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Trump impeachment inquiry: Released records reveal Pompeo-Giuliani contacts | Trump impeachment inquiry: Released records reveal Pompeo-Giuliani contacts |
(about 1 hour later) | |
The US State Department has released records relating to the Trump administration's dealings with Ukraine. | The US State Department has released records relating to the Trump administration's dealings with Ukraine. |
Documents were released to the ethics watchdog American Oversight after a freedom of information request. | Documents were released to the ethics watchdog American Oversight after a freedom of information request. |
The records show repeated contacts between Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Mr Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani. | |
US ties with Ukraine are at the centre of an impeachment investigation against Mr Trump. | US ties with Ukraine are at the centre of an impeachment investigation against Mr Trump. |
The president is accused of withholding aid to Ukraine that had been approved by Congress to pressure the country into investigating his political rival Joe Biden. | |
Mr Trump has declared the inquiry a "witch hunt" and denies any wrongdoing. | |
What do the documents say? | |
Mr Giuliani has been accused of trying to discredit former Ukraine ambassador Marie Yovanovitch while running a shadow US foreign policy on Ukraine. There have been questions over what Secretary of State Mike Pompeo knew. | Mr Giuliani has been accused of trying to discredit former Ukraine ambassador Marie Yovanovitch while running a shadow US foreign policy on Ukraine. There have been questions over what Secretary of State Mike Pompeo knew. |
The records show Mr Pompeo and Mr Giuliani repeatedly spoke to one another - although the topics of those conversations remain unknown. | |
Emails among the documents suggest the pair spoke on the phone on 27 and 29 March. | |
The second call came after Mr Giuliani's staff emailed a personal assistant to President Trump, Madeleine Westerhout, to ask if she had a phone number for Mr Pompeo. | |
Ms Yovanovitch was dismissed as ambassador to Ukraine in May. | |
"We can see why Mike Pompeo has refused to release this information to Congress. It reveals a clear paper trail from Rudy Giuliani to the Oval Office to Secretary Pompeo to facilitate Giuliani's smear campaign against a US ambassador," said American Oversight Executive Director Austin Evers in a statement. | "We can see why Mike Pompeo has refused to release this information to Congress. It reveals a clear paper trail from Rudy Giuliani to the Oval Office to Secretary Pompeo to facilitate Giuliani's smear campaign against a US ambassador," said American Oversight Executive Director Austin Evers in a statement. |
"This is just the first round of disclosures. The evidence is only going to get worse for the administration as its stonewall strategy collapses in the face of court orders." | "This is just the first round of disclosures. The evidence is only going to get worse for the administration as its stonewall strategy collapses in the face of court orders." |
Ms Yovanovitch testified to the impeachment inquiry last week that she was fired over "false claims" by people with "questionable motives". She believes her anti-corruption efforts angered influential Ukrainians who then sought to remove her. | |
The president attacked her in a tweet while she was giving her testimony. The diplomat said it was "very intimidating". | |
President Trump again attacked Ms Yovanovitch in a phone call to Fox News on Friday, saying she "wouldn't hang my picture in the embassy" and "was not an angel". | |
But a letter dated 5 April included in the document cache - signed by six former US ambassadors to Ukraine - expresses concern about the allegations against Ms Yovanovitch, describing them as "simply wrong". | |
"Ambassador Yovanovitch... has a flawless record as a diplomat," the letter reads. "She is a professional of the highest integrity." | |
What's the impeachment inquiry about? | |
The US president is accused of withholding US military aid to pressure Ukraine into investigating a domestic political rival. | The US president is accused of withholding US military aid to pressure Ukraine into investigating a domestic political rival. |
At the heart of the inquiry is a phone call on 25 July this year between Mr Trump and Ukraine's newly elected president. | At the heart of the inquiry is a phone call on 25 July this year between Mr Trump and Ukraine's newly elected president. |
On the call, Mr Trump urged his counterpart to look into unsubstantiated corruption claims against Democratic White House contender Joe Biden. | On the call, Mr Trump urged his counterpart to look into unsubstantiated corruption claims against Democratic White House contender Joe Biden. |
Mr Giuliani has been central in pushing those allegations. He has been subpoenaed for documents by impeachment investigators but has previously said he won't co-operate with Democrats. | Mr Giuliani has been central in pushing those allegations. He has been subpoenaed for documents by impeachment investigators but has previously said he won't co-operate with Democrats. |
Mr Trump's critics say this alleged political pressure on a vulnerable US ally amounted to abuse of power. The president strongly denies any wrongdoing. | Mr Trump's critics say this alleged political pressure on a vulnerable US ally amounted to abuse of power. The president strongly denies any wrongdoing. |
Learn more about the impeachment inquiry | Learn more about the impeachment inquiry |
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