Hunter Biden might force father's hand on sending lethal military equipment to Ukraine
by Abraham Mahshie, Defense Reporter |
| June 09, 2021 06:00 AM
KYIV, Ukraine — Hunter Biden doesn’t matter much to Ukrainians, but the controversy that surrounds him will make it difficult for President Joe Biden to reduce the amount of lethal military equipment former President Donald Trump sent to the country, defense experts here tell the Washington Examiner.
During Joe Biden’s time as vice president under Barack Obama, he took a keen interest in Ukraine, making several visits, pursuing anti-corruption policies, and pushing for military assistance in the wake of Russia’s 2014 invasion and seizure of the Crimean peninsula. The interest may have contributed to his son, Hunter Biden's, lucrative position on the board of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma for a five-year term that ended in 2019. Obama was reluctant to provide lethal assistance to Ukraine, but Trump sold the country Javelin anti-tank missiles and then boasted of the deterrent effect it had on Russia.
With Joe Biden reluctant to make any announcements about Ukraine in the days leading up to a summit with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, the Hunter Biden controversy may ensure security assistance continues to flow, say security analysts in Kyiv.
“I was in several meetings with Biden, and I've seen that he was very oriented to support Ukraine,” Alexander Danyliuk, former national security council adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said of Biden’s visits to Ukraine as vice president.
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/hunter-biden-might-force-fathers-hand-sending-lethal-military-aid-ukraine
