Unconventional Diplomacy With Undiplomatic Results

The visit to the United States by Viktor Yushchenko, former premier and present leader of the Our Ukraine election bloc, brought new surprises. The meetings of the Ukrainian former officeholder with US Vice President Richard Cheney and ranking State Department official Richard Armitage might seem routine only with reservations. But the word that Yushchenko brought George Bush and Dick Cheney letters from President Kuchma has raised many eyebrows and led to quite reasonable assumptions of what kind of role Viktor Yushchenko really plays as the chief executive’s diplomatic messenger.

On November 7 the president reiterated that he had assigned Viktor Yushchenko to deliver his letter to the US president and vice president. According to Interfax- Ukraine, the Ukrainian leader met with Yushchenko on the eve of his visit to the USA. “It is common international practice for a politician out of office to engage in public service,” Pres. Kuchma said, commenting on Yushchenko’s role in passing his message to America’s leaders. Kuchma said that in his letters he confirmed Ukraine’s allegiance to its policy of reform and democratization. He also proposed developing closer cooperation in combating terrorism and urged the Americans to cancel the Jackson- Vanick amendment restricting trade between Ukraine and the United States. “There is nothing secret [in the letters],” the president stated, indicating the letters did not include confidential information.

Viktor Yushchenko was in New York escorted by Borys Tarasiuk and Petro Poroshenko. Strangely, Yevhen Chervonenko’s presence on the team was not publicized. Unlike Mr. Kuchma, former Foreign Minister and member of Our Ukraine Tarasiuk had to admit that the situation was not quite an ordinary one: “Talks of this kind are not standard for diplomatic practice,” adding that the negotiations have indicated America’s desire to see Ukraine as a democratic state with a stable foreign policy and economy. Are we to assume, then, that the Yushchenko bloc is a more reliable safeguard of our policy’s stability than the present government? The week before last, Prime Minister Anatoly Kinakh also went to the United States and could have well relayed the president’s messages. When approached on the issue by The Day, the president’s press service merely confirmed Kuchma’s earlier statement, refusing further comment. Nor could The Day reach for comment the premier’s press secretary Serhiy Nahoriansky who similarly refused to dwell upon the piquant situation his boss found himself in. Stunned, the government initially did not believe that the letters existed. The Foreign Affairs Ministry also remained silent on whether delivering presidential messages by a political bloc leader agreed with diplomatic protocol.

Could the visit by Viktor Yushchenko and his meetings with US top executives be considered, to use Pres. Kuchma’s definition, as public service? By all standards, this trip is of a political nature. Moreover, it has the making of a deliberate election move.

One might assume that Yushchenko’s meetings in Washington are merely evidence of the American leaders’ interest in the processes going on in Ukraine. In this case, the White House deserves all possible sympathy for there is a drone of political blocs in Ukraine today and it could cost Uncle Sam dearly to entertain all their chieftains, not to mention the number of letters the Ukrainian president will have to write — if he adheres to the principle of equal opportunity.

COMMENTARY

Volodymyr FESENKO, political scientist:

Although the status of former premier and leader of an influential political bloc gives Yushchenko political weight, the whole episode of Kuchma sending letters to the US leaders via Viktor Yushchenko, now a private person, is truly ambiguous. But the gravity of what happened should not be overstated. From the standpoint of international relations, such letters cannot be official documents. On the other hand, our president addressed two top officials of another country, something which inevitably makes the letters a component in international relations. The episode could indicate Pres. Kuchma’s special trust in the former premier and may be aimed at sending a signal to both the Americans and Ukrainians, a kind of a multidirectional political long shot. Also, the whole episode has a strong divide-and-rule flavor of, so to speak, the Byzantine habits in the postcommunist environment, the policy of setting one on the other, and creating total suspicion amid the political elite. If premiers in Ukraine resigned over such episodes, we would have a new government every month. Let’s wait a little, and soon the president will restore the political balance by targeting another salvo of his biting criticism, this time on Yushchenko.

Oleksandr DERHACHOV, political scientist:

There is one thing that would have made the transfer of letters more acceptable — had these letters related not to state matters but to sociopolitical processes in Ukraine: the elections, general movement toward democracy, dialogue on other than the official level. Given all this, the delivery of even such letters is a rather unexpected and bizarre step. Under the circumstances, there is but one direction any speculation can take: Yushchenko’s trip is like a road show for a man who might play a key role during the election and afterwards. True, this puts Mr. Kinakh in an awkward situation, but I don’t think he’ll resign.