Psaki Refuses Transparency on Hunter’s $3.5M Russian Payment and Chinese Divestment; Won’t Retract “Russian Disinformation” Claim

On 3/18/2022, Psaki refused to provide any transparency on Hunter Biden’s business dealings when pressed on a reported $3.5 million payment from the richest woman in Russia and Hunter’s alleged divestment from a Chinese state-controlled investment fund. She dismissed all questions with “he’s a private citizen” and would not retract the White House’s 2020 characterization of the laptop as “Russian disinformation” despite the New York Times authenticating the emails. Biden refused all questions from reporters, and the White House acknowledged Russia would not be sanctioned for its role implementing the Iran nuclear deal.

$3.5 Million From Russia’s Richest Woman

A reporter raised a Senate report alleging Hunter Biden or an accompanying entity received $3.5 million from Yelena Baturina, described as the richest woman in Russia. “Subsequent reporting indicates that President Biden, when he was vice president, had a dinner in Georgetown with the same woman in 2015,” the reporter said. “She has not been sanctioned yet by the U.S. government.”

“How is President Biden navigating conflicts of interest when it comes to sanctioning people who have done business with his family? And can you explain what this $3.5 million was for?” the reporter asked.

“I don’t have any confirmation of the accuracy of that report, so I have no further details,” Psaki said.

“It’s the same question about conflicts of interest — how he’s navigating those when deciding sanctions,” the reporter pressed.

“What would be his conflicts of interest?” Psaki asked. “He’s continued to sanction oligarchs more than we’ve ever sanctioned in the past, so I’m not sure that’s a conflict of interest.”

“She hasn’t been sanctioned, though,” the reporter noted.

Chinese Fund: “He’s a Private Citizen”

The same reporter raised Hunter’s alleged divestment from a Chinese investment fund controlled by state-owned entities. “We have received not even basic transparency about who bought out his stake, when this happened, and how much money changed hands,” the reporter said. “Did he actually divest, and if so, can you agree to basic transparency?”

“He’s a private citizen. He doesn’t work for the government. I’d point you to his representatives,” Psaki said. “I think we’re done here.”

Won’t Retract “Russian Disinformation”

Doocy asked Psaki about the White House’s 2020 characterization of the laptop story. “The president has said, and you have tweeted, that allegations of wrongdoing based on files pulled from Hunter Biden’s laptop are Russian disinformation. There’s a new book by a Politico reporter that finds some of the files on there are genuine. Is the White House still going with Russian disinformation?”

“I think it’s broadly known and widely known, Peter, that there was a broad range of Russian disinformation back in 2020,” Psaki said — notably not retracting the claim.

The video included Trump’s direct challenge to Biden: “You were getting a lot of money from Russia. They were paying you a lot of money. All of the emails, the horrible emails of the kind of money that you were raking in, you and your family. And Joe, you were vice president when some of this was happening. I think you owe an explanation to the American people.”

Russia Gets Iran Deal Pass

A reporter caught another contradiction. “The State Department said that the administration would not sanction Russian participation in nuclear projects that are part of the JCPOA. How does the administration justify calling for such strong sanctions on Russia but giving them a pass when it comes to Iran? Isn’t that hypocritical?”

“There’s absolutely no pass given,” Psaki insisted. “They have an implementation role. They’ve had an implementation role in the past.” She characterized it as “similar implementation components” to the 2015 deal.

Biden-Xi Call: “It’s Up to China”

Psaki previewed Biden’s call with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “China has to make a decision for themselves about where they want to stand and how they want the history books to look at them,” Psaki said.

A reporter noted the Chinese readout came out “three and a half minutes before” the White House version — even before the call was finished. Psaki said the delay on the U.S. side reflected “an effort to protect diplomatic channels.”

Key Takeaways

Psaki refused transparency on a reported $3.5 million payment from Russia’s richest woman to a Hunter Biden-linked entity, saying she had “no confirmation of the accuracy.”
She would not provide any details on Hunter’s claimed divestment from a Chinese state-controlled fund, saying “he’s a private citizen.”
Psaki would not retract the “Russian disinformation” characterization of the laptop despite the NYT authenticating the emails.
The administration acknowledged Russia would not be sanctioned for its role implementing the Iran nuclear deal, calling it “an implementation role.”
China released its readout of the Biden-Xi call three and a half minutes before the White House released its own.

Transcript Highlights

The following is transcribed from the video audio (unverified — AI-generated from audio).

Can you explain what the $3.5 million from Russia’s richest woman was for? I don’t have any confirmation. What would be his conflicts of interest?
Did he actually divest from the Chinese fund? He’s a private citizen. I’d point you to his representatives. I think we’re done here.
Is the White House still going with Russian disinformation? There was a broad range of Russian disinformation back in 2020.
How does the administration justify giving Russia a pass on Iran? There’s absolutely no pass given. They have an implementation role.
You owe an explanation to the American people. All of the emails, the kind of money you were raking in.
China has to make a decision for themselves about where they want to stand.

Full transcript: 1225 words transcribed via Whisper AI.