Pompeo confirms he was on call between Trump and Ukraine leader

Reuters
Updated

ROME, Oct 2 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary Of State Mike Pompeo confirmed on Wednesday that he was on a contested call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukraine's leader, saying it was a legitimate conversation that focused on U.S. policy priorities.

Following a whistleblower complaint last week, Democrats are looking into Trump's request to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during the July 25 phone call to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden. Biden is a leading contender in the Democratic race to run against Republican Trump in the 2020 election.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attends a news conference with Italian Foreign Minister Luigi di Maio (not pictured) in Rome, Italy, October 2, 2019. REUTERS/Alberto Lingria
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attends a news conference with Italian Foreign Minister Luigi di Maio (not pictured) in Rome, Italy, October 2, 2019. REUTERS/Alberto Lingria

"I was on the phone call," Pompeo told reporters during a visit to Italy, adding that it came within the context of U.S. policymaking, including cutting corruption in the east European state and "taking down the threat Russia poses there in Ukraine". (Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Writing by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Hugh Lawson)