Tag Archives: William Taylor

US Embassy Ukraine Chargé d’Affaires Bill Taylor to Leave Kyiv at End of Year

December 18, 2019 By in Ambassadors, EUR|Europe, Impeachment Inquiry, Realities of the FS, Staffing the FS, State Department, U.S. Missions, Ukraine Tags: , , , ,

 

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Impeachment Inquiry: Transcripts of Depositions Released (Updated 11/18/19)

November 18, 2019 By in Ambassadors, Congress, Defense Department, Foreign Service, FSOs, Impeachment Inquiry, Realities of the FS, State Department, Trends, Trump, Ukraine Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Posted: Nov 12, 2019
Updated: Nov 16, 2019
Updated, November 18, 2019

On September 24, 2019, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the beginning of the impeachment inquiry. (see Tuesday, September 24, 2019: Speaker Nancy Pelosi Announces Formal Impeachment Inquiry).  Below are links to the full transcripts of the depositions that the Committee has released on a rolling basis. We will update this post as new transcripts are released to the public.
State/P Ambassador David Hale, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs
  • The testimony of Mr. Hale can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Hale’s testimony can be found here.
State/FSO David Holmes, Political Counselor, US Embassy Kyiv, Ukraine
  • The testimony of Mr. Holmes can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Holmes’ testimony can be found here.
WH/FSO Jennifer Williams, Vice President Pence’s Special Adviser on Europe and Russia
  • The testimony of Jennifer Williams can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Jennifer Williams’s testimony can be found here.
WH/Timothy Morrison, Deputy Assistant to the President
  • The testimony of Timothy Morrison can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Timothy Morrison’s testimony can be found here.
DOD/Laura Cooper, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Department of Defense
  • The testimony of Deputy Assistant Secretary Laura Cooper can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Deputy Assistant Secretary Laura Cooper testimony can be found here.
STATE/FSO Catherine Croft, Ambassador Volker’s Advisor
  • The testimony of Catherine Croft can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Catherine Croft’s testimony can be found here.
STATE/FSO Christopher Anderson, Ambassador Volker’s Advisor
  • The testimony of Christopher Anderson can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Christopher Anderson’s testimony can be found here.
WH/Dr. Fiona Hill, NSC Russia Expert
  • The testimony of Dr. Fiona Hill can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Dr. Fiona Hill’s testimony can be found here.
WH/Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, NSC Russia Expert
  • The testimony of Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman can be found here.
  • Key excerpts of Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman’s testimony can be found here.
STATE/George Kent: Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs (EUR)
  • The testimony of Deputy Assistant Secretary Kent can be found here.
  • Key excerpts from Deputy Assistant Secretary Kent can be found here.
STATE/Ambassador Bill Taylor: Current Chargé d’Affaires, US Embassy Ukraine
  • The testimony of Ambassador Taylor can be found here.
  • Key excerpts from Ambassador Taylor’s testimony can be found here.
STATE/Kurt Volker:  Former U.S. Special Envoy to Ukraine
  • The testimony of Ambassador Volker can be found here.
  • Key excerpts from Ambassador Volker’s testimony can be found here.
  • the Committees released all additional Volker text messages received by the Committees, which can be found here.
  • Key excerpts from these additional text messages can be found here.
  • The Committees first released excerpts of text messages produced by Ambassador Volker on October 2, 2019, which can be found here.
STATE/Ambassador Gordon Sondland:  Current U.S. Ambassador to the European Union
  • The testimony of Ambassador Sondland can be found here, including an addendum he filed on November 4, 2019
  • Key excerpts from Ambassador Sondland’s testimony can be found here.
STATE/Ambassador Michael McKinley:  Former Senior Advisor to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
  • The testimony of former Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State Ambassador P. Michael McKinley from October 16, 2019 can be found here.
  • Key excerpts from McKinley’s testimony can be found here.
STATE/Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch: Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine
  • The testimony of former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie “Masha” Yovanovitch from October 11, 2019 can be found here.
  • Key excerpts from Yovanovitch’s testimony can be found here.

 

 

 

Impeachment Open Hearings Week #1: William Taylor, George Kent, Marie Yovanovitch

November 13, 2019 By in Ambassadors, Congress, Foreign Service, FSOs, Hearings, Impeachment, Impeachment Inquiry, Public Service, Realities of the FS, State Department, Top Ranks, Trump Tags: , , , , ,

Updated: Nov 13, 2019
Updated: Nov 15, 2019

The House Intelligence Committee  Chairman Adam Schiff announced the first open hearings this week:

Wednesday, November 13, 2019 10:00 am ET

WHERE: Longworth House Office Building, Room 110
WATCH: Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrL2q91fnnQ&feature=youtu.be
Witnesses:
  • Ambassador William Taylor
    Chargé D’affaires, US Embassy Kyiv, Ukraine
  • Deputy Assistant Secretary George Kent
    Deputy Assistant Secretary in the European and Eurasian Bureau at the U.S. Department of State.

Friday, November 15, 2019 9:00am ET

Ambassador Marie “Masha” Yovanovitch
US Ambassador to Ukraine (2016-May 2019)
WHERE: Longworth House Office Building, Room 1100
WATCH: Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPoc_sj1hgQ

 

Pompeo’s Mea Culpa or Nah?

