Daughter of coal miner from County Durham in the hot seat at Trump impeachment inquiry
The daughter of a coal miner from County Durham is today at the centre of one of the most dramatic political events in recent American history.
Impeachment investigators heard from two key witnesses who grew alarmed as to how US President Donald Trump and others in his administration were conducting foreign policy in Ukraine. One of those witnesses, was a former top advisor to Trump, Dr Fiona Hill.
Fiona, who was born in Bishop Auckland and studied in the UK before moving to the United States, delivered testimony to the House Intelligence Committee Impeachment Hearing in Washington DC.
Who is Fiona Hill?
Born in October 1965, the daughter of a coal miner and a nurse went on to become a distinguished Russia analyst.
During Fiona's career in the UK, her CV says that she worked as 'Assistant to International Office' at Durham County Council in 1989 and 1990.
After graduating from St Andrews in Scotland, she then moved to the USA to study at Harvard University where she gained a master’s degree in Soviet studies and a doctorate in history.
Dr Hill became a dual national after marrying Kenneth Keen, an American man she met at University.
Listed as a 'Russia expert', Dr Hill held previous jobs with the Brookings Institution, Eurasia Foundation and the National Intelligence Council; working as a national intelligence officer from early 2006 to late 2009 under Presidents George W Bush and Barack Obama.
President Trump appointed Dr Hill to serve in The Whitehouse once again, as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for European and Russian Affairs.
In Washington, DC that is, the Associated Press said Fiona Hill "speaks rapid-fire and in the distinctive accent of the coal country of northeastern England where she grew up".
But during her testimony, Dr Hill claimed her "distinctive, working-class accent" would've impacted her career and set her back in the UK. She praised the United States for offering the opportunities she 'would have never had in England.'