says Natalie Melnyczuk, director of NATO Center in Ukraine

Since June of 1999, NATO Information and Documentation Center in Ukraine has been headed by Natalie Melnyczuk, an American of partial Ukrainian decent. Such was the unanimous decision of the alliance’s member countries through the selections process. A graduate of the University of Michigan with a bachelor’s degree in Russian and Eastern European studies and a masters in political science from the University of Illinois, she defended her thesis on political changes in the USSR. In 1995, she came to Ukraine and worked as a consultant with a Ukrainian NGO.

Ms. Melnyczuk kindly agreed to share her views on today’s Ukrainian-NATO relationships and their prospects with The Day.

The Day: Ukraine and NATO signed a Charter providing for special relationships. Does the alliance see any use in such relationships with Kyiv?

N. M.: I think that our current relationship should be viewed quite positively. The Ukrainian government and NATO are carrying out their mutual commitments and the Charter offers a lot of opportunities for both Ukraine and the North Atlantic Alliance. Every year we sign an individual partnership program. The program is coordinated by the NATO-Ukraine Commission. Some 800 various projects were planned for 1999. Quite a lot for one year, yet we have already carried out over 50 percent.

The Day: Now and then we hear debates in Ukraine about its accession to NATO. Would you tell us about the membership requirements?

N. M.: The Washington summit commemorating its fiftieth anniversary reaffirmed Article 10 of the Washington Treaty: we keep our doors open. It is also true that the member states must meet certain requirements. First, they must have democratic governments and social systems. Second, they must have democratic and civilian control over their armed forces. Third, they must have strong domestic economies capable of upholding their military potential. I must point out that these are one of the most important characteristics of the 19 existing and new NATO members. If Ukraine really wants membership it must be compatible with all of them. NATO has a single budget covering its daily administrative activities and its funds are meant to provide for expenses considered expedient by all NATO members. The financial structure is decentralized and diversified.

By the way, if one tries to sum up admission expenses one could come up with astronomical sums, but it all depends how they are computed. Quite often countries domestic agenda require them to rebuild and readjust their systems. Sometimes, people attribute the expenses involved in such changes to NATO admission. Whether membership is worthwhile cannot be estimated in terms of financial balance only, because this membership includes political, economic, technological, cultural, and other factors that cannot be expressed in the language of bookkeeping. Besides, a NATO member country must determine the amount it will have to spend to produce an independent national security defense system or build its own defenses using alternative forms of international cooperation.

The Day: SFOR contingents in Bosnia-Herzegovina are being reduced from 32,000 to 19,000 men. What awaits the Ukrainian peacekeeping unit?

N. M.: Some of the Ukrainian officers and men may enter Kosovo eventually. This is a technical matter concerning the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, UN, and NATO. Kosovo in general needs a 50,000-strong peacekeeping contingent. Thus I think that the Ukrainian SFOR servicemen might be some of the best candidates for subsequent peacekeeping operations.

The Day: The media compare NATO’s actions in the Kosovo crisis to Russia’s military actions in Chechnya. Do you agree with such comparisons?

N. M.: No, these are different events. The main difference is that the Balkan situation has been closely followed by the UN Security Council. NATO’s air campaign in Kosovo is a result of the UN political will. About 200,000 Kosovars were driven out of the province. President Milosevic leaded a program of ethnic cleansing which resulted in the refugee problem. Europe’s regional stability was being directly challenged before our eyes. The problem reached much farther than Kosovo...

As for Chechnya, it is a purely domestic Russian problem and NATO has a basic non-interference agreement with Russia.

The Day: Getting back to Kosovo, is NATO helping rebuild the province? Will the Danube traffic be restored, considering that Ukraine is also suffering heavy losses?

N. M.: NATO is helping to restore stability in that region, primarily by providing aid and deploying peacekeeping units. Many countries, NATO members and others, have reached separate agreements to help Kosovo. For example, Holland, Germany, and many others promised technical aid in restoring devastated structures. The United Nations is providing humanitarian aid and many NATO members, which are also UN members, are participating in this program bilateraly.

Restoring navigation on the Danube is a problem and I think that they are well aware of it in Brussels. The official response is this: NATO is not to blame for the losses sustained by countries in that region. Milosevic is, so let him make full compensation. His actions are to blame for the damage to the economy in the region.

It is worth mentioning that Ukraine can bid in the tenders for Kosovo restoration on equal terms with all the others. There is much work to be done there, the government should think who to work with and how.

The Day: And finally, what would you like to say to those Ukrainians to whom NATO is still a threat, an enemy?

N. M.: This world needs new understanding. Times change and those who might have been enemies fifty years ago are no longer enemies. We have found a common language or common needs. It is a small world and it’s getting smaller; countries need each other on a broadening scope, in economic, cultural, humanitarian, or ecological terms. We need cooperation and we are pleased to be working jointly with Ukraine in various areas. This is good for everybody concerned, particularly for those that did not understand or feared NATO previously. I do hope that cooperation will serve to further improve the relationship between NATO and Ukraine and help us understand one another better.