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By Javier E. David

Ukraine's largest private gas producer announced on Tuesday that it added R. Hunter Biden the son of U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden to its board of directors.

In a statement on its website, Burisma Holdings said the younger Biden will be in charge of the company's legal unit, while providing support "among international organizations."

The release quoted Hunter Biden as saying that "my assistance in consulting the Company on matters of transparency, corporate governance and responsibility, international expansion and other priorities will contribute to the economy and benefit the people of Ukraine."

Vice-President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden walk in the Inaugural Parade January 20, 2009 in Washington, DC as Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States.

Large corporations frequently appoint well-connected marquee names of both major U.S. political parties as directors. Yet corporate governance experts are critical of the process, which can be fraught with conflicts of interests and the appearance of favoritism.

The arrangement raised questions about the propriety of his appointment, given the tense political standoff between Russia and the West over the future status of Ukraine, where fighting has resulted in the deaths of dozens of soldiers and civilians. Natural gas has factored heavily in tensions between Russia and Ukraine, both of which have political leadership that's intertwined with their respective energy industries.

Until a few years ago, the younger Biden was a senior vice president for financial services giant MBNAan arrangement that drew criticism during the 2008 elections for potential conflict of interests. As a senator, the elder Biden spearheaded legislation that would have affected MBNA's business. Meanwhile, Vice President Biden has been a vocal supporter of a cross-border European natural gas pipeline.

Earlier Tuesday, White House spokesman Jay Carney referred questions on the appointment to the vice president's office.

In response to an inquiry from CNBC, a spokesperson for the vice president said, "Hunter Biden is a private citizen and a lawyer. The vice president does not endorse any particular company and has no involvement with this company."

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Ukraine Gas Producer Appoints R. Hunter Biden to Board

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) The Ukrainian government launched talks Wednesday on decentralizing power as part of a European-backed peace plan but did not invite its main foes, the pro-Russia insurgents who have declared independence in the east.

That deliberate oversight left it unclear what the negotiations might accomplish.

In his opening remarks, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov said authorities were "ready for a dialogue" but insisted they will not talk to the separatists who have seized buildings and fought government troops across eastern Ukraine.

Turchynov chaired the first in a series of round tables with spiritual leaders, lawmakers, government figures and regional officials as part of a peace plan drafted by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, a security group that also includes Russia and the United States.

"Let's have a dialogue, let's discuss specific proposals," Turchynov said, "But those armed people who are trying to wage a war on their own country, those who are with arms in their hands trying to dictate their will, or rather the will of another country, we will use legal procedures against them and they will face justice."

The OSCE road map aims to halt fighting between government forces and pro-Russia separatists in the east and de-escalate tensions ahead of Ukraine's May 25 presidential vote. It lets the Ukrainian government decide the specifics of the talks.

The Ukrainian leader also said the government would not stop its offensive to retake eastern cities now under the control of the separatists who declared independence Monday in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, home to 6.6 million people.

Insurgents in the east shrugged off the round table as meaningless.

"We haven't received any offers to join a round table and dialogue," Denis Pushilin, an insurgent leader in Donetsk. "If the authorities in Kiev want a dialogue, they must come here. If we go to Kiev, they will arrest us."

Even so, European officials applauded the start of the talks. The EU's enlargement commissioner, Stefan Fule, welcomed the round table on his Twitter account, voicing hope the next meeting would take place in eastern Ukraine.

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