Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to include additional information from the court claim and a comment from Michael Cohen’s lawyer.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is taking the BBC to court for libel after the British public broadcaster reported that he made a $400,000 payment to schedule a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.
That story is untrue and has left Poroshenko “seriously injured in his reputation” and “caused substantial distress and embarrassment” according to a British High Court claim, signed by Poroshenko’s lawyer, Graham Atkins, and dated September 3, 2018.
Here is a copy of the High Court claim filed on behalf of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko against the BBC.
In May, the BBC reported that Poroshenko’s intermediaries had made a payment of at least $400,000 to Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, to organize a meeting between the two leaders.
The Ukrainian president reportedly decided to make the unofficial payment after failing to secure anything more than a handshake and few minutes of conversation through official channels.
The two presidents met at the White House in June 2017. During the talks, Poroshenko termed Trump one of Ukraine’s “most reliable supporters” and “strategic partners,” Reuters reported.
The “allegation that the Claimant was guilty of serious corruption is self-evidently an extremely grave and serious one,” the High Court claim reads. It alleges that this not only affects Poroshenko’s role as president, but also his political and business reputation.
“This is especially so given the emphasis which (Poroshenko) has chosen to place during his Presidency on the promotion of a number of anti-corruption measures in the Ukraine (sic), for example the enactment of new legislation, the establishment of special bodies to conduct pre-trial investigation and prosecution of high-profile corruption crimes and the creation of an Anti-Corruption Court,” the claim continues.
The document stresses that the story — which was published in a prominent place on the BBC website and then included in the News at Ten program on BBC One, the network’s flagship television channel — reached a wide audience, including “influential and prominent figures within the world of politics, diplomacy, finance, business and media” due to the BBC’s global reputation.
The claim also alleges that the BBC ran the story despite lacking evidence that the payment actually took place. BBC journalists were also repeatedly told by people alleged to be involved that “it was completely untrue, and that there had been no payment and no back-channel talks,” Poroshenko’s legal team alleges.
According to the document, Poroshenko is suing for a retraction, an injunction to prevent the BBC from further publishing the story in question or similar stories, “damages (including aggravated damages) for libel,” and legal costs.
After maintaining close relations with the administration of former U.S. President Barack Obama, Ukraine, some reports suggest, is struggling to build similar ties with the Trump Administration.
When Trump was inaugurated in January 2017, the Ukrainian government hired the BGR Group lobbying firm to help it build ties with the new and unpredictable administration. According to The Hill, the one-year contract cost Kyiv $600,000 plus a $50,000 monthly retainer.
Although the United States has strengthened its support for Ukraine under Trump, the president himself has expressed admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin and, on at least one occasion, harshly criticized Kyiv.
In July 2017, Trump tweeted about “Ukrainian efforts to sabotage Trump campaign – ‘quietly working to boost Clinton.’” That claim likely stems from a January 2017 article in Politico, which reported that Ukrainian Embassy officials in Washington had worked with a Ukrainian-American consultant to the Democratic National Committee to expose then Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort’s ties with Russia.
Before joining the Trump campaign, Manafort had long served as a consultant to former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted in the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution, and his Party of Regions.
Earlier this month, Manafort pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy and one charge of witness tampering as part of an investigation into allegations that he illegally lobbied on behalf of Yanukovych. The agreement requires Manafort to cooperate with U.S. special counsel Robert Mueller in an ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
In March, Cohen, the lawyer allegedly involved in the payoff, also pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges including tax evasion and illegal campaign contributions. According to a Sept. 20 report by ABC News, Cohen is now cooperating extensively with the Mueller investigation.
At the time of the BBC report, Cohen denied receiving payment to set up a meeting between Poroshenko and Trump. He did not respond to a Sept. 21 request for comment sent by the Kyiv Post.
However, his attorney, Lanny J. Davis, did.
“I cannot comment now on any questions concerning Mr. Cohen, in light of the ongoing investigations with which he is cooperating,” Davis said in an email.
Correction: This article has been updated to reflect that the BBC is a “public broadcaster,” not a “state media company.”
