FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
Readout of the Vice President’s Meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada
Today in Vancouver, Vice President Biden met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada. The Vice President congratulated the Prime Minister on hosting a successful FIFA Women’s World Cup and thanked him for the outstanding hospitality. Demonstrating the breadth of the relationship, Vice President Biden and Prime Minister Harper exchanged views on a range of pressing global issues, including the threat posed by ISIL and the ongoing situation in eastern Ukraine. Both leaders reaffirmed the shared commitment to deepening robust trade relations and the early conclusion of negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Showing posts with label UKRAINE. Show all posts
Showing posts with label UKRAINE. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Friday, June 26, 2015
READOUT: CALL BETWEEN PRESIDENT OBAMA AND PRESIDENT PUTIN
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
Readout of the President’s Call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia
President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation called President Obama today. They discussed the necessity of countering ISIL and developments in the Middle East, as well as the situation in Ukraine. President Obama reiterated the need for Russia to fulfill its commitments under the Minsk agreements, including the removal of all Russian troops and equipment from Ukrainian territory. The leaders discussed the increasingly dangerous situation in Syria, and underscored the importance of continued P5+1 unity in ongoing negotiations to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
Readout of the President’s Call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia
President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation called President Obama today. They discussed the necessity of countering ISIL and developments in the Middle East, as well as the situation in Ukraine. President Obama reiterated the need for Russia to fulfill its commitments under the Minsk agreements, including the removal of all Russian troops and equipment from Ukrainian territory. The leaders discussed the increasingly dangerous situation in Syria, and underscored the importance of continued P5+1 unity in ongoing negotiations to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UN TESTIFIES TO CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Testimony to the House Foreign Affairs Committee
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
Washington, DC
June 16, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Congressman Engel. Distinguished members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. And thank you for being here. Thank you also for your leadership in advancing America’s national security interests and our values in the world.
Last week I traveled to Ukraine, where I had the chance to see up close what happens when the rules undergirding our international peace and security are ignored. At a shelter for displaced families in Kyiv, I met a mother who told me how her husband and two-year-old child had been killed in February when a shell struck their home in a village in eastern Ukraine. The shelling, as you all know, was part of a sustained assault by combined Russian-separatist forces – and the victims just two of the more than 6,300 people who have been killed in the Moscow-manufactured conflict. Shortly after the attack, the mother fled town with her five surviving children in a van whose roof and doors had been blasted out. Her plea – one I heard echoed by many of the displaced families I met from eastern Ukraine and occupied Crimea – was for the fighting to stop, and for their basic rights to be respected.
As the members of this Committee know, we are living in a time of daunting global crises. In the last year alone, Russia continued to train, arm, and fight alongside separatists in eastern Ukraine; a deadly epidemic spread across West Africa; and monstrous terrorist groups seized territory across the Middle East and North Africa, committing unspeakable atrocities. These are the kinds of threats that the United Nations exists to prevent and address. Yet it is precisely at the moment when we need the UN most that we see the flaws in the international system, some of which have been alluded to already.
This is true for the conflict in Ukraine – in which a permanent member of the UN Security Council is violating the sovereignty and territorial integrity that it was entrusted with upholding. It is true of the global health system that – despite multiple warnings of a spreading Ebola outbreak, including those from our own CDC – was slow to respond to the epidemic. And it is true of UN peacekeepers, who too often stand down or stand by when civilians they are responsible for protecting come under attack. Thus leaving populations vulnerable and sometimes open to radicalization.
Representing our nation before the United Nations, I have to confront these and other shortcomings every day. Yet though I am clear-eyed about the UN’s vulnerabilities, the central point I want to make to this Committee is that America needs the United Nations to address today’s global challenges. The United States has the most powerful set of tools in history to advance its interests, and we will always lead on the world stage. But we are more effective when we ensure that others shoulder their fair share and when we marshal multilateral support to meet our objectives. Let me quickly outline five ways we are doing that at the UN.
First, we are rallying multilateral coalitions to address transnational threats. Consider Iran. In addition to working with Congress to put in place unprecedented U.S. sanctions on the Iranian government, in 2010 the Obama Administration galvanized the UN Security Council to authorize one of the toughest multilateral sanctions regimes in history. The combination of unilateral and multilateral pressure was crucial to bringing Iran to the negotiating table, and ultimately, to laying the foundation whereby we were able to reach a framework agreement that would, if we can get a final deal, effectively cut off every pathway for the Iranian regime to develop a nuclear weapon.
Consider our response to the Ebola epidemic. Last September, as people were dying outside hospitals in West Africa, hospitals that had no beds left to treat the exploding number of Ebola patients, the United States chaired the first-ever emergency meeting of the UN Security Council dedicated to a global health issue. We pressed countries to deploy doctors and nurses, to build clinics and testing labs, and to fill other gaps that ultimately helped bend the outbreak’s exponentially rising curve. America did not just rally others to step up, we led by example, thanks also very much to the support of this Congress, deploying more than 3,500 U.S. Government civilian and military personnel to Liberia, which has been Ebola-free since early May.
Second, we are reforming UN peacekeeping to help address the threats to international peace and security that exist in the 21st century. There are more than 100,000 uniformed police and soldiers deployed in the UN’s sixteen peacekeeping missions around the world – that is a higher number than in any time in history – with more complex responsibilities also than ever before. The United States has an abiding strategic interest in resolving the conflicts where peacekeepers serve, which can quickly cause regional instability and attract extremist groups, as we have seen in Mali. Yet while we have seen peacekeepers serve with bravery and professionalism in many of the world’s most dangerous operating environments, we’ve also seen chronic problems, too often, as mentioned, including the failure to protect civilians.
We are working aggressively to address these shortfalls. To give just one example, we are persuading more advanced militaries to step up and contribute soldiers and police to UN peacekeeping. That was the aim of a summit that Vice President Biden convened at the UN last September, where Colombia, Sweden, Indonesia and more than a dozen other countries announced new troop commitments; and it is the message I took directly to European leaders in March, when I made the case in Brussels that peacekeeping is a critical way for European militaries to do their fair share in protecting our common security interests, particularly as they draw down in Afghanistan. This coming September, President Obama will convene another summit of world leaders to build on this momentum and help catalyze a new wave of commitments and generate a new set of capabilities for UN peacekeeping.
Third, we are fighting to end bias and discrimination at the UN. Day in and day out, we push back against efforts to delegitimize Israel at the UN, and we fight for its right to be treated like any other nation – from mounting a full-court diplomatic press to help secure Israel’s permanent membership into two UN groups from which it had long and unjustly been excluded, to consistently and firmly opposing one-sided actions in international bodies. In December, when a deeply unbalanced draft resolution on the Israel-Palestinian conflict was hastily put before the Security Council, the United States successfully rallied a coalition to join us in voting against it, ensuring that the resolution failed to achieve the nine votes of Security Council members required for adoption. We will continue to confront anti-Israel bias wherever we encounter it.
