Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters Thursday his controversial July call with President Trump involved no bribe, blackmail or quid pro quo, as impeachment-minded Democrats claim.
Zelensky spoke at a daylong event with media inside a Kiev food market, and said he believes the transcript released by the White House is accurate and that he knew the U.S. had withheld $400 million in military aid due to concerns about corruption and concern for American “taxpayer money.” But the issue, he said, was never linked to Trump’s desire that Kiev rekindle an investigation into an energy company with ties to former Vice President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.
“There was no blackmail,” Zelensky said. “They blocked this money and nobody asked us [for] anything,”
Trump responded to Zelensky’s comments Tuesday by tweeting: “The President of the Ukraine just stated again, in the strongest of language, that President Trump applied no pressure and did absolutely nothing wrong. He used the strongest language possible. That should end this Democrat Scam, but it won’t, because the Dems & Media are FIXED!” – read more