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 After Senator Johnson offered his perspective, Senator Murphy similarly provided an account of the September 5 meeting. Senator Murphy did not dispute the facts as recounted by Senator Johnson, including that President Zelensky raised no concerns about feeling pressure to investigate the President's political rival. Senator Murphy, however, interpreted President Zelensky's silence to mean that he felt pressure. This "interpretation"—based on what President Zelensky did not say—is unpersuasive in light of President Zelensky's repeated and consistent statements that he felt no pressure.

11. In early September 2019, President Zelensky's government implemented several anti-corruption reform measures.

Publicly available information shows that following the seating of Ukraine's new parliament, the Verkhovna Rada (Rada), on August 29, 2019, the Zelensky government initiated aggressive anti-corruption reforms. Almost immediately, President Zelensky appointed a new prosecutor general and opened Ukraine's Supreme Anti-Corruption Court. On September 3, the Rada passed a bill that removed parliamentary immunity. President Zelensky signed the bill on September 11. On September 18, the Rada approved a bill streamlining corruption prosecutions and allowing the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court to focus on high-level corruption cases.

Witnesses described how these legislative initiatives instilled confidence that Ukraine was delivering on anti-corruption reform. NSC staffer LTC Vindman testified that the Rada's efforts were significant. In his deposition, Ambassador Taylor lauded President Zelensky for this demonstrable commitment to reform. He testified:

"President Zelensky was taking over Ukraine in a hurry. He had appointed reformist ministers and supported long-stalled anticorruption legislation. He took quick executive action, including opening Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court, which was established under previous Presidential administration but was never allowed to operate. . . . With his new parliamentary majority, President Zelensky changed the Ukrainian constitution to remove absolute immunity from Rada deputies, which had been the source of raw corruption for decades."

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