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A prominent member of the board of directors of Burisma Holdings, the Ukrainian oil and gas conglomerate at the center of the impeachment inquiry, admitted on Friday that Hunter Biden was tapped to join the company because of his father’s political influence. Aleksander Kwasniewski, a former president of Poland who joined Burisma’s board around the same time as the younger Biden, told the Associated Press it was normal for corporations to seek out well-connected figures for advisory positions. The former president admitted that both he and Hunter Biden secured their posts with Burisma, which at times paid as much as...

During the Obama presidency, Biden was the US proconsul for Ukraine, and he was involved in many corruption schemes. He authorised transfer of three billion dollars of the US taxpayers’ money to the post-coup government of the Ukraine; the money was stolen, and Biden took a big share of the spoils. The Ukraine has a few midsize deposits of natural gas, sufficient for domestic household consumption. The cost of its production was quite low; and the Ukrainians got used to pay pennies for their gas. After the 2014 coup, IMF demanded to raise the price of gas for the domestic...

The former Prosecutor General of Ukraine Viktor Shokin said in an interview to the “Strana.ua” news agency why the former Vice President of the United States Joseph Biden, connected to lobbying business of the former Minister of Ecology Nikolay Zlochevsky, ordered the president Petro Poroshenko to dismiss him. Shokin said that he was not going to “back away” from the “case of Burisma“, the company of Zlochevsky, the board of which Biden’s son joined soon after Euromaidan, the former president of Poland Aleksander Kwasniewski and also Devon Archer (the close friend of the stepson of the US Secretary of State...

Revelations that Hunter Biden and Aleksander Kwasniewski serve on the board of a company controlled by a Yanukovych ally raise serious conflict of interest questions for Western countries’ Ukraine policy. DONETSK, Ukraine — U.S. Vice President Joe Biden’s youngest son has joined the board of a gas company owned by an ally of Ukraine’s fugitive ex-president Viktor Yanukovych and a key European interlocutor with Kiev who was previously president of Poland. The move raises questions about a potential conflict of interest for Joe Biden, who was the White House’s main interlocutor with Yanukovych while the latter was president and has...

Poland's former president Aleksander Kwaśniewski, former Prime Minister Leszek Miller and other prominent left-wing politicians were involved in large-scale corruption in connection with the privatization process in Poland, claims a lobbyist under arrest on charges of corruption. Marek Dochnal, three years ago one of the most influential lobbyists in Poland, for the past two and a half years under arrest on charges of large scale corruption, has testified that Poland's most prominent left-wing politicians accepted huge bribes back when they were in power. Among others, Dochnal names as guillty of corruption Poland's former president, Aleksander Kwaśniewski and former Prime Minister,...

Poland "misled" into joining Iraq war 2006-11-08, 15:58 Warsaw decided to take part in the war with Iraq on grounds of untrue information which it received from the US administration - former President of Poland Aleksander Kwasniewski has told a German daily. In an interview for "Der Tagesspiegel" Mr. Kwasniewski said that he heard about Iraq's mass destruction weapons from then US State Secretary Colin Powell himself. He added that now he would treat information supplied by intelligence "with more caution". In his interview for the daily, the former Polish president also appealed to the German government for more activity...

Outgoing President admits he was not sober in Kharkov 22.12.2005 President Aleksander Kwasniewski has admitted that he was under the influence of alcohol during his visit to the Ukrainian city Kharkov in 1999. The president’s behaviour on a tour of the graves of Polish army officers murdered by the Soviet security police in 1940 prompted mass media comments that he was not sober. His aides blamed this on leg problems. Interviewed by the TVN24 news channel today, Kwasniewski said he had drank alcohol. He added that he was ill at that time and was taking medicines. He said that he...

Goodbye Olek Aleksander Kwasniewski ends his two terms as Polish president and later this week will hand over his office to his political opponent, right wing president elect Lech Kaczynski. Known by his nickname 'Olek', which is short for Aleksander, Kwasniewski is seen as a president who ushered Poland into NATO and the EU and tried to exert a moderating influence, but whose last years of presidency were marred by political scandals. Aleksander Kwasniewski was 41 when in 1995, as the leader of the Polish left, he defeated the Solidarity legend Lech Wa³êsa in the presidential elections. Five years later...

President Kwasniewski warns against tough stand towards Russia. 19.12.2005 Meanwhile outgoing president Aleksander Kwasniewski has warned the ruling party in Poland against a tough stand towards Russia. Kwasniewski advises president elect Lech Kaczynski not to demand a visit in Warsaw by president Putin but meet the Russian head of state in any place in the world. Speaking for the commercial radio TOK Fm Kwasniewski said he believes that Poland cannot force the Polish interpretation of the history of the Soviet Union and Russia. Poland should aim at forming joint commissions of historians, changes in school books and open discussions. President...

Presidential pardon causes controversy 02.12.2005 Poland's outgoing president, Aleksander Kwasniewski, has launched a procedure to pardon a member of the previous, leftwing government who was involved in a scandal, which rocked the Polish political scene for over two years. Zbigniew Sobotka was convicted for 3 and half years in jail for tipping off gangsters about a prepared police action against them. The scandal which involved many left wing politicians brought to light many links and corruption affairs among the former ruling left. President Kwasniewski's decision to pardon Sobotka has given rise to outraged comments from the ruling right wing as...

