WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st April, 2022) Republican members of the US House Oversight Committee on Thursday said Russia's newly imposed sanctions on Hunter Biden raise fresh questions about his business dealings in the Russian sphere of influence and demanded that the White House release documents regarding his activities in Ukraine and Russia.
Earlier in the month, Russia included Hunter Biden in its sanctions list alongside President Joe Biden and members of his administration, even though the former is not an official.
The call for the White House to shed light on Hunter's dealings comes as Western media reveal that entities controlled by Biden's son and brother received $4.8 million in payments from a Chinese energy giant in the period after Biden left the vice presidency and before he announced his presidential bid, and as the Russian Defense Ministry publishes documents about Hunter's role in funding pathogen research in Ukraine.
"Hunter Biden's connections throughout the Russian sphere of influence have now become especially relevant in the fast-moving and developing Russian war in Ukraine," the lawmakers wrote in letters to the White House and National Archives. "The nation's adversaries apparently see the President's son as a pressure point to exploit. Additionally, his inclusion on the list is the latest evidence that Hunter Biden has indeed engaged in business schemes with our adversaries. Therefore, we request information the White House Counsel's Office (WHCO) possesses regarding Hunter Biden's dealings in Russia and Ukraine."
The lawmakers, in particular, mentioned the $3.5 million payment to Hunter Biden or a firm linked to him by Elena Baturina, wife of former Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov.
They highlighted his overall rich record of benefitting from his father's status - "from managing a Ukrainian energy conglomerate, to selling cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), to connecting his father to Kazakhstani oil oligarchs, and preventing a Romanian real estate tycoon's conviction for bribery charges."
Hunter Biden's foreign business relationships in Russia and Ukraine in the current international landscape raise concerns about whether he continues to profit off his status as US President Joe Biden's son, as well as whether foreign adversaries may be attempting to exploit his questionable business dealings, according to the letter.
The lawmakers asked the White House and National Archives to provide the requested documents no later than April 14.
