US Justice Department 'reopens' Ukraine-related case

The Justice Department has asked several lawyers to review the Ukraine-related files, and the work has been underway for several weeks, according to a person familiar with the matter. The task was assigned by Attorney General William Barr to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Pittsburgh, separate from Attorney General John Durham’s criminal investigation into alleged Russian interference in the U.S. election, which began in mid-October 2019.

US Attorney General William Barr said he was ready to receive any information related to Ukraine. Photo: CBS News

The files being reviewed by lawyers include documents provided by Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, that go beyond issues related to former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden, who served on the board of a Ukrainian energy company. US President Donald Trump once urged Ukrainian President Zelensky to investigate Joe Biden's son, triggering the Democrats' impeachment inquiry against him.

Senator Lindsey Graham, Chairman of the US Senate Judiciary Committee, also said earlier that Attorney General William Barr has established a new process to collect any information related to Ukraine provided by anyone, starting with the information that Mr. Rudi Giuliani collected in Ukraine. The Justice Department and the US intelligence community will work closely to verify the authenticity of these documents.

Democrats have reacted angrily to the Justice Department’s new move, accusing the administration of once again initiating legal proceedings against the president’s political opponents based on falsified documents. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler sent a letter to William Barr asking for clarification on the new process for receiving information about Ukraine.