Brussels in no hurry to react to Tuzla situation

NATO Secretary General George Robertson stayed in Ukraine for just one day (he arrived in Kyiv on Monday morning and left for Brussels in the evening). During his visit, he made many statements, which might take a long time to scrutinize.

First, answering questions on the problem of Ukrainian-Russian relations, namely, Russian construction of a dam stretching toward the border of Ukraine in the Kerch Strait, journalists asked Lord Robertson three times to air his attitude: at Boryspil Airport, after he met Verkhovna Rada Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn, and during the first session of the All-Ukrainian Non-Governmental Ukraine-NATO League. Note should be taken of how the lord altered the tone of his filigree diplomatic answers. At first he said it was up to Ukraine and Russia to solve the Tuzla problem. Then he added he hoped for a peaceful settlement of this dispute. At the end of the visit, the Secretary General announced he intended to raise the Tuzla Island question during his visit to Russia.

The second thing that aroused by far the greatest interest of journalists was the timing of Ukraine’s entry into NATO. In this case, the visitor gave no very original answers, confining himself to well-known cliches. “The NATO door is always open to Ukraine,” the Secretary General said, noting, though, that he could not name a concrete date. He made a more interesting statement to this effect, when he said in a televised interview it was “too optimistic” to expect Ukraine to join the NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP) during NATO’s Istanbul summit on May 21-22, 2004. Since Kyiv does not rule Euro-Atlantic integration by way of an external exam, joining the MAP could be a good steppingstone. “I think it is too optimistic to say that next year Ukraine can be involved in this plan. One should remember, though, that NATO keeps its door open,” he said.

Lord Robertson reiterated NATO’s position that Ukraine will become a NATO member “when it is prepared for this and when the member states consider it to be prepared.” The latter words are especially noteworthy. US diplomats and experts have also repeatedly made statements about Ukraine being likely to join the MAP. As the United States plays, without an exaggeration, the key role in NATO, all Ukraine has to do is prove its preparedness — not just by way of declarations...

NATO will pay very close attention, so complaints about double standards will not do. “The president of Ukraine told me he was once worried that we maintained double standards toward Ukraine and other countries. I said to him that undoubtedly, there are two standards. Ukraine has proclaimed it wants to join NATO and the European Union, while other neighboring countries have not proclaimed these intentions,” he said. Thus higher standards should be applied to the countries that want to join NATO; this is in fact the reason why we sometimes really pay more attention to Ukraine than to other countries of this region, Lord Robertson noted. He also pointed out that nobody should worry about this. “This should be a compliment, a manifestation of our interest in Ukraine,” Lord Robertson emphasized.

Any word should be followed by an action. Hence another reminder from George Robertson. “I met the president, the prime minister, members of the government, and parliament. They all reiterated their dedication to Euro-Atlantic integration. Success will depend on the efforts of the leadership and the progress of reforms,” the Secretary General said. He also noted that Kyiv takes quite a practical approach to solving these matters. He mentioned in this connection the participation of Ukrainian peacekeepers in the Balkan operations and in the Iraq stabilization effort, which is a “major contribution.” He also noted progress in the defense field. According to the alliance chief, a civilian defense minister, Yevhen Marchuk, is another step toward integration. Lord Robertson stressed, however, that the Ukrainian leadership should pay more attention to ensuring the freedom of speech and holding a democratic presidential election next year.