Former business partner of Hunter Biden, Devon Archer, revealed details about President Joe Biden’s involvement in his son’s foreign business dealings.
Archer stated that Ukrainian natural gas company Burisma Holdings added Hunter to its board in 2014 due to the appeal of the Biden “brand” while Joe Biden led US policy toward Ukraine.
Archer testified that Burisma’s owner, Mykola Zlochevsky, and company executive Vadym Pozharski pressured Hunter to use his influence to remove Ukrainian prosecutor-general Viktor Shokin, who was investigating Burisma for corruption.
“The brand”
During this time, Archer witnessed Hunter frequently putting his father on speakerphone during business meetings to leverage “the brand” for promotional purposes. This included meetings with a French energy company in Paris and with Jonathan Li of BHR Partners, a state-backed investment fund in China, which Hunter co-founded in 2013.
Archer confirmed that Joe Biden attended a dinner in Washington with Pozharski and the former first lady of Moscow, Yelena Baturina.
Republicans hoped that Archer’s testimony would shed light on President Biden’s alleged involvement in his son’s dealings in Ukraine and Russia, potentially leading to an impeachment inquiry.
Archer’s testimony also addressed real estate investments involving Baturina and Russian billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov.
Baturina reportedly transferred $3.5 million to a firm linked to Hunter Biden, and documents from Hunter’s laptop indicated involvement with both Baturina and Yevtushenkov in property investments.
The accusations and investigations surrounding the Biden family’s overseas dealings have been a subject of scrutiny. Hunter earned significant amounts from his board role at Burisma despite lacking relevant energy industry experience.
Financial ties
The laptop records have raised questions about the Biden family’s overseas bank accounts and potential financial ties.
Prior to Archer’s testimony, the Justice Department made a request for Archer’s imprisonment on an unrelated fraud conviction, which raised concerns about potential intimidation. However, Archer’s lawyer denied any connection between the request and the congressional testimony.
