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| Two key witnesses expected to add to growing evidence in Trump inquiry | Two key witnesses expected to add to growing evidence in Trump inquiry |
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| Fiona Hill to push back on claim Ukraine meddled in 2016 US election as David Holmes also set to testify | |
| The impeachment inquiry will hear from two further key witnesses on Thursday, who are expected to add to the growing evidence that the Trump administration may have pressured Ukraine for political gains. | The impeachment inquiry will hear from two further key witnesses on Thursday, who are expected to add to the growing evidence that the Trump administration may have pressured Ukraine for political gains. |
| Fiona Hill, a national security council official who was the White House’s top expert on Russia, will firmly push back against the claim that Ukraine meddled in the 2016 US election, according to her opening statement. | |
| The assertion that Ukraine interfered, on behalf of the Democrats, in 2016, has been a central thrust of Republicans as they attempt to muddy the waters around the US-Ukraine relationship. | |
| The appearance of the officials comes after Wednesday’s bombshell testimony by Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the EU, on the existence of a quid pro quo with Ukraine in exchange for politically motivated investigations of Donald Trump’s rivals. | The appearance of the officials comes after Wednesday’s bombshell testimony by Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the EU, on the existence of a quid pro quo with Ukraine in exchange for politically motivated investigations of Donald Trump’s rivals. |
| Hill’s opening remarks were published by CNN on Thursday morning. | |
| “I refuse to be part of an effort to legitimize an alternate narrative that the Ukrainian government is a US adversary, and that Ukraine – not Russia – attacked us in 2016,” Hill will tell the House intelligence committee. | |
| She is expected to testify her concerns about a “shadow” foreign policy run by Rudy Giuliani, Sondland and others – an operation which sought to have Ukraine investigate Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden. | |
| David Holmes, a political counselor at the US embassy in Kyiv, will probably describe the phone call he overheard between Sondland and the president. Holmes has already testified in a closed-door hearing that in the call Trump specifically asked whether Ukraine was going to launch an investigation. | David Holmes, a political counselor at the US embassy in Kyiv, will probably describe the phone call he overheard between Sondland and the president. Holmes has already testified in a closed-door hearing that in the call Trump specifically asked whether Ukraine was going to launch an investigation. |
| Holmes has told investigators the call he overheard was so remarkable “that I remember it vividly”. | Holmes has told investigators the call he overheard was so remarkable “that I remember it vividly”. |
| He said he heard Trump ask: “So he’s going to do the investigation?” According to Holmes, Sondland replied that Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, will “do anything you ask him to”, and that Sondland confirmed this included “the investigation”. | He said he heard Trump ask: “So he’s going to do the investigation?” According to Holmes, Sondland replied that Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, will “do anything you ask him to”, and that Sondland confirmed this included “the investigation”. |
| On Wednesday, Sondland gave a devastating account of US policy with Ukraine. The ambassador said there was a quid pro quo between Zelenskiy, being invited to the White House and Zelenskiy announcing a politically-motivated investigation related to the Bidens. | On Wednesday, Sondland gave a devastating account of US policy with Ukraine. The ambassador said there was a quid pro quo between Zelenskiy, being invited to the White House and Zelenskiy announcing a politically-motivated investigation related to the Bidens. |
| Detailing weeks of back and forth between the US and Ukraine, Sondland insisted: “We followed the president’s orders.” | Detailing weeks of back and forth between the US and Ukraine, Sondland insisted: “We followed the president’s orders.” |
| Sondland’s testimony was gripping from his opening statement onwards. He told investigators: “I know that members of this committee have frequently framed these complicated issues in the form of a simple question: Was there a ‘quid pro quo?’ | Sondland’s testimony was gripping from his opening statement onwards. He told investigators: “I know that members of this committee have frequently framed these complicated issues in the form of a simple question: Was there a ‘quid pro quo?’ |
| “As I testified previously, with regard to the requested White House call and White House meeting, the answer is yes.” | “As I testified previously, with regard to the requested White House call and White House meeting, the answer is yes.” |