Trump administration announces weapons deal with Ukraine amid swirl of impeachment inquiry
WASHINGTON – The State Department announced a $40 million weapons sale to Ukraine on Thursday, amid the swirl of impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump over his dealings with Ukraine's president.
The sale – of 150 Javelin missiles and related equipment – is not directly related to allegations that Trump used the power of his office to solicit foreign interference from Ukraine in his 2020 re-election campaign.
But the timing of the State Department's decision draws fresh attention to American military assistance that has been at the center of the Ukraine scandal. News of the sale emerged as House Democrats were questioning their first witness in the impeachment inquiry: Kurt Volker, Trump's former special envoy to Ukraine.
"This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by improving the security of Ukraine," the State Department said in a statement Thursday. "The Javelin system will help Ukraine build its long-term defense capacity to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity."
Ukraine's interest in purchasing Javelin missiles came up in the July 25 call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. In that call, Trump pressed Zelensky to open an investigation into a political rival, former Vice President Joe Biden. The conversation prompted a whistleblower to file an explosive complaint against Trump alleging that the president had sought foreign assistance to damage a political rival, which sparked the current impeachment inquiry.
The whistleblower noted that Trump ordered the suspension of all U.S. security assistance to Ukraine before his July 25 call with Zelensky. Democrats have charged that Trump was using the nearly $400 million in aid, approved by Congress, as leverage in his push for a probe of Biden.
In the July 25 call, Zelensky thanked Trump for "your great support in the area of defense," and promised Ukraine would buy more American-made weapons.
"We are almost ready to buy more Javelins from the United States for defense purposes," Zelensky said, according to a summary of the call released by the White House.
Trump responded: "I would like you to do us a favor though because our country has been through a lot and Ukraine knows a lot about it." He proceeded to ask Zelensky about a conspiracy theory related to Russian interference in the 2016 election, suggesting it may have originated in Ukraine instead. He also asks Zelensky about investigating Biden.
For months, Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, had been pressing the Ukrainians for damaging information on Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, who sat on the board of a Ukrainian energy company when Biden was Obama’s No. 2. Trump and Giuliani have alleged wrongdoing by the Bidens, but Ukrainian officials have said they have not found any evidence to support those charges.
Lawmakers in both parties have long supported the military assistance to Ukraine, which they say is vital to helping the eastern European country counter Russian aggression. Russia annexed part of Ukraine in 2014, and the Ukrainians are still fighting Russian-backed separatists and other efforts by the Kremlin to undermine their sovereignty.
Thursday's missile sale is a continuation of weapons assistance and purchases that began in the spring of last year.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: State Dept. inks weapons deal with Ukraine amid impeachment inquiry
