I have met known many of them for several years. It was a team effort. When Ambassador Yovanovitch Kiev, identified and recommended Bill Taylor to Secretary Pompeo so we would still have a strong, seasoned professional on the ground. For two years before the events at the heart of this investigation took place, I was the most senior U.S. diplomat visiting the conflict zone, meeting with victims of Russia's aggression, urging increased U.S. security assistance, including lethal defensive weapons, working with Ukrainian President Poroshenko and then his successor, President Zelensky, and their teams, working with France and Germany in the so-called Normandy process, pressing for support from NATO, the EU, and OSCE, supporting the OSCE's special monitoring mission, and engaging in negotiations and other contacts with Russian officials.
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