shokin was looking at (mentioned above) and he believes Hunter Biden receives millions of dollars in compensation from Burisma. He produced a document from Latvia that showed several million dollars that were distributed out of Burisma’s account. The record showed two (2) companies and four (4) individuals receiving approximately sixteen million dollars in disbursements as follows: Companies: Wirelogic Technology $14,665,982 Digitex $1,900,000 Individuals: Alexsander Kwasnewski $1,150,000 Alan Apter $302,887 Devon Archer Amount not revealed by Latvia Hunter Biden Amount not revealed by Latvia “Mr Lutsenko stated that there was also a payment of $900,000 to Rosemont Seneca Partners LLC for consulting fees. Hunter Biden is a partner in Rosemont Seneca Partners LLC along with Devon Archer and the dates of this transaction are approximately anywhere from January to December 2015. According to Mr. Lutsenko the $900,000 invoice was for services rendered for lobbying by Joe Biden.”

When war came to my city in eastern Ukraine, it was hard – but vital – for people like me to stay objective Alisa Sopova Wednesday 11 January 2017 07.00 GMT https://www.theguardian.com/media/2017/jan/11/think-reporting-on-trump-is-hard-try-being-a-journalist-in-donetsk