Newly released diplomatic records reveal repeated communications involving former Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch about Burisma, Hunter Biden and corruption allegations in Ukraine, raising questions about the extent of her knowledge before testifying in President Donald Trump’s first impeachment inquiry.

By yourNEWS Media Newsroom

Newly declassified State Department records reveal that former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch received repeated communications concerning Hunter Biden’s involvement with Burisma Holdings, the Ukrainian energy company whose activities became central to President Donald Trump’s first impeachment. The correspondence raises questions about Yovanovitch’s 2019 congressional testimony regarding what she remembered being told about the company and its politically connected board members.

The documents released by the White House Government Transparency Task Force include diplomatic emails, internal assessments and communications about Burisma’s efforts to influence American officials while its founder faced corruption allegations. The records, covering portions of 2016 through 2019, were detailed in an October 16 investigation by Just the News.

Among the disclosures is a November 2016 email in which senior State Department official George Kent warned that Hunter Biden’s position on Burisma’s board undermined the Obama administration’s anti-corruption message in Ukraine.

“The real issue to my mind was that someone in Washington needed to engage VP Biden quietly and say that his son Hunter’s presence on the Burisma board undercut the anti-corruption message the VP and we were advancing in Ukraine b/c Ukrainians heard one message from us and then saw another set of behavior with the family association with a known corrupt figure whose company was known for not playing by the rules,” Kent wrote in the correspondence.

The email, previously reported before its declassification, documents concerns within the American diplomatic mission about the appearance of a conflict of interest involving the vice president’s son. It does not, by itself, establish that Hunter Biden’s employment changed American policy decisions toward Ukraine.

The distinction is significant because Kent later testified that he had warned Vice President Joe Biden’s office about the appearance of a conflict but had not observed American officials protecting Burisma from investigation.

During November 2019 congressional questioning, an investigator asked Kent, “Did a conflict of interest influence Obama administration policy decisions with respect to Ukraine and Burisma Holdings?”

“In my view, no,” Kent answered.

“I raised my concern that Hunter Biden’s status as a board member could create the perception of a conflict of interest. Let me be clear, however, I did not witness any effort by any U.S. official to shield Burisma from scrutiny,” he testified.

Kent subsequently addressed similar issues in 2020 Senate testimony. His statements distinguished the diplomatic damage he believed the relationship caused from evidence of improper government decisions.

The newly public records also revisit Yovanovitch’s October 11, 2019, deposition, when congressional investigators questioned what she knew about Burisma and Hunter Biden while serving as ambassador.

“Once you arrived in country did the embassy staff brief you on issues relating to Burisma?” an investigator asked.

“No, it was — it was not. I don’t recall that I was briefed on that,” Yovanovitch responded.

She subsequently characterized the matter as something that “it just wasn’t a big deal.”

During her public impeachment testimony, Yovanovitch similarly said, “all I can tell you is it was a long time ago, and it just wasn’t a big issue,” adding, “I may have had other information, but I don’t recall how I had that impression […]”

The diplomatic correspondence provides a more extensive record of communications involving the ambassador’s office than those recollections might suggest. However, receiving or being copied on emails does not necessarily establish that Yovanovitch read, retained or specifically remembered their contents when testifying.

One early communication came in September 2016, when Kent alerted Yovanovitch to Burisma’s lobbying arrangements. He identified Blue Star Strategies, a Washington-based consulting firm with Democratic political connections, as having been retained to “rehabilitate the reputation” of Burisma, which had placed “Hunter Biden on its board.”

Burisma was seeking to resolve longstanding legal problems involving its founder, former Ukrainian Ecology Minister Mykola Zlochevsky, while improving its standing with American diplomatic officials.

The ambassador’s contacts with Burisma extended beyond internal correspondence. Photographs recovered from an archived company website reportedly show Yovanovitch meeting Burisma executive Vadim Pozharskyi on at least two occasions.

Additional records show that Burisma board member Cofer Black, a former senior CIA and State Department official, sought a meeting with the ambassador in 2017.

In a February 2017 email concerning Black’s request, Kent advised Yovanovitch that “the Burisma campaign of engagement continues.”

“Dear Sir – I am Cofer Black who served at State …” Black wrote in his initial message. “I am a new board member at Burisma Energy and plan to be in Kiev 15, 16, 17 March and would like to pay a courtesy call to introduce myself.”

Black’s outreach coincided with a broader public relations effort coordinated by Blue Star Strategies. The company was attempting to address corruption concerns surrounding Burisma and Zlochevsky while improving its relationships with American officials.

Hunter Biden’s former law firm had also developed a 58-page legal strategy for Burisma, according to previously disclosed documents.

The diplomatic records indicate that American officials continued scrutinizing the company’s activities even as its representatives sought meetings and assistance.

