President Donald Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuli announced a new legal team to defend his role in asking Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden - a mission that places Giuli at the centre of a House of Representatives effort to impeach Trump.
"I am represented and assisted by Robert Costello and the Pierce Bainbridge firm, in particular, Eric Creizman and Melissa Madrigal," Giuli said in a series of Twitter messages on Wednesday.
Giuli also defended his role investigating Ukrainian corruption as work was done as a personal lawyer to protect Trump against "false charges."
"The evidence, when revealed fully, will show that this present farce is as much a frame-up and hoax as Russian collusion, maybe worse, and will prove the President is innocent," Giuli said of the House impeachment probe. "The investigation I conducted concerning 2016 Ukrainian collusion and corruption was done solely as a defence attorney to defend my client against false charges."
House Democrats charge that Trump withheld $400 million in military aid to Ukraine in pressing the nation to investigate Biden's role in halting an investigation of a Ukrainian energy firm that employed Biden's son, Hunter.
Transcripts of closed-door testimony released by House investigators this week depict several current and former administration officials describing Giuli as a backchannel running US policy with Ukraine's recently elected President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Earlier on Wednesday, the House announced that the first public hearings on the impeachment probe will begin next week. (Sputnik/)
( With inputs from ANI )