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Ukrainians urge Zelensky to publish transcripts of his phone calls with Putin

The online petition was launched on September 28 and has been backed by 57 votes

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky

© Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP

KIEV, September 29. /TASS/. A petition demanding that Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky release the transcripts of his phone calls with Russian leader Vladimir Putin was published on the president’s website on Sunday.

"Given the diplomatic scandal related to phone calls between US President [Donald] Trump and the content of these conversations, in particular, ‘flirting with’ Trump, coordinating positions on some criminal cases and criticizing EU leaders and the former US ambassador, we demand the transcripts of all these phone calls between Ukrainian President Zelensky and Russian President Putin be released," the petition reads.

The online petition was launched on September 28 and has been backed by 57 votes. The president should consider it in case it draws at least 25,000 signatures in 90 days.

The claims that Trump had exerted pressure on Zelensky to persuade Kiev to indirectly help him secure re-election for a second term in 2020 sparked a scandal in Washington. Trump’s opponents alleged that the US leader sought to exert pressure on Zelensky in order to launch an investigation against Hunter Biden, whose father, former US Vice President Josef Biden, is now Trump’s most probable rival at the upcoming presidential election. The Democratic Party-controlled House of Representatives used the suspicion to launch impeachment procedures against Trump. Biden is currently considered as one of Trump’s most likely rivals in the 2020 presidential election.

Earlier this week, the White House released a transcript of last July’s conversation between the two leaders. It turned out that Trump by no means urged Zelensky to order an investigation of Hunter Biden in exchange for Washington’s financial and military assistance to Kiev. The US Department of Justice has found that last July’s Trump-Zelensky conversation contained nothing that might constitute a violation of the national legislation or any reasons for further investigation or other action.

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