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“Not because of anything that I did that I am embarrassed about or in any way whatsoever feel conflicted about as it relates to what I did for Burisma, but because of the political position that it put us all in,” he explained.
In other words, the problem wasn’t ethics. The problem was exposure.
Hunter Biden joined Burisma’s board in April 2014, at a time when his father, Joe Biden, was serving as Vice President of the United States and overseeing U.S. policy toward Ukraine. The job reportedly paid Hunter up to $50,000 per month—a staggering sum for someone with no background in Ukrainian energy or regional politics.
The timing raised eyebrows immediately.
Just two weeks before Hunter was appointed, British authorities had seized $23 million from accounts linked to Burisma’s owner, Mykola Zlochevsky. Despite that cloud, Burisma moved forward with hiring the Vice President’s son.
Hunter did not speak Ukrainian. He had no experience in the energy sector. Yet he landed one of the most lucrative board positions imaginable. The explanation was obvious to critics then—and remains obvious now.
The Biden name opened doors.
During the interview, Hunter attempted to deflect corruption allegations by pointing to Alexander Smirnov, a former FBI informant who falsely claimed the Bidens accepted bribes from Burisma.
“The person that said that Joe Biden took a bribe to protect Burisma is sitting in a jail cell,” Hunter said. “Sitting in a jail cell for lying to the FBI.”
Smirnov was sentenced to six years in federal prison in January 2025 for fabricating the bribery claim. But even that conviction does not erase the broader ethical concerns surrounding Hunter’s role at Burisma.
A 2020 Senate report concluded that Obama-era officials were aware Hunter’s board position was “problematic” and that it complicated U.S. policy in Ukraine. State Department official George Kent testified that the situation was “very awkward” for American diplomats trying to promote anti-corruption reforms.
Kent said he “would have advised any American not to get on the board of Zlochevsky’s company.”
Others shared that concern. Senior State Department official Amos Hochstein reportedly warned Vice President Biden directly about the appearance of a conflict of interest. Those warnings went unheeded.
Despite this, Hunter now claims Republicans unfairly used his Burisma role to smear his family.
According to the interview, Hunter argued his board seat became “the toe in the door to call my family the Biden crime family” without evidence.
But that argument doesn’t square with his own admission.
Hunter has now acknowledged that joining Burisma created a serious political and ethical problem. Either the concerns were legitimate—or they weren’t. He can’t have it both ways.
The controversy deepens when considering Joe Biden’s actions in Ukraine. While serving as Vice President, Biden pressured Ukrainian officials to fire prosecutor Viktor Shokin in 2016. At the time, Shokin was investigating Burisma.
Joe Biden later bragged publicly about threatening to withhold $1 billion in U.S. loan guarantees unless Shokin was removed. That isn’t speculation. It’s Biden’s own words.
Meanwhile, the Biden family collected millions in foreign income during Joe Biden’s vice presidency. From 2013 to 2018, Hunter and his associates received approximately $11 million, including $3.8 million from CEFC China Energy.
Now, years later, Hunter Biden admits taking the Burisma job was a “mistake.”
Not because it looked corrupt—but because Americans noticed.
The real miscalculation wasn’t joining Burisma. It was assuming the public would never connect the dots.
