Former senior director for European and Russian Affairs Fiona Hill testified Thursday in the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump over allegations that Trump withheld aid to the Ukrainians in an attempt to coerce the country into launching an investigation into the business dealings of former Vice President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.
Hill told the House Intelligence Committee that she was concerned that a delay in aid could hamper Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against Russian aggression, but sang a different tune in a 2015 op-ed she co-authored for the Washington Post. In the op-ed, Hill argued against arming the Ukrainians, warning that it could entangle the U.S. in a conflict with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. (RELATED: Watch Vladimir Putin Slip After Hockey Game)
Fiona Hill, former deputy assistant to the President and Senior Director for Europe and Russia on the National Security Council staff, arrives to review transcripts of her deposition with the House Intelligence, Foreign Affairs and Oversight committees at the U.S. Capitol on November 4, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“Increasing the Ukrainian army’s fighting capacity, the thinking goes, would allow it to kill more rebels and Russian soldiers, generating a backlash in Russia and ultimately forcing the Russian president to the negotiating table,” Hill wrote at the time, alongside Clifford Gaddy.
At the time, both Hill and Gaddy worked at the Brookings Institution, a left-leaning think tank based in Washington, D.C. (RELATED: Everything You Need To Know About Alexander Vindman, The Ukraine-Born Officer At The Center Of The Impeachment Probe)
“We strongly disagree,” Hill and Gaddy wrote. “The evidence points in a different direction. If we follow the recommendations of this report, the Ukrainians won’t be the only ones caught in an escalating military conflict with Russia.”
Hill served in the administrations of both Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, and later served on Trump’s National Security Council before resigning earlier this year.