The Responsibility of Friends

The purpose of my visit was to get some direct impressions of what I have heard and read about the situation in Ukraine, particularly as it relates to the development of democratic institutions and, very specifically, to the upcoming elections. I have seen in the time of being here, which has been extremely productive and very filled, that, while much progress has been made going back to Ukraine’s declaration of independence back in 1991, much remains to be done. What I have heard in Vienna, based on much consultation with many well-educated and informed sources, was that Ukraine had come to a very slow pace of development and that there were also many steps back. I wanted to come here to see it for myself. In Vienna I will share with my fellow ambassadors from 54 countries represented in the OSCE what I found here, which is very much in confirmation of what I heard before I came here.

Don’t you think that the West’s criticism is exaggerated? Even if there are certain problems, wouldn’t it be better to try to give Ukraine assistance instead of reproaching it?

I think what Ukraine needs is support, and the United States certainly wants to give it every bit of support. Ukraine receives an extraordinary amount of attention. Secretary Armitage, the number two person in the Department of State, coming to Ukraine is a further reflection of that fact. But simultaneously there is also the responsibility of friends to not be silent when there are things such as the situation with the freedom of the press in Ukraine, which are clearly not right. I just spent an hour and a half listening to various media representatives and listening to the stories that they have to tell. I know that these stories are accurate because I hear them from many different places. I don’t view this as a matter of criticism but as a matter of providing assistance, because this is our responsibility that friends have. In fact, if you don’t do that, I don’t believe that you are a true friend. I don’t view my trip to Kyiv as coming to criticize but as an effort to provide recommendations and assistance where that assistance is welcome and willing to be accepted. There is no way that I would make this trip from Vienna in order to criticize.

However, the advise from the West is more and more treated not only in Ukraine but also in other countries as interference in its internal affairs. For instance, recently Russia’s ambassador Viktor Chernomyrdin referred to frequent visits of the US representatives to Ukraine as an “American landing party.”

I feel that it is this is unproductive to engage in discussion with the honorable Russian ambassador or anyone else regarding their views. What matters to me are the views of the Ukrainian people, and I believe we are very well perceived here because people know from their heart of hearts when one speaks from the perspective of having their interest at heart rather than one’s own interest. I think those who would want to critique the United States involvement with Ukraine should first look at themselves in the mirror to see what their motivations are for the things they do here. I know what ours are: to help Ukraine achieve the objectives that nobody set for it but it has publicly and consistently set it for itself.