Ukrainian activists marched through the center of Kyiv to honor protesters who were killed in antigovernment demonstrations three years ago. (RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service)
Two U.S. lawmakers called on the United States to supply lethal weapons to Ukraine so it can better defend itself against Russia-back separatists in the east of the country. During an interview with RFE/RL in Kyiv on February 22, Senator Dick Durbin (Democrat-Illinois) and U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (Democrat-Illinois) also called on U.S. President Donald Trump show clear support for Ukraine. (RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service)
This ends our live blogging for February 22. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our continuing coverage.
Good morning. We'll start the live blog today by drawing your attention to an exclusive story that RFE/RL's Christopher Miller filed last night:
Who Is Paul Manafort's Man In Kyiv? An Interview With Konstantin Kilimnik
KYIV -- An elusive Ukrainian associate of Paul Manafort says he briefed the former campaign chairman for U.S. President Donald Trump on Ukraine during last year's presidential race.
The comments by Konstantin Kilimnik, in an exclusive interview with RFE/RL, add to the swirl of intrigue surrounding Manafort, a shadowy political operative who helped bring Viktor Yanukovych to the Ukrainian presidency and who is now under FBI investigation for allegedly communicating with Russian intelligence officials during the 2016 U.S. campaign.
Kilimnik, a dual Russian-Ukrainian citizen, himself studied at the Russian military's main university for languages, which has led to speculation that he has ties to Russian military intelligence.
In the February 22 interview, Kilimnik denied any ties to Russian intelligence. But he said that he and Manafort spoke during the 2016 election "every couple months."
"I was briefing him on Ukraine," he said.
Manafort was fired by the Trump campaign in August after news reports documented payments to him from Yanukovych’s pro-Russian political party.
Last month, the New York Times and other media reported that U.S. authorities were investigating Manafort and other Trump aides for allegedly communicating with Russian intelligence during the campaign.
Manafort did not respond to e-mails and a voicemail seeking comment from RFE/RL after the interview concluded. But shortly after those inquiries, Kilimnik called RFE/RL back and said he had been contacted directly by Manafort.
Kilimnik said that while he was speaking to Manafort "every couple months" about Ukraine, he wanted to clarify that he had not been formally advising him during the U.S. election campaign.
Since leaving the Trump campaign, Manafort has remained largely out of sight. Kilimnik said the last time he spoke to Manafort was “in recent weeks.”
Read the entire article here.