WASHINGTON — Energy Secretary Rick Perry has been fooled by a pair of Russian pranksters impersonating the prime minister of Ukraine.
Perry spoke to the pair about the Paris climate agreement and the possibility of using pig manure as a power source in his 22-minute conversation with Vladimir Kuznetsov and Alexei Stolyarov. The entire phone call was posted online by Russian news site Vesti.
Energy Department spokeswoman Shaylyn Hynes confirmed the authenticity of the call, saying in a statement that the duo targets high-level officials and celebrities “who are supportive of an agenda that is not in line with their governments. In this case, the energy security of Ukraine.”
The pair, known as Vovan and Lexus, arranged the call with Perry last week, just a few weeks after he met with Ukraine’s president, Petro Poroshenko, and his delegation.