Fourth, we are working to use UN tools to promote human rights and affirm human dignity, as we did by working with partners to hold the first-ever Security Council meeting focused on the human rights situation in North Korea in December. We used that session to shine a light on the regime’s horrors – a light we kept shining through a panel discussion I hosted in April, with escaped victims of the regime. One woman told of being forced to watch the executions of fellow prisoners who committed the “crime” of daring to ask why they had been imprisoned, while another woman told how members from three generations of her family – her grandmother, her father, and her younger brother – had starved to death. This is important for UN Member States to hear.
Fifth, we are doing everything within our power to make the UN more fiscally responsible, more accountable, and more nimble – both because we have a responsibility to ensure American taxpayer dollars are spent wisely, and because maximizing the efficiency of our contributions means saving more lives and better protecting the world’s most vulnerable people. Since the 2008 to 2009 fiscal year, we have reduced the cost-per-peacekeeper by 18 percent, and we are constantly looking for ways to right-size missions in response to conditions on the ground, as we will do this year through substantial drawdowns in Côte d’Ivoire, Haiti, and Liberia, among other missions.
Let me conclude. At the outset, I spoke of my recent visit to Ukraine. Across the range of Ukrainians I met – from the mother who lost her husband and two-year-old child in the assault by combined Russian-separatist forces; to the brave students who risked their lives to take part in the Maidan protests against the kleptocratic Yanukovych government; to the young members of parliament working to fight corruption and increase transparency – what united them was the yearning for certain basic rights. And, the belief that the United States could lead other countries – and the United Nations – in helping make their aspirations a reality.
I heard the same sentiment when visiting UN-run camps of people displaced by violence in the Central African Republic, and South Sudan, and in the Ebola-affected communities of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone at the peak of the outbreak.
Some may view the expectation that America can help people overcome their greatest challenges and secure their basic rights as a burden. In fact, that expectation is one of our nation’s greatest strengths, and one we have a vested interest in striving to live up to – daunting as it may feel in the face of so many crises. But we cannot do it alone, nor should we want to. That is why it is more important than ever that we use the UN to rally the multilateral support needed to confront today’s myriad challenges.
Thank you and I look forward to your questions.
Testimony to the House Foreign Affairs Committee
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
Washington, DC
June 16, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Congressman Engel. Distinguished members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. And thank you for being here. Thank you also for your leadership in advancing America’s national security interests and our values in the world.
Last week I traveled to Ukraine, where I had the chance to see up close what happens when the rules undergirding our international peace and security are ignored. At a shelter for displaced families in Kyiv, I met a mother who told me how her husband and two-year-old child had been killed in February when a shell struck their home in a village in eastern Ukraine. The shelling, as you all know, was part of a sustained assault by combined Russian-separatist forces – and the victims just two of the more than 6,300 people who have been killed in the Moscow-manufactured conflict. Shortly after the attack, the mother fled town with her five surviving children in a van whose roof and doors had been blasted out. Her plea – one I heard echoed by many of the displaced families I met from eastern Ukraine and occupied Crimea – was for the fighting to stop, and for their basic rights to be respected.
As the members of this Committee know, we are living in a time of daunting global crises. In the last year alone, Russia continued to train, arm, and fight alongside separatists in eastern Ukraine; a deadly epidemic spread across West Africa; and monstrous terrorist groups seized territory across the Middle East and North Africa, committing unspeakable atrocities. These are the kinds of threats that the United Nations exists to prevent and address. Yet it is precisely at the moment when we need the UN most that we see the flaws in the international system, some of which have been alluded to already.
This is true for the conflict in Ukraine – in which a permanent member of the UN Security Council is violating the sovereignty and territorial integrity that it was entrusted with upholding. It is true of the global health system that – despite multiple warnings of a spreading Ebola outbreak, including those from our own CDC – was slow to respond to the epidemic. And it is true of UN peacekeepers, who too often stand down or stand by when civilians they are responsible for protecting come under attack. Thus leaving populations vulnerable and sometimes open to radicalization.
Representing our nation before the United Nations, I have to confront these and other shortcomings every day. Yet though I am clear-eyed about the UN’s vulnerabilities, the central point I want to make to this Committee is that America needs the United Nations to address today’s global challenges. The United States has the most powerful set of tools in history to advance its interests, and we will always lead on the world stage. But we are more effective when we ensure that others shoulder their fair share and when we marshal multilateral support to meet our objectives. Let me quickly outline five ways we are doing that at the UN.
First, we are rallying multilateral coalitions to address transnational threats. Consider Iran. In addition to working with Congress to put in place unprecedented U.S. sanctions on the Iranian government, in 2010 the Obama Administration galvanized the UN Security Council to authorize one of the toughest multilateral sanctions regimes in history. The combination of unilateral and multilateral pressure was crucial to bringing Iran to the negotiating table, and ultimately, to laying the foundation whereby we were able to reach a framework agreement that would, if we can get a final deal, effectively cut off every pathway for the Iranian regime to develop a nuclear weapon.
Consider our response to the Ebola epidemic. Last September, as people were dying outside hospitals in West Africa, hospitals that had no beds left to treat the exploding number of Ebola patients, the United States chaired the first-ever emergency meeting of the UN Security Council dedicated to a global health issue. We pressed countries to deploy doctors and nurses, to build clinics and testing labs, and to fill other gaps that ultimately helped bend the outbreak’s exponentially rising curve. America did not just rally others to step up, we led by example, thanks also very much to the support of this Congress, deploying more than 3,500 U.S. Government civilian and military personnel to Liberia, which has been Ebola-free since early May.
Second, we are reforming UN peacekeeping to help address the threats to international peace and security that exist in the 21st century. There are more than 100,000 uniformed police and soldiers deployed in the UN’s sixteen peacekeeping missions around the world – that is a higher number than in any time in history – with more complex responsibilities also than ever before. The United States has an abiding strategic interest in resolving the conflicts where peacekeepers serve, which can quickly cause regional instability and attract extremist groups, as we have seen in Mali. Yet while we have seen peacekeepers serve with bravery and professionalism in many of the world’s most dangerous operating environments, we’ve also seen chronic problems, too often, as mentioned, including the failure to protect civilians.
