US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has hit back at National Public Radio reporter Mary Louise Kelly, who accused Pompeo of lashing out after he refused to answer a question as to whether he owed former US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch an apology over potential claims that she was spied on
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th January, 2020) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has hit back at National Public Radio reporter Mary Louise Kelly, who accused Pompeo of lashing out after he refused to answer a question as to whether he owed former US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch an apology over potential claims that she was spied on.
During NPR's All Things Considered broadcast on Friday, Kelly claimed that Pompeo launched an expletive-ridden tirade after she pushed the secretary of state during an interview to answer a question on Ukraine. Kelly also claimed that Pompeo asked her whether she could find Ukraine on a map.
In a statement issued on Saturday, Pompeo accused the reporter of acting unprofessionally by reporting an off the record conversation.
"NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly lied to me, twice. First, last month, in setting up our interview and, then again yesterday, in agreeing to have our post-interview conversation off the record. It is shameful that this reporter chose to violate the basic rules of journalism and decency," Pompeo's statement read.
He went on to accuse the media of having a mission to discredit President Donald Trump, and to imply that Kelly incorrectly identified Ukraine on a map.
"This is another example of how unhinged the media has become in its quest to hurt President Trump and this Administration. It is no wonder that the American people distrust many in the media when they so consistently demonstrate their agenda and their absence of integrity. It is worth noting that Bangladesh is NOT Ukraine," Pompeo said.
Ukraine is at the center of US politics amid Trump's impeachment trial, which is based on claims that Washington withheld almost $400 million in military aid to Ukraine in an attempt to pressure Kiev to investigate 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden for corruption.
Yovanovitch was recalled from Kiev in May, and has been fiercely criticized by Trump. Last week, House Democrats released materials suggesting that the then-ambassador may have been spied on in the days preceding her return to Washington.
