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Meeting between Selenskyj and Trump: The whistleblower affair becomes a dilemma for Ukraines president

2019-09-24T18:55:36.198Z


US President Trump is said to have harassed his Ukrainian counterpart Selenskyj to deliver incriminating evidence against Joe Biden's son. What does the whistleblower affair for Kiev mean?



His first meeting with the US President, Volodymyr Selenskyj had planned something different. In the White House, the Ukrainian head of state wanted to be received by Donald Trump. But he still waits for an invitation to Washington.

Now Selenskyj will meet Trump at least on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. The meeting is scheduled for one hour, as it is said. From these 60 minutes much will depend for Selenskyj. He and his country need the support of Trump and the US:

  • Ukraine is the poorest country in Europe in terms of gross national product per capita.
  • The state is threatened by the big neighbor Russia, which has been in the Donbass war for more than five years and annexed the Crimea.

Without the help of Washington - diplomatically, financially and militarily - Selenskyj will be able to move little. He promised his voters to finally bring peace. More than 13,000 people have died in eastern Ukraine since 2014. Selenskyj is currently preparing a new Normandy meeting with France, Germany and Russia, intending to involve the US in a peace process. As far as the plan.

Did Trump press his Kiev counterparts?

But now the Ukrainian president finds himself at the center of an affair that makes headlines in the US and suggests how hard the presidential election campaign will be - and in this case at the expense of Ukraine.

There is always talk of a Ukraine affair - a name that leads astray and shows how dangerous the process is for Kiev, because Ukraine is presented as a problem in certain circles. At the heart of this is another question, namely: Did Trump put pressure on Selenskyj to harm his potential opponent in the 2020 election, Joe Biden? (Read more about the backgrounds here)

In Video: Trump speaks of "perfect phone call"

Video

Jonathan Ernst / REUTERS

On July 25, the two politicians made a phone call. According to media reports, the US president has repeatedly asked his Ukrainian counterpart to work with his lawyer Rudy Giuliani to investigate Biden's son Hunter.

At the time of the telephone conversation with Selensky, Trump returned an already promised military aid for Kiev in the millions; meanwhile the money should have been released.

The allegation is in the air, Trump may have wanted to negotiate a deal: financial support for Kiev against information from Ukraine for a smear campaign against a political competitor - Biden. Trump has indirectly confirmed to have talked to Selenskyj about the Democratic US politician.

The Ukraine connections of Hunter Biden

Trump and his circle have been trying for months to beat Biden's Ukrainian capital out of Ukraine's ties:

  • Hunter Biden has been working for the board of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma since 2014. This belongs to a former minister of ex-president Viktor Yanukovych; against the owner was investigated for corruption.
  • Joe Biden served as Vice President under Barack Obama for the Ukraine policy of the United States. Trump supporters are said to have used Biden to defend his son from the judiciary in Ukraine. After all, it was Biden himself who, on a visit to Kiev in 2016, with the threat of not granting a billion-dollar loan, ensured that Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin was fired.
  • This Schokin was responsible for the investigation of the company Burisma, which, however, was set long before Biden resignation.
  • In addition, the International Monetary Fund and Western donors had pushed for the resignation of Schokin, as he was not against corruption in the Ukrainian judiciary.

All of these events now catch up with Selensky, who has little to gain in this affair. He is in a bind. He goes to Trump's request and urges the judiciary to investigate Hunter Biden, the charge would be that he had interfered to the detriment of the Democrats in the presidential election. If he lets Trump run aground, he has the White House against him.

Nick Wass / AP

Joe Biden and his son Hunter: Ukraine connections as campaign topic

Ukraine is considered a problematic country among Trump supporters anyway. Finally, Paul Manafort, Trump's campaign manager, had to resign in 2016 because his name appeared in connection with black-money payments in documents of the pro-Russian "Party of Regions" of Yanukovych.

Manafort is now in custody. In 2016, the records were made public by the Ukrainian special police for corruption cases. In the Trump camp, it is believed that this was a targeted election campaigning. Trump himself said then: "They are all corrupt and have tried to bring me down."

"Selenskyj must focus on pleasing Trump"

In Kiev, they are currently very cautious. Selenskyj will probably try it in New York with a charm offensive. His first meeting with Trump was about winning the confidence of the US president, says political scientist Volodymyr Fesenko from Kiev. "Selenskyj needs to focus on pleasing Trump, building an emotional relationship." Otherwise, it is important to maintain strict neutrality. "It will not be easy, but in the Selenskyj team we know about the risks of this affair," said Fesenko.

He believes that Kiev will insist that Washington make a request to clarify the role of the Biden son. But Trump will hardly do that on an official level.

But that will not stop the topic for the US president, Fesenko believes. "The pressure will continue - unofficially." Trump's lawyer Giuliani is said to have already announced a visit to Kiev.

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2019-09-24

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