Ukraine responds to Kazakh president's denial of Crimea's annexation:
By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service
KYIV -- Ukraine has voiced concern over Kazakh President President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev's description of Russia's takeover of the Crimea, when he said it wasn't an annexation.
"Ukraine has always viewed Kazakhstan as its partner and friend," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on December 4.
"The principles of mutual trust, respect for independence, state sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of borders...as well as steady observance of generally recognized norms of international law, underlie the interstate relations between Ukraine and the Republic of Kazakhstan."
The statement was in reference to an interview that Toqaev gave to German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, which was published the same day.
In the interview, Toqaev said the "accession" of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 to Russia wasn't an annexation.
"We don't call that which happened in the Crimea an annexation," the Kazakh president said. "That which happened, happened. Annexation is too heavy of a word to apply to the Crimea."
Toqaev is on an official visit to Germany on December 5-6 for the first time as president.
Following the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said in its statement that "Kazakhstan reiterates its commitment to the fundamental principles of international law in accordance with the UN Charter" and that in Kazakhstan "they treat the decision of the Russian Federation with understanding".
International organizations, including the UN, have condemned the occupation of Crimea by Russia.
The United States, EU, Canada, Japan, as well as other countries have imposed economic sanctions on Russia over Crimea.
Russia calls its annexation of the peninsula a "restoration of historical justice."
Ukraine has said it will issue an official note of protest to Kazakhstan over Toqaev's statement.
U.S. prosecutors question second Naftogaz executive in Giuliani probe:
By RFE/RL
U.S. federal prosecutors have interviewed a second executive at the Ukrainian state-owned Naftogaz energy giant as part of their investigation into the business dealings of President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, suggesting the scope of their probe is widening.
Naftogaz CEO Andriy Kobolyev voluntarily met with federal investigators in London, AP reported, citing a person familiar with the details who is not authorized to publicly discuss the federal probe.
The CEO's lawyer, Lanny Breuer, confirmed to AP the meeting had taken place but wouldn't say when or where his client met with Justice Department representatives.
Another Naftogaz executive, Andrew Favorov, also met voluntarily with federal prosecutors in New York in November.
The Justice Department is investigating whether Giuliani violated federal lobbying and campaign-finance laws.
The U.S. House of Representative's impeachment hearings have focused narrowly on Giuliani's role in pursuing Ukrainian investigations into Democrats, like former Vice President Joe Biden.
However, interviews by federal prosecutors with Naftogaz executives suggest they are expanding the scope of their investigation and reviewing the business affairs of Giuliani and his associates broader, AP reported.
Giuliani's close associates, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, have been indicted on charges of federal campaign-finance violations, conspiracy, making false statements, and falsification of records.
They and Giuliani have been involved in back-channel meetings with current and former Ukrainian officials regarding investigations into Joe Biden, his son Hunter, and Democratic Party activities in the 2016 presidential election.
In March, Parnas and Fruman approached Favorov at an energy conference in Texas to offer a partnership in a venture to export U.S. liquefied gas to Ukraine.
They also discussed the possibility of Favorov replacing Kobolyev, his corporate superior.
Giuliani has denied taking part in the two suspects' efforts to seal a gas deal in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Giuliani, a former mayor of New York, traveled to Hungary and Ukraine on December 3-4 to talk with former Ukrainian prosecutors, shrugging off any notion that it was risky for him to continue seeking evidence of alleged corruption by the Bidens or that Ukrainians had a hand in interfering in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
He defended his actions, telling The New York Times that "like a good lawyer, I am gathering evidence to defend my client against the false charges being leveled against him."
Trump is currently facing a congressional impeachment inquiry into whether he abused the power of his office for personal political gain. He has denied wrongdoing and dismissed the investigation as a "hoax" and "witch-hunt."
Giuliani's meetings with the former Ukrainian prosecutors are part of a documentary series that is intended to debunk the impeachment case and is being aired by the conservative One America News Network.
Three of the former high-level prosecutors, Yuriy Lutsenko, Viktor Shokin, and Kostyantyn Kulyk, have promoted views that have been embraced by certain Republicans.
They face allegations of corruption in Ukraine, and Lutsenko, in particular, is being investigated for abuse of office. Kulyk was recently dismissed for not undergoing a mandatory professional exam, a key component of which includes an integrity test.
However, they have at different times and to varying degrees promoted unverified claims about Biden and his son, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, and Ukrainians who distributed damaging information on Paul Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman in 2016, who has since been convicted.
