Ukrainian and US state flags fly in central Kiev, Ukraine September 25, 2019. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
While Ukraine remains a primary feature of intense domestic
political struggles, several US lawmakers assured on December 4 that support
for Ukraine remains ironclad in Washington.
“Our Congress stand[s] solidly behind Ukraine and the
US-Ukraine relationship,” Representative Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) said at a
December 4 event on Capitol Hill hosted by the bipartisan Congressional Ukraine
Caucus, the Atlantic Council, the American Enterprise Institute, the American
Foreign Policy Council, the Brookings Institution, the Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace, the Heritage Foundation, the Center for European Policy
Analysis, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the German
Marshall Fund, and the Jamestown Foundation.
Representative Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) agreed, saying that
lawmakers in both parties “are united by a commitment to ensure a free, secure,
and prosperous Ukraine among the global community of democratic nations.”
Representative Andy Harris (D-MD) said that despite the attention on Ukraine as
part of the ongoing impeachment inquiry into US President Donald J. Trump, that
on supporting Ukraine “bipartisanship…is so obvious. Republicans and Democrats,
conservatives and liberals, stand together to show the strategic importance of
Ukraine.”
“Ukraine is a scrimmage line for liberty on the European continent,” The Hon. Marcy Kaptur, Congresswoman for Ohio’s 9th Congressional District.
After five years of conflict following the illegal
annexation of Crimea by Russia and the invasion of eastern Ukraine by Kremlin
forces, lawmakers stressed that Washington must remains unanimously on the side
of Kyiv. Ukraine, Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) argued, “is ground zero in our
competition with a thoroughly corrupt regime under [Russian President Vladimir]
Putin.” Facing a direct threat to their territorial integrity and survival as a
nation, Johnson asserted, “if we don’t help Ukraine, who is going to?”
Senator Christopher Murphy (D-CT) agreed saying that the
United States needs to support Ukraine to show that Russia’s illegal actions
against its neighbor are unacceptable. “We know that if Russia gets away with
it there, not only will they be more likely to try to press out to their
periphery…but other nations that have other [similar] designs will do so as
well,” he said. Murphy further warned that “if Ukraine ultimately fails because
the United States’ positioning changes” due to domestic political concerns “it
will come at a great cost to our country’s national security.”
The legislators also argued that the US Congress needs to
continue to show its support for Kyiv, both through statements and new
assistance measures. Fitzpatrick noted that Congress has endorsed measures to
provide military intelligence and financial support in Ukraine’s fight against
Russia and has also refused to recognize “the illegal annexation of Crimea.” He
added that cybersecurity remains a major challenge for Ukraine as Russia has previously
attempted to spread propaganda and attack Ukraine’s infrastructure through
cyber activities, which is why Fitzpatrick introduced legislation to strengthen
US-Ukraine cyber cooperation.
Murphy stressed that US support must not only be focused on
military aid to combat Russia, but also include “the support necessary to make
sure that [Ukraine is] guarded politically and economically from all the ways
Russia continues to try to undermine them. That I think needs to be our primary
project as we think about ways for Congress to continue to support this new—and
I think very promising—government in Kyiv.”
“Our Congress stand[s] solidly behind Ukraine and the US-Ukraine relationship,” The Hon. Brian Fitzpatrick, Congressman for Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District.
Similarly, Johnson added that the United States must
continue to support Ukraine not just because of Russian aggression but because “it
is a country where the people are yearning to be free.” Kaptur agreed, noting
that “Ukraine continues to make strides in its democratic struggle to shake off
the rapacious grip of the oligarch class.”
One thing all legislators agreed on was that the message of
support from Washington needed to be united, no matter the domestic political
calculations. “We as a Congress must speak with one voice to ensure that that
message [of support] remains clear,” according to Kaptur. “We stand unified
behind that [US-Ukraine] relationship,” Fitzpatrick promised, “we will make it
grow and make it stronger.”
David A. Wemer is associate director, editorial at the Atlantic Council. Follow him on Twitter @DavidAWemer.
“Russia has shown with its actions that it is a serious security threat,” Estonian defense minister Jüri Luik said during a panel discussion on Baltic and Black sea security during the NATO engages event in London on December 3. “For Lithuania, [Russia] is the only external existential threat we have,” added Lithuanian defense minister Raimundas Karoblis.
With a NATO summit in London and long awaited peace talks in Paris, December is shaping up to be a decisive month for Ukraine, but the geopolitical climate is far from favorable and could deteriorate further.
The press frenzy surrounding the Trump impeachment inquiry presents Ukraine with an unparalleled international stage upon which to share its side of the story.
While Ukraine remains a primary feature of intense domestic political struggles, several US lawmakers assured on December 4 that support for Ukraine remains ironclad in Washington.
