Donald Trump brings Hunter Biden's former associate to final presidential debate Tony Bobulinski claimed Joe Biden stood to gain from a venture with a Chinese oil company put forward by his son Hunter By Rozina Sabur Washington 23 October 2020 • 8:56am US Election Article Bar  In a surprise appearance before Thursday night's presidential debate, Hunter Biden's former business partner held an impromptu press conference where he laid out a string of claims about the Biden family's foreign business dealings.

 Tony Bobulinski, who had been invited to the debate by Donald Trump's campaign, held the briefing just 90 minutes before the presidential candidates went head-to-head in a clear attempt to dominate the headlines.  Mr Bobulinski, a 48-year-old Navy veteran, described how he and Joe Biden's son Hunter attempted to form an investment group with a Chinese oil company in 2017.  Mr Bobulinski suggested he was coming forward because the senior Mr Biden also stood to gain from the business deal.  "I've heard Joe Biden say he never discussed business with Hunter. That is false,” he said.

Joe Biden robustly defended himself and his son Hunter Credit: Reuters  Mr Biden has categorically denied speaking to Hunter about his business dealings and rejected the idea that either he or his son acted inappropriately.  The Democrat robustly defended himself against the allegations during the debate, saying: "I have not taken any money from any foreign country in my life, ever."  During the seven-minute press appearance, Mr Bobulinski held up three mobile phones which he claimed contained evidence to back up his claims and which he would be handing over to the FBI.

 However, it was unclear what wrongdoing the former business associate was alleging, and his series of complex allegations were impossible to immediately verify.  Among them was the claim that Mr Bobulinski met with Joe and Hunter Biden on May 2, 2017 to discuss "business plans with the Chinese".  Mr Bobulinski claimed to have an email which discussed splitting the equity between the partners and read: “10 held by H for the big guy”.  "There's no question that 'H' stands for Hunter, 'big guy' for his father, Joe Biden," he told reporters.

 The proposed venture, named SinoHawk and set up in 2017 - after Mr Biden had left the White House and before announcing his presidential bid - never received the proposed funds from the Chinese company, CEFC China Energy, or completed any deals, according to the Wall Street Journal.  Another partner in the venture, James Gilliar, told the newspaper: “I would like to clear up any speculation that former Vice President Biden was involved with the 2017 discussions about our potential business structure.”  

The newspaper also reported that text messages and emails related to the venture that it was handed by Mr Bobulinski did not show Hunter Biden discussing a role for his father in the venture.  Mr Bobulinski insisted his decision to go public was not politically motivated, suggesting instead that he was coming forward because of Mr Biden’s public denials of any international business activities.

 The press conference, held by the Trump campaign less than two hours before the final on-screen clash between Mr Trump and Mr Biden, was a clear attempt to dominate coverage of the night.  Mr Bobulinski's Thursday night claims led Fox News, Mr Trump's favourite cable network, and the president repeatedly brought up the allegations during the debate.  However the allegations did not dominate the debate as some had expected, with Mr Biden fiercely defending himself and his son's actions before pivoting to the president's own foreign business dealings.

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