Storm over president's plan to pardon convicted ex-minister 01.12.2005 Discussions continue in Poland over the outgoing president’s intention to pardon former deputy interior minister Zbigniew Sobotka. The latter was sentenced to 3 and a half years behind bars for links with the criminal world. President Aleksander Kwasniewski has now sent a pardon motion to the prosecutor’s office. New prime minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz has called on the president to drop the motion to show Poles that criminals will be penalised. Throughout Aleksander Kwasniewski’s second 5-year-long term as president nearly a thousand people have been pardoned.

Polish president warned over ultra-right shift By Stephen Castle in Brussels 25 October 2005 Poland was given a blunt warning over its human rights obligations yesterday - after the election of a president who has sought to curb gay rights and campaigned for the restoration of the death penalty. The clear victory for Lech Kaczynski, who won 54 per cent of the vote in Sunday's run-off, marks a sharp change for Poland as a majority of voters embraced the populist politics of a man who has promised to bring about moral renewal. Mr Kaczynski, whose twin brother will also be...

Germany's New Outlook Friendlier Transatlantic Relations Likely Under Chancellor Merkel By Jim Hoagland Sunday, October 16, 2005; Page B07 Angela Merkel's new coalition government in Germany provides a sudden silver lining for the dark clouds that have descended over the Bush presidency. It will now be easier for Washington to work with Berlin and the European Union. That change could also help reduce the poisonous anti-American sentiments that pervade international politics. Those sentiments seemed to surface in this year's Nobel peace and literature prizes, which served to remind President Bush of his international unpopularity. The German silver lining is fragile:...

President Bush met with departing Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski at the White House. Secretary of State Rice visited with Pakistani and Afghani leaders and then arrived at Chaklala Air Base in Rawalpindi. Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld is attending the U.S. and Central America Ministers Conference on Security and Economic Opportunity in Key Biscayne, Florida. Welcome to Sanity Island!

Final trip to US Outgoing Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski is paying a farewell visit to the United States this week. It’s his last official trip before the Polish head of State ends his second and final five year term later this year. Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski will be the guest of honor at a special luncheon hosted by his US counterpart George W. Bush in Washington. This will be Kwasniewski’s fourth official visit to the White House since 2002. Kwasniewski will end his second five year term as President after his successor is elected in run off elections later this...

WARSAW -- In Mitteleuropa, the roles have reversed. The boring, steady Germans last Sunday opted for political chaos by failing to elect a government. A week later, the passionate but messy Poles expressed no ambivalence in picking a clean slate of leaders. Polish former communists were chucked out after a single term, keeping alive a losing streak for incumbents dating back to the birth of democratic Poland. The fresh Polish twist is found in the victor's camp. Two conservative parties built a majority around the very ideas that Angela Merkel and her center-right allies failed to sell Germans on. Law...

President warns of 'dangerous' slide to right ahead of weekend election Monika Scislowska Canadian Press September 23, 2005 WARSAW, Poland (AP) - President Aleksander Kwasniewski warned Friday of a dangerous lurch to the right in Poland's elections and urged voters to defy predictions of a low turnout by turning out in large numbers. Opinion polls suggest the left-wing government, mired in corruption scandals, will be swept from power in Sunday's vote by the center-right Law and Justice Party and the pro-business Civic Platform. With the two opposition parties, who plan to rule in coalition, on course for a two-thirds majority...

American Jewish Committee Honors Poland President Kwasniewski Fri Sep 16, 7:37 PM ET NEW YORK, Sept. 16 /U.S. Newswire/ -- President Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland was honored last night by the American Jewish Committee with the organization's highest award, the American Liberties Medallion. "Mr. President, you are a towering champion of liberty, a steadfast defender of democracy, a staunch advocate of human rights, a courageous protector of memory and a tireless promoter of mutual understanding," said AJC Executive Director David A. Harris as he presented the prestigious award at a dinner at AJC headquarters. "Today, democratic Poland shines bright in...

Polish president to stump for Holtzman By Stuart Steers, Rocky Mountain News September 13, 2005 Foreign heads of state usually don't get involved in Colorado political campaigns, but nobody ever said Marc Holtzman was a typical candidate for governor. Holtzman will make several appearances today with Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski, whom he met while working as an investment banker in Eastern Europe in the 1990s. Kwasniewski will appear at the University of Denver and at two private fundraisers for Holtzman. "In 1993, Marc went to Eastern Europe and set up a company to help emerging democracies learn about free enterprise,"...

Polish president rallies behind ailing leftist 2005-09-07 11:40 WARSAW, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski on Wednesday rallied behind his hand-picked candidate for successor, leftist lower house speaker Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, struggling to remain in the race. Cimoszewicz, a moderate leftist, has slipped from first to third in opinion surveys over the last six weeks after an error was found in his declaration of assets and hurt his cherished image as a clean hands politician. European Union member Poland is set to tilt to the political right in parliamentary and presidential elections this and next month, with voters angry...