Thread by @themarketswork

Letter from Johnson & Grassley:

In January 2016 "some of Ukraine' s top corruption prosecutors and investigators [met] ...with members of former President Obama's National Security Council (NSC), FBI, State Department and Department of Justice (DOJ)."
grassley.senate.gov/sites/default/…

2) Some background to Grassley & Johnson's letter:

Ukraine Accusations Against Trump Put Renewed Focus on Events During Obama Administration
theepochtimes.com/ukraine-accusa…

3) On Jan. 21, 2016, Joe Biden met personally with Ukrainian President Poroshenko in Washington.

According to a readout of the meeting, the two men discussed “the need to continue to move forward on Ukraine’s anti-corruption agenda.”

4) At the same time, there was another series of related meetings, as top Ukrainian corruption prosecutors and officials from Obama’s National Security Council (NSC), FBI, State Department, and Department of Justice (DOJ), met in Washington.

5) Telizhenko told The Hill that “he and other attendees recalled DOJ officials asking investigators from Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) if they could help locate new evidence about the Party of Regions’ payments and its dealings with Americans.”

6) The Hill article also noted that “U.S. officials told the Ukrainians they would prefer that Kiev drop the Burisma probe and allow the FBI to take it over.”
thehill.com/opinion/white-…

7) Although the Ukrainians reportedly refused the request to transfer the investigation to the FBI, the matter quickly became moot after Shokin submitted his resignation on Feb. 16, 2016, following Poroshenko’s request for him to step down.

8) The investigation into Burisma was transferred to NABU, which then reportedly closed the investigation sometime in 2016.

9) A press release from NABU confirmed that its director, Artem Sytnyk, was in Washington for a “working visit” from Jan. 19 to Jan. 21, 2016, making it highly likely that he also attended the meetings in Washington with Obama officials.

10) The press release also noted that NABU and the FBI were expected to sign a memorandum of cooperation in the very near future.
nabu.gov.ua/en/novyny/nabu…

11) This announcement was confirmed in a Feb. 9, 2016, press release, which noted that, beginning immediately, an FBI representative would be physically present at NABU headquarters and would work with NABU’s detectives.
nabu.gov.ua/en/novyny/fbi-…

12) On June 30, 2016, it was announced that NABU and the FBI had formally entered into a memorandum of understanding that allowed for an FBI office onsite at NABU headquarters.
nabu.gov.ua/en/novyny/nabu…

13) Notably, NABU has repeatedly refused to make the memorandum of understanding with the FBI public and went to court in 2018 to prevent its release.
nabu.gov.ua/en/novyny/cour…

14) As NABU was formalizing its relationship with the FBI, Biden met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman on June 15, 2016, and announced plans to commit an additional $220 million to Ukraine that year.
obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-offi…