Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich

by Peter Schweizer

  52. Bleizeffer, Dustin, “Company: Uranium Won’t Go to Russia, Iran,” Billings (Montana) Gazette, September 28, 2010, http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/company-uranium-won-t-go-to-russia-iran/article_3c0424ba-cab2-11df-ba2c-001cc4c002e0.html.

  53. “Response to Request for Additional Information,” Donna Wichers to Keith McConnell, October 18, 2010, http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1029/ML102940435.pdf.

  54. Fugleberg, Jeremy, “Wyoming Mining Officials Tout Technology, Safety, Exports,” Star-Tribune (Caspar, Wyoming), January 7, 2011, http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming-mining-officials-tout-technology-safety-exports/article_c55415dd-3aae-5e66-b485-83e9e61a5a11.html.

  55. US International Trade Commission, “Uranium from Russia,” Investigation No. 731-TA-539-C (Third Review), February 2012, http://www.usitc.gov/publications/701_731/pub4307.pdf.

  56. Helmer, John, “Putin Urges US Help for Oligarchs,” Asia Times Online, March 25, 2010, http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/LC25Ag01.html.

  57. “Salida Capital Foundation—Quick View,” Canadian Revenue Agency, http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/haip/srch/t3010form22quickview-eng.action?r=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cra-arc.gc.ca%3A80%2Febci%2Fhaip%2Fsrch%2Fbasicsearchresult-eng.action%3Fk%3DSalida%2BCapital%26amp%3Bs%3Dregistered%26amp%3Bp%3D1%26amp%3Bb%3Dtrue&fpe=2012-12-31&b=835572066RR0001&n=Salida%20Capital%20Foundation.

  58. “Qualified Donees—Salida Capital Foundation,” Canadian Revenue Agency, http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/haip/srch/t3010form22gifts-eng.action?b=835572066RR0001&fpe=2011-12-31&n=Salida+Capital+Foundation&r=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cra-arc.gc.ca%3A80%2Febci%2Fhaip%2Fsrch%2Ft3010form22QuickView-eng.action%3Fb%3D835572066RR0001%26amp%3Bfpe%3D2011-12-31%26amp%3Br%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.cra-arc.gc.ca%253A80%252Febci%252Fhaip%252Fsrch%252Fbasicsearchresult-eng.action%253Fk%253DSalida%252BCapital%2526amp%253Bs%253Dregistered%2526amp%253Bp%253D1%2526amp%253Bb%253Dtrue.

  59. Salida’s chief business partner in Ukraine is Robert Bensh, who served as an adviser to Boyko, who served as energy minister and later deputy prime minister under President Viktor Yanukovych. Yanukovych fled the country for Moscow during the Ukrainian uprising in 2014, and was granted Russian citizenship by Vladimir Putin. Salida and Bensh are involved in at least two energy ventures in the Ukraine including CUB Energy and EastCoal. For quotes on Boyko see: https://cablegatesearch.wikileaks.org/cable.php?id=06KYIV4313&q=boyko%20kremlin.

  60. Rosatom, “Public Annual Report,” news release, Globalreporting.org, http://static.globalreporting.org/report-pdfs/2013/358637c2a26b8a36867a5bf7be2d1793.pdf.

  61. The Salida Capital mentioned in the Rosatom report is owned under a Ukrainian subsidiary Energomashspetsstal, a heavy machine company that produces industrial metal castings for the nuclear industry. The Salida Capital Foundation’s approximately $2.9 million in donations to the Clinton Foundation, starting in 2010 and lasting through 2013, is directly linked to the the Canadian hedge fund Salida Capital Corp., which does business out of the second floor of the CIBC building in downtown Toronto. Its principals at the time were executives with a history in Canadian mining finance. Salida’s founder, Danny Guy, was listed in 2009 as an official partner, along with Sergey Kurzin, of the Clinton-Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative. In 2011 Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear agency that had acquired a controlling stake in Uranium One, began including a “Salida Capital Corp.” in its list of subsidiaries. Other Rosatom documents traced the company in question to Panama City, Panama.

  On October 3, 2006, Blumont Capital Corporation, which was registered in Canada, announced a new investment initiative with several other Canadian-based hedge funds. One of those funds was Salida Capital Corporation of Ontario. Blumont’s principal, Veronika Hirsch, and Salida’s principal, Danny Guy, were both long-standing figures in the world of Canadian mining finance. Both of them were involved in bringing investors to Diamond Fields, the Canadian-based company that explored for diamonds in Arkansas during Bill Clinton’s governorship. This is the same Diamond Fields in which Frank Giustra’s Yorkton Securities invested.