We are working aggressively to address these shortfalls. To give just one example, we are persuading more advanced militaries to step up and contribute soldiers and police to UN peacekeeping. That was the aim of a summit that Vice President Biden convened at the UN last September, where Colombia, Sweden, Indonesia and more than a dozen other countries announced new troop commitments; and it is the message I took directly to European leaders in March, when I made the case in Brussels that peacekeeping is a critical way for European militaries to do their fair share in protecting our common security interests, particularly as they draw down in Afghanistan. This coming September, President Obama will convene another summit of world leaders to build on this momentum and help catalyze a new wave of commitments and generate a new set of capabilities for UN peacekeeping.
Third, we are fighting to end bias and discrimination at the UN. Day in and day out, we push back against efforts to delegitimize Israel at the UN, and we fight for its right to be treated like any other nation – from mounting a full-court diplomatic press to help secure Israel’s permanent membership into two UN groups from which it had long and unjustly been excluded, to consistently and firmly opposing one-sided actions in international bodies. In December, when a deeply unbalanced draft resolution on the Israel-Palestinian conflict was hastily put before the Security Council, the United States successfully rallied a coalition to join us in voting against it, ensuring that the resolution failed to achieve the nine votes of Security Council members required for adoption. We will continue to confront anti-Israel bias wherever we encounter it.
Fourth, we are working to use UN tools to promote human rights and affirm human dignity, as we did by working with partners to hold the first-ever Security Council meeting focused on the human rights situation in North Korea in December. We used that session to shine a light on the regime’s horrors – a light we kept shining through a panel discussion I hosted in April, with escaped victims of the regime. One woman told of being forced to watch the executions of fellow prisoners who committed the “crime” of daring to ask why they had been imprisoned, while another woman told how members from three generations of her family – her grandmother, her father, and her younger brother – had starved to death. This is important for UN Member States to hear.
Fifth, we are doing everything within our power to make the UN more fiscally responsible, more accountable, and more nimble – both because we have a responsibility to ensure American taxpayer dollars are spent wisely, and because maximizing the efficiency of our contributions means saving more lives and better protecting the world’s most vulnerable people. Since the 2008 to 2009 fiscal year, we have reduced the cost-per-peacekeeper by 18 percent, and we are constantly looking for ways to right-size missions in response to conditions on the ground, as we will do this year through substantial drawdowns in Côte d’Ivoire, Haiti, and Liberia, among other missions.
Let me conclude. At the outset, I spoke of my recent visit to Ukraine. Across the range of Ukrainians I met – from the mother who lost her husband and two-year-old child in the assault by combined Russian-separatist forces; to the brave students who risked their lives to take part in the Maidan protests against the kleptocratic Yanukovych government; to the young members of parliament working to fight corruption and increase transparency – what united them was the yearning for certain basic rights. And, the belief that the United States could lead other countries – and the United Nations – in helping make their aspirations a reality.
I heard the same sentiment when visiting UN-run camps of people displaced by violence in the Central African Republic, and South Sudan, and in the Ebola-affected communities of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone at the peak of the outbreak.
Some may view the expectation that America can help people overcome their greatest challenges and secure their basic rights as a burden. In fact, that expectation is one of our nation’s greatest strengths, and one we have a vested interest in striving to live up to – daunting as it may feel in the face of so many crises. But we cannot do it alone, nor should we want to. That is why it is more important than ever that we use the UN to rally the multilateral support needed to confront today’s myriad challenges.
Thank you and I look forward to your questions.
Sunday, June 7, 2015
REMARKS AT UN ON RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN EASTERN UKRAINE
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
June 5, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. President, for organizing today’s meeting to speak to the recent developments in eastern Ukraine. And I join others in thanking our briefers, Under Secretary-General Feltman and OSCE Deputy Chief Monitor Hug, for providing the Security Council and the international community with the facts underlying the escalation in violence, which are critical in a conflict where some continue to try to obscure the truth.
On June 3rd, combined Russian-separatist forces launched multiple, coordinated attacks west of the Minsk line of contact in Donetsk. The attacks were concentrated on the towns of Marinka and Krasnohorivka.
The Russian Federation and its separatist allies have offered multiple – often conflicting – explanations for these attacks.
In some instances, Russia and the separatists have blamed Ukraine for inciting the attacks. For example, a Russian presidential spokesman attributed the violations of the ceasefire to the “provocative actions by the Ukrainian armed forces,” claiming, “the Ukrainian side has repeatedly taken similar efforts to escalate tensions against the backdrop of international operations.” Similarly, the so-called “Defense Minister” of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic blamed Ukraine for “provocations” and, what he called, “a breach in the Minsk agreements,” which led to the fighting. Exactly what the so-called provocations are was never explained.
This argument, this set of arguments, have been undermined by some of the separatists themselves, who seem to have forgotten to run their tweets and their blog posts by Moscow. During the attacks, one tweeted, “Marinka is ours!” – posting a photo of armed soldiers atop a tank flying the separatists’ flag. A post on a separatist website said, “As a result of a massive attack by [DPR] armed forces, Marinka has been liberated.”
In other instances, Russia has argued that the attacks were justified because the areas that are actually part of the separatist-controlled territory under the Minsk agreements are these areas. They are not. This was the case Russia made about Marinka and Krasnohorivka yesterday, at a meeting of the OSCE. We’ve seen this tactic before; when combined Russian-separatist forces encircled and attacked Debaltseve immediately after signing the package of measures at Minsk on February 12th, 2015. As a separatist commander Eduard Basurin told Reuters on February 15th, “Of course we can open fire [on Debaltseve]…The territory is internal: ours. And internal is internal. But along the line of confrontation there is no shooting.”
The problem with this line of argument is, quite simply, that it is false. At no point did the Minsk Agreements recognize Marinka and Krasnohorivka as separatist-controlled territory. Nor did they grant the separatists control over Debaltseve or other areas combined Russian-separatist forces have seized, or tried to seize. Yet for Russia and the separatists, it seems the contact line can shift to include the territories that they feel they deserve.
The Kyiv-born surrealist master Mikhail Bulgakov put this problem a different way: “The tongue can conceal the truth, but the eyes, never!” In this case, the objective eyes in eastern Ukraine belong to the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission, the SMM. And what they tell us is that, on the evening of June 2nd and early morning of June 3rd, “SMM observed the movement of a large amount of heavy weapons in DPR-controlled areas – generally in a westerly direction toward the contact line – close to Marinka, preceding and during the fighting.” So, to repeat: according to the SMM, heavy weapons from the Russian-backed separatist side moved westward “preceding as well as during the fighting.”
The SMM tried to contact high-ranking DPR personnel over an hour-and-a-half period on the morning of June 3rd, but reported, “Either they were unavailable or did not wish to speak to the SMM.” The eyes do not conceal the truth. And the truth here is that the recent violence was rooted in a combined Russian-separatist assault.