Much of what they have said, including to Giuliani, has formed the basis of efforts by Trump and Giuliani to try to get the Ukrainian government to open investigations that would purportedly benefit Trump as he runs for reelection. (w/CNN, AP, The New York Times, AFP, and dpa)
SBU detains member of United Russia party from Crimea:
By RFE/RL
The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) has detained a member of Russia's governing United Russia party while he was crossing the administrative border with Crimea on suspicion of infringing on the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
The SBU said in a statement that its counterintelligence unit learned that Ihor Kucheryaviy, who is a member of United Russia’s regional department in the Crimean port city of Sevastopol, had plans on December 4 to visit mainland Ukraine and apply for a Ukrainian passport.
He allegedly was an avid supporter of Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014 and was involved in erecting roadblocks in Sevastopol during the Ukrainian peninsula's invasion.
Kucheryaviy was also allegedly awarded a medal from the Russian Defense Ministry "for the return of the Crimea" and an anniversary badge of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) that reads, "Veterans of the Russian special services to the defenders of Crimea and Sevastopol."
Russia's Black Sea fleet is based in Sevastopol.
In April 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin renounced contracts that were in place with Ukraine to lease facilities for the fleet until 2042.
Kucheryaviy faces the charge of "encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine," which is punishable by up to three years in prison.
U.S. lawmakers express bilateral support for Ukraine:
By Todd Prince
As the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee began a contentious hearing on Capitol Hill in the Ukraine-centered impeachment probe of President Donald Trump, a bipartisan group of lawmakers gathered in the same building to express clear support for the beleaguered Eastern European country and its new leader.
A bitter, two-month partisan battle over whether Trump abused his power of office by pressuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has raised questions about the depth of Washington's support for the strategically important country.
During the impeachment hearings, House Republicans often cast Ukraine as an endemically corrupt state, with some suggesting it may have interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Democrat and Republican members of the Ukrainian Caucus from the House and Senate sought to quash that notion of weakening bipartisan U.S. support during a conference inside the Capitol on December 4. The lawmakers said helping defend Ukraine's independence and sovereignty against Russian aggression was vital to U.S. national security.
"If Ukraine ultimately fails because the United States' positioning changes, it will come at a great cost to our nation's security. Russia is using Ukraine to midwife a lot of propaganda and cyberattack methods that they can then export to the United States," Senator Chris Murphy (Democrat-Connecticut) said.
Trump held up nearly $400 million in aid to Kyiv earlier this year as he prodded Zelenskiy to investigate a political rival and a theory that Ukraine intervened in the 2016 U.S. election on behalf of his opponent.
Ukraine needs U.S. military support as it battles superior Russia-backed forces in its eastern provinces for a fifth year. The war has killed more than 13,000 people, with new casualties every week. Weakening U.S. support for Ukraine could embolden Russia, lawmakers and analysts have said.
"The American people need to know and be reminded why Ukraine is so important. Ukraine, in my opinion, is the scrimmage line for liberty on the European continent," Representative Marcy Kaptur (Democrat-Ohio) said, referring to the line of contact between opposing teams in American football.
Senator Rob Johnson (Republican-Ohio) resorted to military terminology, describing Ukraine as "ground zero" in Washington's standoff with the Kremlin.
Johnson sought a silver lining in the impeachment process that called into question the nearly three-decade relationship with Ukraine.
"We can utilize this to convey to the Ukrainian people first of all congressional support, the administration's support, and hopefully the American people's support," he said.
The lawmakers said U.S. support to Ukraine must go beyond military aid to cover cybersecurity, disinformation, and energy threats.
Murphy said he expected Congress to soon pass a bill that would authorize $1 billion in U.S. funding for energy projects important for global security, including in Eastern Europe. The United States has accused Russia of using its enormous oil and gas resources as a weapon against its energy-deficient neighbors.
Trump is seeking at least an additional $250 million in security aid for Ukraine in his 2020 budget request to Congress, including Javelin anti-tank weapons, Undersecretary of Defense for Policy John Rood told reporters on December 4 at a roundtable.
Representative Brian Fitzpatrick (Republican-Pennsylvania), who served in Kyiv for the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation when Russia attacked Ukraine's electricity grid, called the cyberthreats "very, very significant" and said the country needed U.S. help to combat them.
"We stand unified behind that relationship [with Ukraine]. We will make it grow, we will make it stronger and it's got bipartisan support. And I think it is very, very important that everybody understands that loud and clear," Fitzpatrick said.
This ends our live blogging for December 4. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our continuing coverage.