  On October 4, 2006, papers were filed with the Panamanian Division of Corporations for a Salida Capital Corp. On November 2, 2006, this entity was officially registered as a corporation in Panama. The very same day, a company called Blumont Capital was registered in Panama by the same law firm, with the exact same board of directors. In fact, two other firms, both corresponding to Canadian investment entities with long-standing ties to Canadian mining finance were also registered the same day, by the same law firm, with the same board of directors. One of the Panamanian companies was First Leeward Investments. It just so happens that a Leeward Investments Company, headed by the colorful Matthew Brendan Kyne, is registered on the same floor as Salida Capital in Toronto’s CIBC building. The other Panamanian firm, New Thornhill Investments, corresponds to the Canadian-based Thornhill Investment Funds, run by the perhaps even more colorful Karleris Sarkans. Sarkans, whose book on international negotiations details his experiences “being held down at knifepoint and gunpoint by Russians,” was sued in Massachusetts in 2004 for investment fraud. Specifically, he was accused of investing in the Russian bond markets in 1997, when he had specifically promised an investor that he had liquidated his position in the Russian market. The investor lost well over a million dollars. The action resulted in a default judgment against him.

  Curiously, Salida Capital Panama has its own Ukrainian connection. Throughout 2008 Salida Capital Panama was used by the Eastern Ukrainian company Energomashspetsstal (EMSS) to import heavy machinery from China and the Czech Republic. EMSS makes castings and other large steel structures for mining and nuclear power plants. That same year a notorious Ukrainian oligarch and politician named Andriy Klyuev appropriated Ukrainian state funds to EMSS for “capital improvements.” EMSS was at that time 80 percent owned by the Industrial Union of Donbass (IUD). Ukrainian media reports as well as academic papers associate IUD with one of eastern Ukraine’s most powerful men, Serhiy Taruta. Taruta’s business dealings were on the ropes in January 2010. According to reports, Vladimir Putin arranged considerable financial support for them. It is against this background that Rosatom, Russia’s state nuclear agency, as it successfully sought CFIUS approval to purchase a controlling stake in Uranium One, acquired EMSS on or about December 9, 2010. Throughout 2010 Salida Capital Canada’s newly created charity, the Salida Capital Foundation, received four separate infusions of money totaling $3.376 million (Canadian). That year, Salida’s CEO, Courtenay Wolfe, would join Bill Clinton onstage at the Clinton Global Initiative annual dinner to announce a charitable partnership, and its foundation would give to the Clinton Foundation almost $800,000 of what would become approximately $2.9 million by 2013. According to Canadian government records, that money is over 80 percent of all donations ever given by Salida’s own foundation.

  By June 2011 Rosatom’s corporate documents listed a “Salida Capital Group, Inc.; Panama City, Panama,” whose board contact information matched that of the Salida Capital Corp. registered in Panama in November 2006. When Rosatom published its annual report in 2012, it listed a Salida Capital Corp that it held “outside of the consolidated budget perimeter” through “PJSC Energomashspetsstal” or EMSS.

  It’s essential to understand that Salida Capital Corp. of Canada began publicly to do business in eastern Ukraine in the spring of 2010. It invested first in a natural gas play that would become a Canadian registered firm called Cub Energy and then in a coal operation in the Donbass region that became known as EastCoal. Both firms are well within the same financial, and therefore in Ukraine, political orbit. In this context, the creation of the Salida Capital Foundation at the end of 2009 and its generous donations to the Clinton Foundation demand the utmost scrutiny.

  One final question must be asked: why Panama? Panama is perhaps less known than the Cayman Islands as a vehicle for questionable financial dealings, but its virtues are well known by offshoring practitioners. Canadian law in particular allows for the
creation of private investment foundations, which can hold international business company stock, but which function essentially as nonprofit corporations. Services exist in Canada to facilitate creating corporations in Panama that mirror and work with Canadian private investment foundations. The goal of such arrangements, naturally, is to shield assets from taxation and provide anonymity for the beneficiaries. The same law firm created not only Salida Capital Corp. of Panama, but simultaneously Blumont Capital Panama, whose Canadian counterpart was just beginning a new investment venture with Salida Canada. It also created the other two firms with equally curious Canadian parallels. The firm, as it so happens, specializes in creating just such private investment foundations.

  Was a Private Investment Foundation created for Salida Canada and its management and investors, who at some point came to include the Russian government who had business before the very secretary of state to whose charitable foundation Salida’s own charity was even then making donations? Since my inquiries to both Salida and Lombardi-Aguilar went unanswered, I cannot say for sure. I can only say the facts speak eloquently for themselves and demand an answer from the only parties who can give an answer.

  In 2015 Salida Capital Canada changed its name to Harrington Global.

  62. Strickland, Ken, and Andrea Mitchell, “Clinton, Obama ‘Memo of Understanding,’” NBC News, December 18, 2008, http://firstread.nbcnews.com/_news/2008/12/18/4426618-clinton-obama-memo-of-understanding.

