Hunter Biden contacted US ambassador in 2016 over Burisma deal, NYT reports

Hunter Biden contacted the U.S. Ambassador to Italy in 2016 while his father Joe Biden was Vice President, to discuss a geothermal energy project with the Ukrainian company Burisma where Hunter Biden served as a board member, according to an article by the New York Times, which cited records obtained by the newspaper.

The newspaper reported that Hunter Biden sent at least one letter to the ambassador of the U.S. Embassy at Rome in Rome's name on behalf Burisma Energy Company.

Abbe Lowell told his attorney on Wednesday that Hunter Biden, among others, asked Ambassador John Phillips for introductions to President of Tuscany, Italy, where the company was considering projects.

Lowell stated in a press release that "no meeting took place, no project was completed, no request was made for anything to be done in the U.S., and only a brief introduction was sought in Italy." "The letter and those written by other Burisma employees sought nothing more than a simple introduction. This is what hundreds of companies do each year with ambassadors and embassies.

The Times reported that an unnamed individual involved in the project said the project did not materialize. It was also unclear whether or not the U.S. embassy in Italy had taken any action on behalf of Burisma.

Hunter Biden is not charged with violating the federal law on foreign lobbying. Republicans have made unproven allegations that President Biden or Hunter Biden or other members of his family engaged in financial misconduct. The White House has denied these claims.

Karine Jean Pierre, White House spokesperson, told reporters in a Wednesday press briefing that the President has never done business with Hunter. He was also unaware that his son contacted the State Department regarding the Burisma Deal.

Burisma declined to comment on the Times report. This comes after Joe Biden, who announced last month he would not run for re-election as President, did not.

Phillips, then ambassador, told The Times he had received many letters, but did not remember one from Hunter Biden. He added that he wouldn't "necessarily," have encouraged himself to respond, in order to avoid the appearance of special treatment.

Enrico Rossi was Tuscany's regional leader at the time. He told The Times that he had never met Hunter Biden, and he did not remember the U.S. Embassy contacting him regarding Burisma’s planned work.

Hunter Biden, meanwhile, has pleaded guilty to criminal charges of tax evasion and is due to be tried on Sept. 5.

Hunter Biden was accused by prosecutors in the tax case of accepting payments last week from a Romanian entrepreneur who wanted to "influence U.S. Government agencies" as part of a criminal investigation in Romania. Mark Geragos was Biden's newly appointed lawyer in this case. He could not be reached immediately for a comment.

Hunter Biden will be sentenced on Nov. 13, after being convicted of lying about using illegal drugs to purchase a firearm. (Further reporting by Jeff Mason, Writing by Susan Heavey, Editing by Leslie Adler).

(source: Reuters)