Footage obtained from Parnas's lawyer, dating back to April 2018, appears to show Donald Trump ordering attendees at a meal to 'get rid' of the US ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch. The video surfaced on Saturday 25 January.

Parnas, who was involved in the impeachment proceedings, worked with Trump's former attorney Rudy Giuliani to oust Yovanovitch and claimed the president 'knew exactly what was going on', in a televised interview.

Although they have been pictured together, Trump has said of Parnas: 'I don’t know him, I don’t believe I’ve ever spoken to him. I don’t need the help of a man I haven’t met before, other than perhaps taken a picture.' The removal of Yovanovitch has played a key role in the current impeachment proceedings against the president