  63. “Clinton Surpasses $75 Million in Speech Income after Lucrative 2010,” CNN Political Ticker RSS, July 11, 2011, http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/07/11/clinton-surpasses-75-million-in-speech-income-after-lucrative-2010/.

  64. “William Jefferson Clinton Speeches, 2001–2012,” Turner.com, http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2013/images/05/23/clinton.speeches.2001-2012.pdf.

  65. “Former Russian Spy Recalls the Golden Age of Espionage,” The Telegraph (London), January 2, 2011, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/rbth/features/8236120/Former-Russian-spy-recalls-the-golden-age-of-espionage.html and http://en.gazeta.ru/news/2012/03/30/a_4116129.shtml; http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/rbth/features/8236120/Former-Russian-spy-recalls-the-golden-age-of-espionage.html.

  66. Low, Valentine, “My Old Friend the KGB Spy,” Evening Standard (London), December 30, 2002.

  67. Weiss, Michael, “Moscow’s Long, Corrupt Money Trail,” Daily Beast, March 22, 2014, http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/22/moscow-s-long-corrupt-money-trail.html.

  68. Renaissance Capital, “Uranium One: Company on Schedule; Market Lags,” May 27, 2010, centralasia.rencap.com/download.asp?id=10956.

  69. “Burn after Reading: Russian Spies in America,” The Economist, June 29, 2010, http://www.economist.com/blogs/newsbook/2010/06/russian_spies_america; Smith, Ben, “Clinton Friend Was Spy’s Target,” Politico, June 29, 2010, http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0610/Clinton_friend_may_have_been_spys_target.html.

  70. “Spies Assigned to Gather Intel on U.S. Nuke Strategy for Russia, FBI Says,” NTI, June 29, 2010, http://www.nti.org/gsn/article/spies-assigned-to-gather-intel-on-us-nuke-strategy-for-russia-fbi-says/.

  71. Levy, Clifford J., and Ellen Barry, “Putin Criticizes U.S. for Arrests of Espionage Suspects,” New York Times, June 29, 2010, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/30/world/europe/30lavrov.html.

  72. Soltis, Andy, “Soviet-style ‘Red’ Whine,” New York Post, June 30, 2010, http://nypost.com/2010/06/30/soviet-style-red-whine/.

  73. Baker, Peter, “The Mellowing of William Jefferson Clinton,” New York Times, May 26, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/magazine/31clinton-t.html?pagewanted=all.

  74. “Bill Clinton Offers Rare US Praise for Putin,” RIA Novosti, September 25, 2009, http://en.ria.ru/russia/20130925/183725042.html.

  75. Anderson, Derek, “Uranium Agreement Faces New Objections from U.S.,” St. Petersburg (Russia) Times, October 12, 2010, http://sptimes.ru/index.php?action_id=2&story_id=32688.

  76. “Hearings before the Committee on Armed Services, United States Senate: Briefing by Representatives from the Departments and Agencies Represented on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to Discuss the National Security Implications of the Acquisition of Peninsular and Oriental Steamship Navigation Company by Dubai Ports World, and Government-owned and -controlled Firm of the United Arab Emirates,” February 23, 2006, 6, http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CHRG-109shrg32744/html/CHRG-109shrg32744.htm.

  77. “Press Release: Hillary Clinton Promotes Plan for Strong Defense and Good Jobs in Indiana,” American Presidency Project, April 12, 2008, http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=96587.

  78. “Facing CFIUS: Better Safe Than Sorry—Law360,” Law360, July 5, 2012, http://www.law360.com/articles/355660/facing-cfius-better-safe-than-sorry. McConnell, Will, “Feds Query Another Chinese Mining Deal near TOPGUN,” TheDeal, May 23, 2012, http://www.thedeal.com/content/regulatory/feds-query-another-chinese-mining-deal-near-topgun.php. “US Bars China Wind Farm Deal on Security Grounds,” Space Daily, September 28, 2012, http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/US_bars_China_wind_farm_deal_on_security_grounds_999.html. Drye, Kelley, “CFIUS Rejects Chinese Acquisition in U.S.,” news release, April 5, 2011, http://www.kelleydrye.com/publications/client_advisories/0654.

  79. “6.3 Interaction with Uranium One, Inc.,” JSC Atomredmetzoloto, 2011 Annual Report, 44.

  80. Uranium One, “Uranium One Enters into Definitive Agreement with ARMZ for Going Private Transaction for CDN$2.86 per Share in Cash,” news release, January 14, 2013, Bloomberg.com, http://www.bloomberg.com/article/2013-01-14/abXujiJ0LYIk.html.

  81. Gutterman, Steve, “U.S.-Russian Civilian Nuclear Deal Boosts ‘Reset,’” Reuters, January 12, 2011, http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/01/11/us-russia-usa-nuclear-idUSTRE70A5LB20110111.

