Hunter Biden to testify in Republicans' impeachment inquiry

 Joe Biden's son Hunter will testify next month before two congressional committees carrying out an impeachment inquiry against the US president, the Republican chairmen of the panels said Thursday.

"Hunter Biden will appear before our committees for a deposition on February 28, 2024," said James Comer, chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, and Jim Jordan, chair of the House Committee on the Judiciary.

"Hunter's deposition will come after several interviews with Biden family members and associates. We look forward to Hunter Biden's testimony," they said in a statement.

Republicans are racing to inflict damage on Democrat Joe Biden ahead of November's election, where their nominee is likely to be the scandal-plagued Donald Trump.

They have launched an impeachment investigation into allegations -- for which they have provided no evidence -- that he benefited from Hunter's foreign business dealings.

Chaos erupted on Capitol Hill last week when Hunter Biden turned up in person to defend himself after he defied subpoenas from the two committees for closed-door testimony.

The statement from Comer and Jordan did not say whether the February 28 deposition would be conducted publicly or behind closed doors.

Republicans have long used the troubled younger Biden, a recovering drug addict, as a way of targeting the president himself.

The day after his surprise appearance in Congress, Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to federal tax evasion charges on accusations that money that should have gone to government coffers was instead squandered on funding an "extravagant lifestyle."