These and other joint attacks by Russian-separatist forces have deadly consequences. At least 5 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, and 38 wounded, in the assault on the towns. The number of casualties is surely higher, but we do not, unfortunately, have reliable reports from the separatists’ side. That is because, as the UN’s Human Rights Monitoring Unit noted in its May 15th report, independent media have been prosecuted, threatened, and otherwise muzzled in separatist-controlled territory.
We also do not know how many Russian soldiers were killed in recent attacks – or in any of their operations in eastern Ukraine, for that matter. Russia continues – despite incidents such as the recent capture of two special operations Russian soldiers in Schastya last month – to deny any military involvement in eastern Ukraine.
And just last week, President Putin signed a decree classifying any death of Russian soldiers in “special operations” in peacetime a state secret, a policy which previously was limited to wartime only. Not content with denying their military service in life, Russia now denies their loved ones the respect and closure – not to mention social services – for their service in death. And it denies the Russian people knowledge to which they are entitled – of a conflict their government has been fueling with weapons, training, and soldiers. No matter what your opinion of the open secret that is Russia’s military involvement in eastern Ukraine and occupied Crimea, the dignified recognition of one’s dead should have primacy.
Of course, suffering is hardly limited to those involved in the fighting. Civilians living near and along the front lines continue to endure profound hardship. Approximately 1.3 million Ukrainians have been displaced by the fighting. Small children on the front lines have gotten used to going to school and sleeping in basements. Families live underground for months at a time. The elderly and disabled are trapped with little access to vital medicine and other forms of assistance. A health professional working in Debaltseve said, “I’ve met elderly people who say that they would just like to die. They don’t have depression; they just don’t want to be 80 years old and living in a basement.”
By now, the international community is quite familiar with Russia’s playbook when it comes to efforts to occupy the territory of its sovereign neighbors – as it did in Crimea, and before that in Transnistria, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia. The consensus here, and in the international community, remains that Minsk’s implementation is the only viable way out of this deadly conflict.
The Ukrainian government has made good faith efforts to honor that consensus – notwithstanding the seemingly endless violations by Russia and the separatists – and deliver on the commitments made at Minsk. Ukraine is holding direct dialogue with the separatists, a bitter pill to swallow, but one they have swallowed for the sake of peace and for the sake of the implementation of the Minsk Agreements. At the same time, Ukraine has undertaken critical efforts, with the participation of Ukrainian civil society, to address pervasive problems it inherited from its predecessors, like widespread corruption, as well as to pursue crucial reforms such as decentralization. Ukraine cooperates with the international monitors and bodies, and has committed to address identified areas of concern. The United States will continue to raise tough issues and these areas of concern, including some raised here today by the briefers, with the Government of Ukraine, and we will support the government and Ukrainian people as they continue their efforts toward meaningful reform.
Yet Russia – and the separatists it trains, arms, fights alongside, and with whom it shares command and control systems in eastern Ukraine – continues to ignore this consensus, flouting the commitments it made at Minsk. It goes right on applying its playbook in new territories – as though this Council and the world are too blind, or too easily deceived to notice.
We must not let ourselves be deceived. The consequences of Russia’s contempt for Minsk and the rules undergirding our international peace and security are too great – both for the integrity of the international system, and for the rights and welfare of the Ukrainian people. We cannot fail to see and fail to act. We must not stop applying pressure until Ukrainians get the stable democracy, the territorial integrity, and sovereignty they yearn for and deserve. Thank you.
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
June 5, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. President, for organizing today’s meeting to speak to the recent developments in eastern Ukraine. And I join others in thanking our briefers, Under Secretary-General Feltman and OSCE Deputy Chief Monitor Hug, for providing the Security Council and the international community with the facts underlying the escalation in violence, which are critical in a conflict where some continue to try to obscure the truth.
On June 3rd, combined Russian-separatist forces launched multiple, coordinated attacks west of the Minsk line of contact in Donetsk. The attacks were concentrated on the towns of Marinka and Krasnohorivka.
The Russian Federation and its separatist allies have offered multiple – often conflicting – explanations for these attacks.
In some instances, Russia and the separatists have blamed Ukraine for inciting the attacks. For example, a Russian presidential spokesman attributed the violations of the ceasefire to the “provocative actions by the Ukrainian armed forces,” claiming, “the Ukrainian side has repeatedly taken similar efforts to escalate tensions against the backdrop of international operations.” Similarly, the so-called “Defense Minister” of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic blamed Ukraine for “provocations” and, what he called, “a breach in the Minsk agreements,” which led to the fighting. Exactly what the so-called provocations are was never explained.
This argument, this set of arguments, have been undermined by some of the separatists themselves, who seem to have forgotten to run their tweets and their blog posts by Moscow. During the attacks, one tweeted, “Marinka is ours!” – posting a photo of armed soldiers atop a tank flying the separatists’ flag. A post on a separatist website said, “As a result of a massive attack by [DPR] armed forces, Marinka has been liberated.”
In other instances, Russia has argued that the attacks were justified because the areas that are actually part of the separatist-controlled territory under the Minsk agreements are these areas. They are not. This was the case Russia made about Marinka and Krasnohorivka yesterday, at a meeting of the OSCE. We’ve seen this tactic before; when combined Russian-separatist forces encircled and attacked Debaltseve immediately after signing the package of measures at Minsk on February 12th, 2015. As a separatist commander Eduard Basurin told Reuters on February 15th, “Of course we can open fire [on Debaltseve]…The territory is internal: ours. And internal is internal. But along the line of confrontation there is no shooting.”
The problem with this line of argument is, quite simply, that it is false. At no point did the Minsk Agreements recognize Marinka and Krasnohorivka as separatist-controlled territory. Nor did they grant the separatists control over Debaltseve or other areas combined Russian-separatist forces have seized, or tried to seize. Yet for Russia and the separatists, it seems the contact line can shift to include the territories that they feel they deserve.
The Kyiv-born surrealist master Mikhail Bulgakov put this problem a different way: “The tongue can conceal the truth, but the eyes, never!” In this case, the objective eyes in eastern Ukraine belong to the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission, the SMM. And what they tell us is that, on the evening of June 2nd and early morning of June 3rd, “SMM observed the movement of a large amount of heavy weapons in DPR-controlled areas – generally in a westerly direction toward the contact line – close to Marinka, preceding and during the fighting.” So, to repeat: according to the SMM, heavy weapons from the Russian-backed separatist side moved westward “preceding as well as during the fighting.”
The SMM tried to contact high-ranking DPR personnel over an hour-and-a-half period on the morning of June 3rd, but reported, “Either they were unavailable or did not wish to speak to the SMM.” The eyes do not conceal the truth. And the truth here is that the recent violence was rooted in a combined Russian-separatist assault.
