NEW YORK – The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America on July 10 sent an urgent letter to President Donald Trump as he departed for summits in Europe this week. The letter stated that, as the president prepares to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, “the Ukrainian American community will look to our Commander-in-Chief to not only live up to the United States’ public and binding security guarantees to Ukraine, but clearly state that the people of Ukraine will make up their own minds with regards to national policy.”
In 2014, the UCCA notes, the United States reaffirmed its commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders with the passage of the Ukraine Freedom Support Act, which declared as official state policy that the United States will “assist the government of Ukraine in restoring its sovereignty and territorial integrity in order to deter the government of the Russian Federation from further destabilizing and invading Ukraine and other independent countries.”
The UCCA’s open letter states in plain terms that “Vladimir Putin is not an ally of the United States.” At the Helsinki summit, the UCCA urges the president to demand the release of Oleh Sentsov and the over 60 other Ukrainian political prisoners currently being held in Russian custody. Furthermore, the UCCA’s letter reminds the president that a U.S. citizen was among the 298 innocent men, women and children killed by Russian forces when they downed a civilian airliner, flight MH17, over Ukraine on July 17, 2014.
The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America has maintained that the U.S. sanctions regime against the Russian Federation must be maintained or strengthened until Russia fully complies with its international obligations regarding Ukraine – including the Helsinki and Minsk accords and the Budapest Memorandum. This act of compliance must include Russia openly renouncing any territorial claim over the Crimean peninsula, as well as meeting the standards of U.S. law as currently defined in the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act and the Ukraine Freedom Support Act, among others.
The full text of the letter signed by UCCA President Andrew Futey and Vice-President Michael Sawkiw Jr., follows. (Copies were sent to U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo and U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Ambassador Kurt Volker.)
Dear Mr. President:
The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA), the representative organization of the over 1.5 million Americans of Ukrainian descent, is united in our support for the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine. As Americans, we believe that a democratic and independent Ukraine is in the national security interests of the United States. Thus, we would like to raise a few concerns regarding your upcoming summit with Vladimir Putin.
The stakes for the United States, and the larger democratic world, could not be higher. Russia’s continuing efforts to destabilize Ukraine, and its illegal occupation of Crimea – sovereign Ukrainian territory – threatens the peace, predictability and security that the West created together through our victory in the Cold War. The UCCA is deeply concerned that any agreement with Russia that undermines Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity will endanger this historic achievement. The Ukrainian American community will look to our Commander-in-Chief to not only live up to the United States’ public and binding security guarantees to Ukraine, but clearly state that the people of Ukraine will make up their own minds with regards to national policy, including their open and democratic decision to demand basic human rights, economic freedoms and closer integration with Europe and NATO.
Vladimir Putin is not an ally of the United States. He neither is a trustworthy international partner, nor is he committed to peace. Over the course of the past four years, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has claimed over 10,000 lives, displaced over 2 million civilians (the largest wartime displacement in Europe since WW II), and bears the responsibility for downing a commercial airliner over Ukraine, killing 298 innocent men, women and children, including one confirmed American citizen.
Therefore, it would be UCCA’s earnest hope that during your summit with Vladimir Putin you will consider our concerns and:
• Stand firm and openly denounce Russia’s attacks on American democracy and our NATO partners, as well as Russia’s invasion and occupation of America’s strategic ally, Ukraine;
• Forcefully and publicly reaffirm the United States’ recognition of and support for the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders, including rejecting any form of recognition of Russian rule over Crimea;
• Strongly condemn the Russian Federation’s continuing war against Ukraine – a country that is currently on the frontlines of defense for the Western world – and demand the immediate withdrawal of all covert and overt Russian forces and military equipment from Ukraine;
• Underscore that the United States’ sanctions regime against the Russian Federation will be maintained or strengthened until they fully comply with their international obligations regarding Ukraine – including the Helsinki and Minsk accords and the Budapest Memorandum. This act of compliance must include Russia openly renouncing any territorial claim over the Crimean peninsula, as well as meeting the standards of United States law as currently defined in the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act and the Ukraine Freedom Support Act, among others.
• Publicly condemn Russia’s illegal imprisonment of Oleh Sentsov and the over 60 other Ukrainian political prisoners currently being held in Russian custody, and demand their immediate release.
As the bastion of democracy in the free world, the United States bears a moral obligation to take the lead in promoting international norms, defending basic human rights and freedoms, and charting a course of geopolitical stability. The Ukrainian American community believes that the national security interests of the United States lie in the fulfillment of that obligation.