In August 2017, a State Department employee circulated a briefing memorandum concerning investigations into Zlochevsky, including an effort involving American and British authorities to recover funds allegedly connected to corruption.

“The USG was involved in a joint British and American effort to seize $23 million belonging to former Minister of Ecology Mykola Zlochevskyi,” the memorandum stated. “The USG involvement included FBI investigative support that developed information indicating two companies controlled by Zlochevskyi transferred almost $13 million in funds through U.S. financial institutions.”

Ukrainian authorities alleged that Zlochevsky had used his government position to direct valuable oil and natural gas permits toward companies he controlled.

The memorandum stated that he “awarded permits and certain rights to oil and natural gas to companies he controlled,” while investigators alleged that approximately $23 million in illicit proceeds had been deposited in a British bank account.

Although British authorities initially froze assets associated with the investigation, Ukrainian prosecutors later abandoned their case, leading to the release of the funds.

Kent had previously communicated allegations to American justice officials that Burisma made a $7 million payment to Ukrainian prosecutors before the investigation was discontinued. Those allegations formed part of broader concerns about corruption within Ukraine’s prosecutorial institutions.

The newly released correspondence also documents objections to a proposed financial relationship between Burisma and an American educational institution.

In February 2017, the McCain Institute sought Yovanovitch’s assessment of an offer by Burisma to finance a “two-week Leadership Development and Professional Capacity Building program” for Ukrainian prosecutors.

Because Ukrainian authorities had previously investigated the company, the proposed arrangement raised concerns about whether Burisma would appear to be purchasing goodwill from the same institutions responsible for investigating corruption.

Yovanovitch consulted Kent about preparing a response.

“A company which has been previously investigated by the [Ukrainian prosecutors office] providing funding for training to [the prosecutors] by US organization? Oi-yoi-yoi,” Kent wrote.

“[The] below idea would not pass the Washington Post sniff test,” he added in the internal exchange about the proposal.

The correspondence demonstrates that American diplomats were evaluating the reputational and ethical implications of accepting financial support from a company associated with unresolved corruption allegations.

Burisma’s representatives also pursued assistance involving Zlochevsky’s ability to travel to the United States.

According to previously disclosed lobbying records, Blue Star Strategies sought to address visa restrictions affecting the former Ukrainian official while maintaining contact with American diplomatic personnel.

In a January 2018 meeting request forwarded to Yovanovitch, the consulting firm stated, “I have two other issues we would like to discuss one of which involves a visa situation. We would very much appreciate a meeting next week.”

The communications document attempts to obtain diplomatic attention, although they do not establish that the ambassador approved the requested assistance or that Zlochevsky ultimately received a visa.

By February 2018, Ukrainian authorities had reportedly ended outstanding cases against Burisma. Kent informed Yovanovitch that Prosecutor General Yuri Lutsenko “has fully cleared Burisma of all cases, and Zlochevsky returned to Ukraine’s public life this week allegedly for the first time in four years in conjunction with that.”

Kent continued corresponding with Yovanovitch about the company after moving into a more senior State Department position, including communications in September 2018.

The disclosures have renewed attention to the testimony both diplomats gave during Trump’s first impeachment, which centered on his administration’s dealings with Ukraine and efforts to obtain investigations involving Joe Biden and Burisma.

The Democratic-controlled House impeached Trump in December 2019 on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The Senate acquitted him in February 2020.

The newly declassified communications establish that concerns about Hunter Biden’s employment, Burisma’s lobbying and the company’s corruption allegations circulated among senior American diplomats well before the impeachment proceedings.

They also provide additional context for Kent’s publicly expressed concern that Hunter Biden’s position weakened the credibility of American anti-corruption messaging. That concern is not necessarily inconsistent with his separate testimony that he had not witnessed American officials improperly altering policy to benefit Burisma.

Whether Yovanovitch’s earlier testimony accurately reflected her recollection remains a separate question. The documented communications show that relevant information reached her office and, in several instances, was addressed directly to her, but do not independently establish that she intentionally misled congressional investigators.

The release also comes with an unusual connection between the reporting and the administration responsible for declassification. John Solomon, who co-authored the Just the News investigation, is serving as an unpaid special government employee and chairman of the White House Government Transparency Task Force while on leave from his position as the publication’s editor-in-chief.

The records nevertheless add substantial documentation to the historical record of American diplomatic engagement with Burisma, including efforts by company representatives to secure meetings, address criminal investigations and improve their standing with U.S. officials.

The central unresolved distinction is between evidence that senior diplomats recognized a politically damaging conflict-of-interest appearance and evidence that American policy was actually changed to protect the company. The declassified correspondence provides further support for the former concern while leaving the latter allegation unproven by the records described.

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