UKRAINE AID TIMELINE
■ MILITARY AID promised by the US to Ukraine and the strange circumstances under which it was held up and eventually released is at the heart of the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump
JULY 3: The hold Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a national security official working at the White House, learns of the military aid being held up. JULY 10: The meeting A meeting at the White House with Ukrainian officials is cut short when Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the EU, says he has an agreement with the acting White House chief of staff that Ukraine’s president would get a meeting with Trump if Ukraine agreed to launch investigations.
JULY 18: The hold-up announcement In a secure call with national security officials, a staff member of the White House office of management and budget announces there’s a freeze on Ukraine aid until further notice, based on a presidential order to the budget office.
JULY 25: The phone call Trump speaks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, asking him for favours that include an inquiry into Joe Biden’s son Hunter’s dealings with Burisma, a Ukrainian gas company
AUGUST: The questions Catherine Croft, the special adviser for Ukraine, says two Ukrainians ask her about the status of military aid.
AUG. 12: The complaint A whistleblower files a formal complaint addressed to Congress that details concerns over the July 25 phone call and the hold placed on military aid. The complaint is withheld from Congress until Sept. 25.
AUG. 28: The article Politico publishes details that the military aid to Ukraine is on hold, setting off a scramble among diplomats in Ukraine and the US
AUG. 29 AND AFTER: Ukraine’s desperation William Taylor, the acting US ambassador to Ukraine, testified that he did not know the aid had been withheld until after the article appeared, when he started receiving desperate calls from Ukrainian officials.
SEPT. 9: The investigations begin Three House committees launch a wideranging investigation into the allegations that Trump, his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, and possibly others, tried to pressure the Ukrainian government to help the president’s reelection campaign by digging up dirt on a political rival.
SEPT. 11: The aid is released The funds are suddenly released. Senate Republicans said that happened in part because Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, threatened to block $5 billion in Pentagon spending for 2020 if the aid wasn’t given to Ukraine. They said the aid was held up while Trump looked into whether Zelenskiy was serious about fighting corruption. Diplomats involved in Ukraine weren’t given a reason for the release.