November 4, 2019 By in Ambassadors, Hotspots, Impeachment Inquiry, Leadership and Management, Mike Pompeo, Pompeo, Realities of the FS, Secretary of State, State Department, Trends, Trump Tags: , ,

 

 

Michael R. Pompeo With the Student Newspaper The Sunflower | October 25, 2019

QUESTION: Thank you. Bill Taylor, a fellow West Point grad who’s served in every administration since 1985 – both parties – testified before the House. The White House line characterized it – he and others as “radical unelected bureaucrats.” I think you responded briefly to that yesterday, but I’m curious: Do you still have confidence in your top Ukrainian diplomat?

SECRETARY POMPEO: I don’t talk about personnel stuff. It just – it’s not fair to any of the team. But I’ll say this: I have a responsibility leading this big organization. I’ve watched Bill. He and I have talked about Ukrainian policy at some length: how do you take down corruption; how do you now help the new leader there, President Zelensky; how do we deliver on America’s national security interests. And he and I were in full accord on that. We – he and I both share in this vision for how American interests in Ukraine can properly be represented, and I have every reason to think that he’s still out there banging away at that problem set.

But I will say this: We all, as human beings, can get it wrong, too. We see things through a certain prism; we address things in a certain way. We all have a responsibility to make sure we’re getting it as right as we can each and every day. And so I don’t think by nature of the fact that I work at the State Department means I get everything right every day. I think that’s true for all the people who work at the United States Department of State. Indeed, I have seen State Department officials engage in behavior that was not appropriate, that wasn’t right, that didn’t reflect the highest values of the Foreign Service and American diplomacy around the world. And so my obligation as the organization’s leader is to sort through that, to parse through it, to make sure that we collectively are delivering on behalf of the American people each and every day.

We know that human beings can get it wrong, of course. “And so I don’t think by nature of the fact that I work at the State Department means I get everything right every day.”
Jeez, no one is accusing him of getting “everything right everyday.”
“Indeed, I have seen State Department officials engage in behavior that was not appropriate, that wasn’t right, that didn’t reflect the highest values of the Foreign Service and American diplomacy around the world.”
Now, what is Pompeo talking about here?
This happened on the same day when his boss said that “everyone makes mistakes”, hey even Mike Pompeo. Apparently, that mistake was Pompeo hired an honorable man, Ambassador Bill Taylor as the United States man in Ukraine, who did his duty and told what he knew when called upon by the Congress in the impeachment inquiry.

 

Amb. Bill Taylor Appears For Deposition Despite @StateDept Attempt to Block/Limit Testimony

October 22, 2019 By in Ambassadors, chargé d’affaires, Impeachment Inquiry, State Department, Trends, U.S. Missions, Ukraine Tags: , , ,

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#UkraineNightmare: “If you still have concerns … give Lisa Kenna or S a call …”

October 4, 2019 By in Ambassadors, chargé d’affaires, Congress, EUR|Europe, Foreign Assistance, Foreign Service, FSOs, Hall of Shame, Impeachment Inquiry, Mike Pompeo, Political Appointees, Pompeo, Realities of the FS, Secretary of State, Spectacular, State Department, Trends, Trump, U.S. Missions, Ukraine Tags: , , , , , , , ,

 

According to state.gov, Lisa Kenna is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service. She is currently the Executive Secretary in the Office of the Secretary, a position she has held since June 2017 (under Rex Tillerson). Previously, she served as the Executive Assistant to the Secretary. She has served overseas in Amman, Cairo, and Peshawar. Domestically, she has worked in the Office of the Secretary, the National Security Council, and at the Department of Defense.

The Executive Secretariat, comprised of the Executive Secretary, five Deputy Executive Secretaries, and their staff, is responsible for coordination of the work of the Department internally, serving as the liaison between the Department’s bureaus and the offices of the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and Under Secretaries. The Executive Secretariat also handles the Department’s relations with the White House, National Security Council, and other Cabinet agencies.

“S” is in reference to the Secretary of State.

Ambassador Bill Taylor was previously the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine from June 21, 2006 – May 23, 2009, spanning the G.W. Bush and Obama Administrations. In 1999, he was also confirmed with a Rank of Ambassador during his tenure of service as Coordinator of U.S. Assistance for the New Independent States (NIS) in 

For Kurt Volker, see Trump’s Special Representative For Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker Steps Down

For Gordon Sondland, see here and Oregon Public Broadcasting: Portland Businessman Will Cooperate With US House Impeachment Inquiry; The Intercept: Portland Executive Covertly Donates $1 Million to Inauguration After Being Shamed Over Trump Support.

 

Read: Text Msgs From Ambassadors Volker, Sondland, Taylor, and Others on #UkraineNightmare

Read: Text Msgs From Ambassadors Volker, Sondland, Taylor, and Others on #UkraineNightmare

October 4, 2019 By in Ambassadors, chargé d’affaires, Diplomacy, EUR|Europe, Foreign Assistance, Foreign Service, FSOs, Hall of Shame, Hotspots, Impeachment Inquiry, Mike Pompeo, Political Appointees, Pompeo, Realities of the FS, Secretary of State, Special Envoys and Reps, Spectacular, State Department, Top Ranks, Trends, Trump, U.S. Missions, US Presidents Tags: , , , , , ,