Declassified Memos Show Biden Team Blocked CIA Report on Hunter's Ukraine Ties
A senior CIA official described the request as "extremely rare and unusual," noting such determinations typically occur internally without external input.
Declassified memos released Tuesday reveal that then-Vice President Joe Biden's national security advisor Jake Sullivan intervened in February 2016 to prevent the CIA from disseminating an intelligence report detailing senior Ukrainian officials' perceptions of Hunter Biden's business dealings, adding to a mounting body of evidence on foreign influence concerns surrounding the Biden family.
The report, compiled after Biden's December 2015 Kyiv visit, captured Ukrainian government figures' disappointment with the trip's lack of substantive discussions and their private remarks on U.S. media scrutiny of Hunter Biden's Burisma Holdings role. Officials viewed the Biden family's alleged corruption ties as evidence of a "double standard" in U.S. anti-corruption policy, per the document reviewed by Just the News. Biden's Presidential Daily Brief briefer notified the CIA: "I just spoke with VP/NSA and he would strongly prefer the report not/not be disseminated. Thanks for understanding."
A senior CIA official described the request as "extremely rare and unusual," noting such determinations typically occur internally without external input. The intervention occurred amid Biden's Obama administration role as Ukraine point man, including his March 2016 push for prosecutor Viktor Shokin's ouster—later tied to Burisma investigations—despite U.S. embassy cables praising Shokin's anti-corruption efforts.
This disclosure builds on prior revelations: a 2023 Senate Judiciary probe identified over 40 FBI informants reporting Biden family foreign dealings since 2015, many thwarted; IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler testified in 2023 that Justice Department prosecutors blocked questions on Joe Biden as "the big guy" in a 10% Burisma equity offer; and a 2023 FD-1023 form alleged $5 million bribes to Joe and Hunter Biden, though informant Alexander Smirnov faces unrelated charges. House Oversight's 2023 report documented Hunter's $1.5 million annual Burisma retainers during Joe's oversight.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe, confirmed January 2025, ordered the review as part of de-politicization efforts, stating: "The CIA is being restructured... to eliminate the politicization that has taken place." Ratcliffe views the block as emblematic of such issues, committing to transparency on Biden-era interventions. No charges have resulted, but the memos fuel ongoing House Judiciary inquiries into intelligence handling.
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