These and other joint attacks by Russian-separatist forces have deadly consequences. At least 5 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, and 38 wounded, in the assault on the towns. The number of casualties is surely higher, but we do not, unfortunately, have reliable reports from the separatists’ side. That is because, as the UN’s Human Rights Monitoring Unit noted in its May 15th report, independent media have been prosecuted, threatened, and otherwise muzzled in separatist-controlled territory.
We also do not know how many Russian soldiers were killed in recent attacks – or in any of their operations in eastern Ukraine, for that matter. Russia continues – despite incidents such as the recent capture of two special operations Russian soldiers in Schastya last month – to deny any military involvement in eastern Ukraine.
And just last week, President Putin signed a decree classifying any death of Russian soldiers in “special operations” in peacetime a state secret, a policy which previously was limited to wartime only. Not content with denying their military service in life, Russia now denies their loved ones the respect and closure – not to mention social services – for their service in death. And it denies the Russian people knowledge to which they are entitled – of a conflict their government has been fueling with weapons, training, and soldiers. No matter what your opinion of the open secret that is Russia’s military involvement in eastern Ukraine and occupied Crimea, the dignified recognition of one’s dead should have primacy.
Of course, suffering is hardly limited to those involved in the fighting. Civilians living near and along the front lines continue to endure profound hardship. Approximately 1.3 million Ukrainians have been displaced by the fighting. Small children on the front lines have gotten used to going to school and sleeping in basements. Families live underground for months at a time. The elderly and disabled are trapped with little access to vital medicine and other forms of assistance. A health professional working in Debaltseve said, “I’ve met elderly people who say that they would just like to die. They don’t have depression; they just don’t want to be 80 years old and living in a basement.”
By now, the international community is quite familiar with Russia’s playbook when it comes to efforts to occupy the territory of its sovereign neighbors – as it did in Crimea, and before that in Transnistria, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia. The consensus here, and in the international community, remains that Minsk’s implementation is the only viable way out of this deadly conflict.
The Ukrainian government has made good faith efforts to honor that consensus – notwithstanding the seemingly endless violations by Russia and the separatists – and deliver on the commitments made at Minsk. Ukraine is holding direct dialogue with the separatists, a bitter pill to swallow, but one they have swallowed for the sake of peace and for the sake of the implementation of the Minsk Agreements. At the same time, Ukraine has undertaken critical efforts, with the participation of Ukrainian civil society, to address pervasive problems it inherited from its predecessors, like widespread corruption, as well as to pursue crucial reforms such as decentralization. Ukraine cooperates with the international monitors and bodies, and has committed to address identified areas of concern. The United States will continue to raise tough issues and these areas of concern, including some raised here today by the briefers, with the Government of Ukraine, and we will support the government and Ukrainian people as they continue their efforts toward meaningful reform.
Yet Russia – and the separatists it trains, arms, fights alongside, and with whom it shares command and control systems in eastern Ukraine – continues to ignore this consensus, flouting the commitments it made at Minsk. It goes right on applying its playbook in new territories – as though this Council and the world are too blind, or too easily deceived to notice.
We must not let ourselves be deceived. The consequences of Russia’s contempt for Minsk and the rules undergirding our international peace and security are too great – both for the integrity of the international system, and for the rights and welfare of the Ukrainian people. We cannot fail to see and fail to act. We must not stop applying pressure until Ukrainians get the stable democracy, the territorial integrity, and sovereignty they yearn for and deserve. Thank you.
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
PRESIDENT OBAMA AND NATO SECRETARY GENERAL DISCUSS ISSUES AT WHITE HOUSE
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Obama, Stoltenberg Discuss NATO Meeting Highlights
By Cheryl Pellerin
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 26, 2015 – President Barack Obama and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg discussed critical issues being addressed by the alliance during a press briefing here today after a bilateral meeting at the White House.
In what Obama called a “challenging and important time for NATO,” the two discussed Ukraine, NATO’s role in addressing global challenges, the way forward in Afghanistan and more this afternoon at the White House.
“We had a chance to discuss the situation in Ukraine and the increasingly aggressive posture that Russia has taken, and we affirmed that NATO is the cornerstone not just of transatlantic security but in many ways is the cornerstone for global security,” Obama said in remarks after the meeting.
In Wales, he said, NATO officials affirmed the intentions of the alliance to uphold its Article 5 obligations and put in place a host of measures to reassure frontline states and the Readiness Action plan, which is now being implemented.
Responding Swiftly
According to NATO, the plan will insure the alliance is ready to respond swiftly and firmly to new security challenges, and it provides a comprehensive package of measures to respond to changes in the security environment in and near Europe.
“We also reaffirmed the importance of implementing the Minsk Agreement and ensuring that Ukraine is able to enjoy the same territorial integrity and sovereignty as any other country,” said Obama, adding that the United States would continue to support Ukraine through the NATO-Ukraine partnership that predates the crisis in Crimea and now in eastern Ukraine.
In addition to its traditional roles, NATO is recognizing a range of global challenges, the president said.
“We are working closely with NATO allies to make sure that we are partnering with other countries to address issues of counterterrorism,” he added, including providing assistance in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and addressing the challenges that exist in Libya.
Defense Capacity Building
Obama said such missions require increased defense capacity building with countries like Iraq or Gulf Cooperation Council countries, and the African Union.
“It also means that we have to think about whether we are deploying and arranging our assets effectively to meet that goal,” Obama added.
Obama and Stoltenberg also discussed how NATO is positioned and how best to ensure that the alliance finishes the job with respect to Afghanistan.
NATO members will meet at the Warsaw, Poland, NATO Summit in July 2016, the president added, “[and] we’ll have an opportunity to assess how we will continue to support the Afghan National Security Forces, now that we have transitioned out of our combat mission, to make sure that they can … secure and protect their own country.”
Resources, Training, Assistance
Obama said that will require resources, training and assistance from the United States and from all NATO countries.
In his remarks, Stoltenberg thanked Obama for his leadership “in a time where we really needed U.S. leadership,” and for launching the European Reassurance Initiative, which the secretary general said “has been of great importance when it comes to U.S. presence in Europe.”
The U.S. military presence in Europe is the key to [reassuring] all allies, he added.
“I have traveled around the alliance, and all the places I have gone I have met U.S. servicemen and women,” Stoltenberg said.
America Stands with Europe
The message they send is the same, he added -- that America stands with Europe, Europe and America stand together, and NATO will defend and protect all allies against enemy threat.
“This is even more important because we are facing new threats, new challenges, coming both from the east and from the south,” Stoltenberg said. “And … we are adapting, we are responding, we are increasing the readiness and the preparedness of our forces.”
