Russian pranksters trick Rick Perry into thinking he's talking energy with Ukraine's prime minister

Rick Perry.
(Image credit: Alfredo Estrella/AFP/Getty Images)

What he thought was a productive conversation with Ukraine's prime minister was actually the latest embarrassment for Energy Secretary Rick Perry.

Earlier this month, Perry, a former governor of Texas, spent 22 minutes chatting with a person he believed was the prime minister, sharing that the Trump administration is against a Russian project to bring natural gas to Europe across the Baltic and hinting that the Commerce Department was trying to figure out ways to bring more coal to Ukraine. It turns out Perry was really speaking to Russian pranksters Vladimir Krasnov and Alexei Stolyarov, who have been called the "Jerky Boys of Russia," Reuters reports.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.