House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer issued a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken Tuesday morning. In it, he demands new information and details about why Vice President Joe Biden demanded Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin be fired if the country wanted to receive billions in loan guarantees from the United States. At the time of his firing, Shokin was investigating corruption at Ukrainian gas company Burisma -- the same company that was paying Hunter Biden $80,000 per month to sit on the board.
"The Committee on Oversight and Accountability seeks information from the U.S. Department of State to provide context for certain sudden foreign policy changes that occurred while Joe Biden was Vice President, particularly regarding Ukraine while then-Vice President Biden’s son served on the board of directors of a company being investigated for corruption,” Comer released in a statement Tuesday. “The Committee is investigating then-Vice President Biden’s and the Obama-Biden Administration’s official actions and policies regarding Ukraine. Specifically, the Committee seeks information regarding the State Department’s perception of the Ukrainian Office of the Prosecutor General, at the time headed by Viktor Shokin.”
“In March 2016, Shokin was dismissed from his position by the Ukrainian Rada after months of public pressure most adamantly applied by then-Vice President Biden. The timing of these events is notable to the Committee,” Comer continued. “During the Committee’s transcribed interview with Devon Archer—a longtime Biden family associate—Archer explained that by late 2015, Vadym Pozharsky, Burisma’s corporate secretary, was increasingly pushing Hunter Biden to deliver help from the U.S. government regarding pressure Zlochevsky was facing from the Office of the Prosecutor General and abroad. Archer testified that on December 4, 2015, Hunter Biden ‘called D.C.’ in a private meeting with Zlochevsky and Pozharsky in Dubai following Pozharsky’s request. The Committee is investigating the nature of this call and the circumstances that surrounded it, including at the State Department.”
🚨BREAKING 🚨
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) September 12, 2023
In 2018, Joe Biden publicly boasted about his central role in having Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin fired.
By his own admission, Joe Biden said he made the removal of Prosecutor General Shokin – the man leading the investigation into Burisma, Hunter’s cash… pic.twitter.com/jDGNtpO5pg
In response to accusations the firing was unjust and corrupt conduct by Joe Biden, the Biden administration and leftist media allies have claimed an entire network of European officials want Shokin fired. It turns out, that's not true.
"The European Commission praised Ukraine’s Prosecutor-General Viktor Shokin for his efforts to fight corruption in a December 2015 progress report published nine days after then-VP Joe Biden demanded his ouster," the New York Post reports. "The report flies in the face of Biden’s claims that the European Union joined his demands that Shokin be removed for being corrupt and obstructing anti-corruption reforms. In fact, the Dec. 18, 2015, progress report, obtained by the New York Post, says that the European Union was satisfied that Ukraine had achieved 'noteworthy' progress, including in 'preventing and fighting corruption,' and thus was eligible for visa-free travel in Europe."
Shokin recently spoke out about the situation as the congressional probe into the Biden family "business," which was selling the "Biden brand" for access and political capital, continues to heat up.
This is Viktor Shokin. He is the Ukrainian prosecutor that Biden accused of being corrupt and had removed.
— MAZE (@mazemoore) August 4, 2023
In this video he responds to accusations that his investigation into Burisma was dormant or that he was corrupt. He tells the truth about why he was removed as prosecutor.… pic.twitter.com/4kmXexBsmL