Obama said there are many challenges ahead.
“The one thing that we know is that NATO is going to be a central component of [our ability] to meet those challenges,” he said.
“And as the strongest alliance in the history of the world,” the president added, “we need to make sure that each member-country is properly resourcing and committing to the NATO missions that have been set forth.”
Obama, Stoltenberg Discuss NATO Meeting Highlights
By Cheryl Pellerin
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 26, 2015 – President Barack Obama and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg discussed critical issues being addressed by the alliance during a press briefing here today after a bilateral meeting at the White House.
In what Obama called a “challenging and important time for NATO,” the two discussed Ukraine, NATO’s role in addressing global challenges, the way forward in Afghanistan and more this afternoon at the White House.
“We had a chance to discuss the situation in Ukraine and the increasingly aggressive posture that Russia has taken, and we affirmed that NATO is the cornerstone not just of transatlantic security but in many ways is the cornerstone for global security,” Obama said in remarks after the meeting.
In Wales, he said, NATO officials affirmed the intentions of the alliance to uphold its Article 5 obligations and put in place a host of measures to reassure frontline states and the Readiness Action plan, which is now being implemented.
Responding Swiftly
According to NATO, the plan will insure the alliance is ready to respond swiftly and firmly to new security challenges, and it provides a comprehensive package of measures to respond to changes in the security environment in and near Europe.
“We also reaffirmed the importance of implementing the Minsk Agreement and ensuring that Ukraine is able to enjoy the same territorial integrity and sovereignty as any other country,” said Obama, adding that the United States would continue to support Ukraine through the NATO-Ukraine partnership that predates the crisis in Crimea and now in eastern Ukraine.
In addition to its traditional roles, NATO is recognizing a range of global challenges, the president said.
“We are working closely with NATO allies to make sure that we are partnering with other countries to address issues of counterterrorism,” he added, including providing assistance in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and addressing the challenges that exist in Libya.
Defense Capacity Building
Obama said such missions require increased defense capacity building with countries like Iraq or Gulf Cooperation Council countries, and the African Union.
“It also means that we have to think about whether we are deploying and arranging our assets effectively to meet that goal,” Obama added.
Obama and Stoltenberg also discussed how NATO is positioned and how best to ensure that the alliance finishes the job with respect to Afghanistan.
NATO members will meet at the Warsaw, Poland, NATO Summit in July 2016, the president added, “[and] we’ll have an opportunity to assess how we will continue to support the Afghan National Security Forces, now that we have transitioned out of our combat mission, to make sure that they can … secure and protect their own country.”
Resources, Training, Assistance
Obama said that will require resources, training and assistance from the United States and from all NATO countries.
In his remarks, Stoltenberg thanked Obama for his leadership “in a time where we really needed U.S. leadership,” and for launching the European Reassurance Initiative, which the secretary general said “has been of great importance when it comes to U.S. presence in Europe.”
The U.S. military presence in Europe is the key to [reassuring] all allies, he added.
“I have traveled around the alliance, and all the places I have gone I have met U.S. servicemen and women,” Stoltenberg said.
America Stands with Europe
The message they send is the same, he added -- that America stands with Europe, Europe and America stand together, and NATO will defend and protect all allies against enemy threat.
“This is even more important because we are facing new threats, new challenges, coming both from the east and from the south,” Stoltenberg said. “And … we are adapting, we are responding, we are increasing the readiness and the preparedness of our forces.”
Obama said there are many challenges ahead.
“The one thing that we know is that NATO is going to be a central component of [our ability] to meet those challenges,” he said.
“And as the strongest alliance in the history of the world,” the president added, “we need to make sure that each member-country is properly resourcing and committing to the NATO missions that have been set forth.”
Friday, May 22, 2015
U.S.-GREECE DISCUSS DEFENSE ISSUES
Right: Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Christine E. Wormuth welcomes Greece's Minister of Defense Panos Kammenos to the Pentagon May 20, 2015. During their meeting, Wormuth and Kammenos discussed security and defense issues of mutual concern, including trans-Mediterranean migration, terrorism, the Balkans, Libya, the Middle East, and Russia's aggressive actions in Ukraine. DoD photo.
Leaders Discuss U.S.-Greece Security, Defense Issues
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 21, 2015 – Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Christine E. Wormuth met yesterday with Greece's Minister of Defense Panos Kammenos at the Pentagon to discuss security and defense issues of mutual concern, according to a DoD news release.
Those issues included trans-Mediterranean migration, terrorism, Russia's aggressive actions in Ukraine, the Balkans, Libya, and the Middle East, the release said. Wormuth thanked Greece for hosting U.S. forces at Souda Bay, Crete, and for its participation in operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo, according to the release.
Greece's Support in Opposing ISIL
Wormuth also noted the important support Greece is providing the coalition in opposing the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, the release added. She and Kammenos agreed that the security situation along NATO's southern flank is a growing concern and called for NATO to develop a southern strategy.
She also conveyed that Secretary of Defense Ash Carter is looking forward to working with Kammenos at the NATO Ministerial next month, the release said.
Saturday, May 2, 2015
GEN. BREEDLOVE SAYS RUSSIA TAKING A 'DIFFERENT PATH' SIGNALED BY ACTIONS IN UKRAINE
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Breedlove: Russia Now Taking ‘Different Path’
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 1, 2015 – The West assumed the best of Russia once the Cold War ended, but Russian President Vladimir Putin had other plans and NATO must remain strong in face of the threat from the East, Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove said here yesterday.
Breedlove, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of U.S. European Command, told the Atlantic Council that freedom is being challenged by “a revanchist Russia embarked on a reaching revision of what once were shared hopes for a stable and mutually beneficial partnership.”
Breedlove yesterday received the Distinguished Military Leadership award from the council.
The general said that when the Berlin Wall fell and the Cold War ended, the United States fundamentally changed the way it dealt with Russia. The United States believed there was a genuine hope for a new friendship, a new partnership and the prospect of a Europe whole, free, at peace and prosperous, he said.
“We broke with confrontation and pursued a policy of cooperation, and for a long time many of us believed Russia would also embrace that cooperation,” Breedlove said. “But as we look back, there were clear signs that Russia was on a different path.”
In the early 1990s, Russia stoked separatist tensions in Georgia and Moldova, Breedlove said. In 2007, Russia suspended observance of the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty. In 2008, Russian forces invaded Georgia. Through it all Russian leaders clamped down on freedoms the Russian people had only recently won, the general said.
‘Signals of a Changing Russia’
“All of these were signals of a changing Russia, breaking with the principles and the values of the West,” he said.
But the United States and its NATO allies remained optimistic and continued to treat Russia as a valued and trusted partner, Breedlove said.