  82. Melbye, Scott (executive vice president—marketing, Uranium One), “Uranium One’s Experience in Kazakhstan,” Kazatomprom Representative Office Opening, Washington, DC, slideshow presentation, May 2013, http://www.kazatomprom.kz/sites/default/files/6_Scott%20Melbye-Uranium%20One’s%20Experience%20in%20Kazakhstan.pdf.

  83. Baker, Matt, “Moscow’s American Uranium,” Politico, October 18, 2013, http://www.politico.com/story/2013/10/moscows-american-uranium-98472.html. “Regarding the Willow Creek, Moore Ranch, Jab & Antelope, Ludeman Projects and Well Logging Equipment,” Donna Wichers to Andrew Persinko and Roberto J. Torres, January 29, 2013, http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1304/ML13043A505.pdf.

  84. “Russian Nuclear Energy Conquers the World,” Pravda, January 22, 2013, http://english.pravda.ru/russia/economics/22-01-2013/123551-russia_nuclear_energy-0/.

  85. “Rosatom Spares No Expense to Buy Out Canada’s Uranium One,” RT, January 14, 2013, http://rt.com/business/rosatom-100-percent-canadian-uranium-966.

  86. Baker, “Moscow’s American Uranium.”

  87. Helms, Kathy, “Navajo Protests Canadian-Russian Uranium Mine at Big Boquillas,” Gallup Independent (New Mexico), May 21, 2013.

  88. Horoshko, Sonja, “The Navajo Nation Nixes Access for Uranium Mining,” Four Corners Free Press (Colorado), June 1, 2013, http://fourcornersfreepress.com/?p=1527.

  CHAPTER 4: INDIAN NUKES

  1. Baruah, Amit, “India a Partner in Obama’s N-efforts?” Hindustan Times (New Delhi), April 6, 2009, http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/india-a-partner-in-obama-s-n-efforts/article1-397262.aspx.

  2. Nayar, K. P., “Time to Tell a Prophetic Secret,” The Telegraph (Calcutta), December 24, 2004, http://www.telegraphindia.com/1041224/asp/nation/story_4169260.asp.

  3. Sen, Chanakya, “A Review of Engaging India: Diplomacy, Democracy and the Bomb by Strobe Talbott,” Kashmir Herald, December 2004/January 2005, http://www.indiatoday.com/itoday/17051999/books.html.

  4. Krepon, Michael, “Looking Back: The 1998 Indian and Pakistani Nuclear Tests,” Arms Control Today, Arms Control Association, May 2008, http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2008_05/lookingback. Diamond, John, The CIA and the Culture of Failure: U.S. Intel
ligence from the End of the Cold War to the Invasion of Iraq (Stanford, CA: Stanford Security Series, 2008), 268. Richey, Bill, “Early Report 5/15: Indian Nuclear Test: All Eyes on Pakistan’s Response,” Foreign Media Reaction Daily Digest (US Information Agency), May 15, 1998, http://fas.org/news/pakistan/1998/05/980515-usia-fmrr.htm.

  5. Sen, Canakya, “Two Villages and an Elephant,” Asia Times (Hong Kong), December 16, 2004, http://www.brookings.edu/research/articles/2000/06/summer-india-cohen.

  6. Clinton, Hillary, “Remarks of First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton at a Special Event at the UN Social Summit,” UN Social Summit, Denmark, Copenhagen, March 6–12, 1995, http://www.un.org/documents/ga/conf166/gov/950307142511.htm.

  7. Clinton, Hillary, “Security and Opportunity for the Twenty-first Century,” Foreign Affairs, November/December 2007, http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/63005/hillary-rodham-clinton/security-and-opportunity-for-the-twenty-first-century.

  8. Federation of American Scientists, “Nomination of Hillary R. Clinton to Be Secretary of State,” January 13, 2009, http://fas.org/irp/congress/2009_hr/hillary.html.

  9. “Clinton’s India Connection,” Times of India (Mumbai), August 24, 2003, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/stoi/Clintons-India-connection/articleshow/144077.cms.

  10. “Sant Singh Chatwal: Rise and Rise of an American Punjabi Hotelier,” Sify Finance, n.d., http://www.sify.com/finance/sant-singh-chatwal-rise-and-rise-of-an-american-punjabi-hotelier-imagegallery-4-others-mbsqduaghdfsi.html.

  11. Port, Bob, and Edward Lewine, “Donor Gives Hillary a Soft $210G,” New York Daily News, November 3, 2000, http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/donor-hillary-soft-210g-article-1.884254.

  12. Haniffa, Aziz, “Amar Singh Gave Millions to Clinton Foundation,” Rediff India Abroad, December 19, 2008, http://www.rediff.com/news/2008/dec/19amar-singh-gave-millions-to-clinton-foundation.htm.