A shady Ukrainian charity partnered with the taxpayer-funded U.S. Agency for International Development appears to be a spin-off of a consulting firm engaging in for-profit business in the war-torn country, additionally retaining ties to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and led by a President Joe Biden-supporting DNC Delegate.
The unearthed ties between the charity, GloBee International for Regional Development (GloBee), and the consulting firm, Atlantic Strategic Insights, follows extensive reports of fraud and corruption plaguing the massive foreign aid packages sent from the U.S. to the Ukraine.
Globee purports to work to build “broad international coalitions in support of Ukraine” according to its website. Since the onset of Russia’s invasion, the organization has worked to “form a powerful lobby for the most efficient assistance to Ukraine and to gain international support for the further restoration of Ukrainian cities,” often leveraging American politicians to achieve these goals.
The so-called “volunteer” organization, however, appears to be a spinoff closely linked to Atlantic Strategic Insights, which describes itself as “Ukraine’s premier public strategy consultancy with strong ties to U.S. policymakers, business leaders and elected officials.”
In other words: a Ukrainian charity involved in fostering support for the ongoing war is virtually a spin-off of a company that uses the region primarily for business and profit.
Not only does Globee list Atlantic Strategic Insights as an official partner, every member of the supervisory board at the consulting firm is also listed as part of the Globee team.
This overlap appears to confirm concerns that many involved in the Ukraine aid business amidst the war have viewed the industry as a business rife with money-making potential.
Adding to this conflict of interest – at great expense to American taxpayer dollars – Globee lists the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as one of its official partners. The agency has sent billions of dollars to Ukraine to support charities, humanitarian efforts, and non-governmental organizations. Details of Globee’s partnership remain unclear.
Another charity group listed as a partner of Globee – YourDude – has taken down its website and gone dark on social media for over a year despite claiming to be assisting Ukrainians amidst the war. The charity offered no explanation for ceasing operations and did not reply to press inquires from War Room.
Globee’s financials are murky, as it doesn’t report to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) since it’s registered in Ukraine. An article posted to the group’s website, however, outlines how Globee began as a volunteer-based operation before courting financial support from “logistics companies,” though it doesn’t disclose the names of which entities:
So, at first we attracted only our own funds, and later – from logistics companies. With them, under certain conditions, we used their infrastructure in New York and Washington.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken is also linked to Atlantic Strategic Insights, as he keynoted in a summit hosted by the firm. As an Atlantic Strategic Insights press release reveals:
“Previously, between his tenure in the Obama and Biden administrations, Secretary Blinken participated in Atlantic Strategic Insights’ Global Cybersecurity Summit in Kyiv, where he served as the keynote speaker. This event drew officials from the U.S. Embassy, former high-ranking U.S. government officials and business leaders, top Ukrainian officials and foreign dignitaries.”
Head of Atlantic Strategic Insights’ Supervisory Board, Jake Dilemani, has deeper ties to Democratic politics. He is currently a Democratic Party Leader representing Manhattan, “where he plays an integral role in the nomination and election of New York’s city and state judiciary.” He was also an elected Delegate to the 2020 Democratic National Convention pledged to then-Vice President Joe Biden.
Additionally, much of Atlantic Strategic Insights’ work focused on development of the Ukrainian region of Kharkiv. The consulting firm’s advocacy even led to representatives from the region meeting with Obama administration personnel including Department of Commerce Deputy Assistant Secretary for Europe, the Middle East and Africa Michael Lally. He “met with Kharkiv Governor Raynin to discuss opportunities to enhance U.S. – Ukraine trade and investment in the Kharkiv region,” in March 2016.
Since the onset of fighting between Russia and Ukraine, Globee has been working with the New York-based public affairs firm Mercury, where Atlantic Strategic Insights’ Dilemani is a partner. As part of this collaboration, Mercury and Globes have worked together to bring mayors from across the U.S. to offers public displays of support for Ukraine. It is unclear whether these meetings have resulted in more aid for the country, though rhetoric exchanged between mayors and their Ukrainian counterparts express strong support for the proposition.
Among the politicians that have been involved in this operation are former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Boston Mayor Michel Wu, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell
“We will continue to send all the aid that we possibly can. We have rallied our business community to help with organizations here in Chicago and the surrounding area to send all of the foodstuffs, humanitarian supplies. And we will continue to do that. We will not stop until this war is over and until Ukraine is able to start to recover,” remarked Lightfoot during a meeting with Kharkiv Mayor Igor Terekhov.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has also participated in the effort, with a summary of the exchange revealing that:
“Eric Adams, for his part, noted that the city municipality despises Russian aggression and joins other international organizations to restore peace and justice in Ukraine. The parties also discussed humanitarian aid for Kharkiv residents and future economic cooperation between the two cities after Ukraine’s victory.”