But last year, with the illegal annexation of Crimea and movement into Eastern Ukraine the West’s optimism faded, the general said. Russia’s actions against Ukraine since last year have signaled “a clear end of what I see as two decades of clear Russian struggle over security policy,” Breedlove said.
Russia is now on a far different course, he said, one that shifts the relationship between Russia and the West from strategic cooperation to one of strategic competition. This is not a temporary aberration, but the new norm, Breedlove said.
“This is a Russia that recognizes strength and sees weakness as an opportunity,” he said.
Strategic Competition
This strategic competition requires a new mindset and a new approach, the general said.
“The U.S. and NATO must adapt,” he said. “And we are. The stakes are high but we must not shy away from that because, frankly, Russia is not.”
There still must be a dialogue with Russia, but conversations with the country must be done from a position of strength, the general said.
“We must embrace cooperation wherever our mutual interests align, but we must also ensure that we are ready to compete,” Breedlove said.
NATO is Strong
NATO is strong and it gives the West the ability to compete successfully against current and future challenges, he said.
Breedlove said NATO must challenge Russia’s current policies and demonstrate that Putin’s current approach will not be allowed to damage security.
The alliance also must deter Russia “by carefully shaping Moscow’s choices and managing Putin’s confidence,” the general said.
He added, “And it means continuing to lead courageously, as an alliance and as a nation.”
NATO is rock solid, Breedlove said.
“We are standing together,” he said.
Breedlove: Russia Now Taking ‘Different Path’
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 1, 2015 – The West assumed the best of Russia once the Cold War ended, but Russian President Vladimir Putin had other plans and NATO must remain strong in face of the threat from the East, Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove said here yesterday.
Breedlove, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of U.S. European Command, told the Atlantic Council that freedom is being challenged by “a revanchist Russia embarked on a reaching revision of what once were shared hopes for a stable and mutually beneficial partnership.”
Breedlove yesterday received the Distinguished Military Leadership award from the council.
The general said that when the Berlin Wall fell and the Cold War ended, the United States fundamentally changed the way it dealt with Russia. The United States believed there was a genuine hope for a new friendship, a new partnership and the prospect of a Europe whole, free, at peace and prosperous, he said.
“We broke with confrontation and pursued a policy of cooperation, and for a long time many of us believed Russia would also embrace that cooperation,” Breedlove said. “But as we look back, there were clear signs that Russia was on a different path.”
In the early 1990s, Russia stoked separatist tensions in Georgia and Moldova, Breedlove said. In 2007, Russia suspended observance of the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty. In 2008, Russian forces invaded Georgia. Through it all Russian leaders clamped down on freedoms the Russian people had only recently won, the general said.
‘Signals of a Changing Russia’
“All of these were signals of a changing Russia, breaking with the principles and the values of the West,” he said.
But the United States and its NATO allies remained optimistic and continued to treat Russia as a valued and trusted partner, Breedlove said.
But last year, with the illegal annexation of Crimea and movement into Eastern Ukraine the West’s optimism faded, the general said. Russia’s actions against Ukraine since last year have signaled “a clear end of what I see as two decades of clear Russian struggle over security policy,” Breedlove said.
Russia is now on a far different course, he said, one that shifts the relationship between Russia and the West from strategic cooperation to one of strategic competition. This is not a temporary aberration, but the new norm, Breedlove said.
“This is a Russia that recognizes strength and sees weakness as an opportunity,” he said.
Strategic Competition
This strategic competition requires a new mindset and a new approach, the general said.
“The U.S. and NATO must adapt,” he said. “And we are. The stakes are high but we must not shy away from that because, frankly, Russia is not.”
There still must be a dialogue with Russia, but conversations with the country must be done from a position of strength, the general said.
“We must embrace cooperation wherever our mutual interests align, but we must also ensure that we are ready to compete,” Breedlove said.
NATO is Strong
NATO is strong and it gives the West the ability to compete successfully against current and future challenges, he said.
Breedlove said NATO must challenge Russia’s current policies and demonstrate that Putin’s current approach will not be allowed to damage security.
The alliance also must deter Russia “by carefully shaping Moscow’s choices and managing Putin’s confidence,” the general said.
He added, “And it means continuing to lead courageously, as an alliance and as a nation.”
NATO is rock solid, Breedlove said.
“We are standing together,” he said.
Thursday, April 30, 2015
CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY PATROL TO TRAIN LAW OFFICERS IN UKRAINE
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
State Department Partners With California Highway Patrol To Provide Expertise to Ukraine's
New Patrol Police Force
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
April 28, 2015
Marking the first overseas deployment by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) under formal partnership with the U.S. Department of State, the CHP recently collaborated with the Ukrainian Ministry of Interior Affairs (MOI) on a four-week training session for 30 Ukrainian law enforcement officers. The Ukrainian officers will be responsible for training cadets for Ukraine’s brand new Patrol Police, a key component of Ukraine’s ongoing reform efforts. This CHP training program was sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).
During the training in Kyiv, CHP’s four officers provided tactical patrol training, technical expertise, and mentoring, covering a wide variety of subjects, including car stops, handcuffing, and defending against attacks. The Ukrainian course graduates are now certified to instruct incoming classes of recruits for the newly established Ukrainian Patrol Police. More than 11,000 Ukrainians have applied to join the Patrol Police, and nearly 30% of the applicants are women. The first Patrol Police force of approximately 2,000 officers will report for duty in Kyiv in June.
Through this project, INL supports the Ukrainian MOI’s effort to transform the relationship between citizens and police by creating a meritocratic police force focused on protecting and serving the public. The Patrol Police, which is being launched first in Kyiv and then rolled out nationwide, will replace the unpopular traffic police and is seen as a step towards combating police corruption. This is the MOI’s top reform priority and is a direct response to the demands of the people of Ukraine.
State Department Partners With California Highway Patrol To Provide Expertise to Ukraine's
New Patrol Police Force
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
April 28, 2015
Marking the first overseas deployment by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) under formal partnership with the U.S. Department of State, the CHP recently collaborated with the Ukrainian Ministry of Interior Affairs (MOI) on a four-week training session for 30 Ukrainian law enforcement officers. The Ukrainian officers will be responsible for training cadets for Ukraine’s brand new Patrol Police, a key component of Ukraine’s ongoing reform efforts. This CHP training program was sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).
During the training in Kyiv, CHP’s four officers provided tactical patrol training, technical expertise, and mentoring, covering a wide variety of subjects, including car stops, handcuffing, and defending against attacks. The Ukrainian course graduates are now certified to instruct incoming classes of recruits for the newly established Ukrainian Patrol Police. More than 11,000 Ukrainians have applied to join the Patrol Police, and nearly 30% of the applicants are women. The first Patrol Police force of approximately 2,000 officers will report for duty in Kyiv in June.
