GAO ruled: White House broke the law by withholding aid intended for Ukraine

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The White House "violated" US law when it suspended military aid intended for Ukraine, according to a ruling by an independent government watchdog body, which addressed an issue that was at the center of the impeachment of US President Donald Trump.

"The Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued an official decision today concluding that the White House's budget policy offices violated the law by withholding approximately $214 million allocated to the Department of Defense for military aid to Ukraine," stated the public auditing body GAO.

Donald Trump was officially charged with abuse of power by the House of Representatives on December 18.

He was accused of freezing important military aid to Kyiv to pressure his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate his Democratic rival Joe Biden, who has the best chance of competing with him for the White House in November this year.

The GAO released the report on the eve of the impeachment trial in the US Senate, and it is a blow to the White House's efforts to justify President Trump's move last year.

"Faithful execution of the law does not permit the President to substitute his own policy priorities for laws enacted by Congress," stated the GAO.

Trump withheld $391 million, a sum Congress had approved as military aid to Ukraine in its fight against pro-Russian rebels in the east of the country. After a temporary hold, the money was finally paid to Ukraine in September, but the scandal spread.

After the indictment was confirmed in the lower house of Congress, the impeachment process, the so-called 'trial', continues in the Senate, where Trump's Republicans have a majority.

Members of the House of Representatives act as 'prosecutors', the White House has legal representatives, senators are jurors, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides over the process.

The President can be removed from office if two-thirds of the 100 senators vote for it.