Michigan Ukrainian Americans attend NATO ceremony at White House, hold meetings on Capitol Hill (06/01/03)

Michigan Ukrainian Americans attend NATO ceremony at White House,
hold meetings on Capitol Hill

by Borys Potapenko

WASHINGTON - In response to an invitation from the White House, representatives of the Ukrainian American community in Michigan participated in the NATO expansion ceremony held in the East Room of the White House on May 8.

Bohdan Fedorak, president of the Ukrainian Cultural Center (UCC) in Warren, Mich., and past president of the Organization for the Defense of Four Freedoms for Ukraine (ODFFU), and Borys Potapenko, vice-chairman of the ODFFU and director of the UCC, as well as Judge Bohdan Futey of Washington, were the only Ukrainian American representatives present among the nearly 100 guests.

Among administration officials accompanying President George W. Bush to the event were Secretary of State Colin Powell, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice and Gen. Richard Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Also present were leaders of both parties in the U.S. Senate: Majority Leader Bill Frist; Chairman Dick Lugar and ranking member Joe Biden of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; Sen. Carl Levin, ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee; Sen. George Voinovich.

Other dignitaries and the foreign ministers of the seven countries to be admitted into NATO - Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia - also were among the participants of the ceremony.

In his address President Bush hailed the unanimous vote in the Senate, held earlier in the day, to admit the new members into NATO. He noted: "These heroic nations have survived tyranny, they have won their liberty and earned their place among free nations. America has always considered them friends, and we will always be proud to call them allies."

President Bush also called for NATO expansion beyond the new members: "Nearly two years ago, in Warsaw, I urged the enlargement of NATO to all of Europe's democracies, from the Baltic to the Black Sea, and all that lie between, so that people in those countries would have the same chance for security and freedom enjoyed by Europe's older democracies," he said.

In his Warsaw speech, President Bush made direct reference to Ukraine when he stated: "The Europe we are building must include Ukraine, a nation struggling with the trauma of transition. Some in Kyiv speak of their country's European destiny. If this is their aspiration, we should reward it. We must extend our hand to Ukraine, as Poland has already done with such determination."

Significantly, Secretary of State Powell, in an address before the Foreign Affairs Association the night before the White House ceremony on NATO expansion, made direct reference to President Bush's statement when he said: "All of Europe's democracies from the Baltic to the Black Sea and all that lie between should have the same chance for security and freedom and the same chance to join the institutions of Europe. ... "That, too, is part of the transformation of the Alliance. Our vision for Europe encompasses all of NATO's new partners, including Ukraine and countries in the Caucasus and Central Asia."

At the conclusion of the ceremony, the Ukrainian American representatives had the opportunity to briefly speak with Sen. Levin and Dr. Rice about their community's support for the administration's and Congress' re-engagement with Ukraine, especially as this pertains to NATO and democratic and economic reforms.

While in Washington, Messrs. Fedorak and Potapenko invited George Nesterczuk, chairman of the Policy Council of the ODFFU and president of Nesterczuk and Associates in Washington, to join them in meetings with members of the Michigan delegation to Congress.

Meetings were held with Rep. Candice Miller, (Republican 10th District), Rep. Sander Levin, (Democrat, 12th District), and Sen. Carl Levin (Democrat). Among the issues of importance to Ukraine and Ukrainian Americans that were discussed were NATO/Ukraine relations, prospects for graduating Ukraine from the Jackson-Vanick amendment, the status of the Ukrainian national democratic movement and the upcoming presidential election in Ukraine.

Although she is a first-term member of the House of Representatives, Rep. Miller is no stranger to the Ukrainian American community in Michigan. In welcoming the community representatives to her new offices, she recalled that in her capacity as secretary of state in Michigan she was a frequent visitor to the Ukrainian Cultural Center (UCC) in Warren, and a strong supporter of Ukrainian American issues. In fact, Rep. Miller launched her successful election campaign for secretary of state at the UCC.

In their discussions with Rep. Miller and her chief of staff, Jamie Roe, the three Ukrainian American representatives elaborated on the work of the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus, a bipartisan group of House members dedicated to promoting U.S.-Ukraine relations, and encouraged the congresswoman to join the caucus.

They also briefed Mrs. Miller about the Ukrainian community's support for graduating Ukraine from the Jackson/Vanik amendment, an anachronism of the Cold War era, the principal purpose of which was to facilitate immigration from the USSR, particularly for those of the Jewish faith.

Moreover, in light of Rep. Miller's membership in the Armed Services Committee in the House, the importance of the successes of U.S.-Ukraine cooperation on defense issues and the significance of convening the NATO-Ukraine conference that took place earlier in the week in Washington, were discussed.

The meeting with Rep. Levin focused on the Jackson-Vanick amendment. The congressman is the ranking Democrat on the Trade Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee and has been a strong advocate of graduating Ukraine from the amendment. With the support of the Ukrainian American community, he sponsored a bill in the previous session of the House of Representatives to remove Ukraine from the list of countries to which the amendment applies.

It was clear from the discussions that members of Congress are concerned about the impact that graduating Ukraine from Jackson-Vanik will have on the political situation in Ukraine, particularly in light of the upcoming presidential elections. However, it was not ruled out that graduating Ukraine could still take place this year. Also, in discussing the presidential elections in Ukraine in 2004, Rep. Sander Levin demonstrated his interest in and vast knowledge about the situation in Ukraine and his dedication to facilitating democratic and free market reforms in the country.

His brother, Sen. Carl Levin, ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, has for many years been a leader in the Senate on Ukrainian issues, including Ukraine's integration into Euroatlantic defense structures. During his meeting with the community representatives, in which his chief of staff, David Lyles, also participated, he expressed the hope that the NATO/Ukraine conference would further facilitate Ukraine's efforts on military and democratic reforms.

On the Jackson-Vanik amendment, Sen. Levin reaffirmed that he, too, is committed to graduating Ukraine from the amendment and that it is a matter of language and timing as to when it will take place.

In his capacity as a member of the board of the Library of Congress' Russian Leadership Program, Sen. Levin reaffirmed that the Board had endorsed the creation of such a Program for Ukraine. The Ukrainian Leadership Program, originally proposed to Congress by the ODFFU, will bring government and other representatives from Ukraine for extended visits to the United States to work alongside their American counterparts in acquainting themselves with government operations and life in America.

Earlier this year, at the urging of the Ukrainian American community in Michigan, Sen. Levin met with Viktor Yushchenko, former prime minister and leader of the Our Ukraine bloc in the Parliament of Ukraine. Sen. Levin expressed a keen interest in next year's presidential election in Ukraine and in assuring that the election campaign process is fair and equitable.

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