Through this project, INL supports the Ukrainian MOI’s effort to transform the relationship between citizens and police by creating a meritocratic police force focused on protecting and serving the public. The Patrol Police, which is being launched first in Kyiv and then rolled out nationwide, will replace the unpopular traffic police and is seen as a step towards combating police corruption. This is the MOI’s top reform priority and is a direct response to the demands of the people of Ukraine.
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
DOD ANNOUNCES BEGINNING OF MILITARY EXERCISES IN UKRAINE AND PHILIPPINES
Right: Philippine Army Special Forces freefall parachutists jump from a KC-130J "Sumos" aircraft over Crow Valley, Philippines, May 15, 2014, during high-altitude low-opening jump training at Balikatan 2014. This year is the 31st iteration of Balikatan, an annual Philippines-U.S. military bilateral training exercise. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Allison DeVries.
Military Exercises Begin in Ukraine, Philippines
By Cheryl Pellerin
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, April 20, 2015 – Military training exercises begin today in Ukraine for Fearless Guardian, and in the Philippines for the 31st iteration of Exercise Balikatan, a Pentagon spokesman said today.
During a briefing with Pentagon reporters, Army Col. Steve Warren said that about 300 Sky Soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade, based in Vicenza, Italy, will train members of the Ukraine National Guard at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center in Yavoriv near the Polish border.
The United States has trained at the same center for years with other allies and partners, he added.
“This latest training, which is as valuable in peacetime as it is in times of conflict, is to establish a professional force that protects and defends Ukraine's people [and] the country's sovereignty,” Warren said.
Sky Soldiers
Three hundred Sky Soldiers will train about 900 Ukrainian national guardsmen during three training rotations, each about two months long, he said.
The small-unit trainers will focus on defensive and civil military operations.
Specific blocks of instruction include medical training, casualty evacuation, counter-unmanned-aerial-vehicle tactics, counter-insurgency training, counter-improvised-explosive-device training, and more, Warren said.
Human rights and use-of-force training also will be conducted, along with common soldier and collective tasks such as individual conduct and law of war, first aid, survival, land navigation, communication, unit operations, and counter-chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear training.
Joint Commission Plus Canada
“The Defense Department will continue to work closely with Ukraine to provide assistance, training and advising support,” Warren said, “including through our U.S.-Ukraine Joint Commission on Defense Cooperation, to Ukraine, over the long term.”
The Joint Commission formed in July 2014, and Canada was an observer at the inaugural meeting in October 2014. Later, Canadian leaders requested an invitation for membership on the Joint Commission.
On Feb. 2, Canada’s Defense Minister Rob Nicholson announced that Canada would join the commission “to better coordinate Canada’s ongoing provision of assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.”
Nonlethal Aid to Ukraine
Warren said the United States also jointly hosts two Partnership for Peace exercises each year in Ukraine, a ground forces peacekeeping exercise called Rapid Trident and a naval exercise called Sea Breeze.
The training in small-unit tactics includes instruction on how to shoot, how to move, how to communicate and other individual soldier skills, Warren added, during which the National Guardsmen use Ukrainian weapons and their own munitions.
“Thus far, we have provided the Ukrainians with nonlethal aid only,” he said, adding that the department delivered 30 Humvees to Kiev in March and will deliver another 300 in the coming months.
The DoD is monitoring events in Ukraine, Warren said, “particularly in Eastern Ukraine where we know Russian forces are contributing to the destabilization and unrest.”
Exercise Balikatan
Also today in the Philippines, U.S. and Philippine forces began the 31st iteration of Exercise Balikatan, Warren said.
The annual bilateral training exercise and humanitarian assistance engagement seeks to improve the readiness of participating U.S. and Philippine forces.
“It is a signature element of our alliance,” Warren said.
Balikatan takes place in the Philippines starting today to April 30, and about 6,000 U.S. personnel will participate this year, he said, noting that 4,100 of the forces will be U.S. Marines.
Humanitarian Assistance
The exercise trains Philippine and U.S. military forces to provide relief and assistance in the event of natural disasters and other crises that endanger public health and safety.
“This training proved invaluable during the relief mission [of November 2013] in the wake of super typhoon Haiyan,” Warren said. The typhoon devastated more than 35 provinces in the Philippines and displaced nearly half a million residents.
Military service members from both countries also will conduct combined command-post exercises and field training and live-fire exercises, the colonel said.
Monday, April 20, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS WITH GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER NIKOS KOTZIAS
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Treaty Room
Washington, DC
April 20, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY: Good afternoon, all. It’s my pleasure to welcome the Foreign Minister Kotzias of Greece. I think everybody knows what incredible, strong, and long ties the United States has with Greece, and obviously Greek-Americans make an enormous contribution to our country. We have a very large Greek-American community in the state I was privileged to represent in the Senate in Massachusetts, but in many parts of our country – New York, California, elsewhere.
So we have strong ties and we are NATO partners, and obviously we are in challenging times. We are very aware of the sacrifices the people of Greece have been called on to make because of the challenges of the economy and also the challenges of terrorism and counterterrorism, but particularly the economy right now. We’re confident about Greece’s ability with reforms and with effort to be able to chart a new course ahead. I would hope very much, Mr. Minister, that we have an ability to be able to maintain the strong U.S.-European partnership with respect to our support for Ukraine, the need to be able to encourage Russia in every way possible to live up to the Minsk agreement and to help bring about peace in the region, and also to work together on longer-term challenges like energy, energy supplies, and diversification for the region.
And our efforts on counterterrorism could not be more important together in the future. Obviously, we’re very concerned that those who have committed acts of terrorism who’ve been incarcerated need to remain incarcerated. And we hope that we can work through all of our policy issues, because the relationship between us is so important, and obviously we wish the new government in this moment of challenge we wish it well and we look forward to being supportive and being helpful in the days ahead. Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER KOTZIAS: Thank you, (inaudible). Thank you, Secretary Kerry. Thank you for your invitation to come here in Washington. I’m here as a friend – as a friend with somebody who’s working together with us for democracy and peace against terrorism (inaudible). And I hope that our relations will be deepened and that we will find new feat of cooperation.
I think I can – we can be sure that the new law in Greece about the prisoners will not let any terrorists become free. It will be not only a test of the detention of – the way of this detention, nobody will become free. I am very thankful for this invitation.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, sir. Welcome.
FOREIGN MINISTER KOTZIAS: Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Good to have you. Thank you. Thank you very much.
Remarks With Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Treaty Room
Washington, DC
April 20, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY: Good afternoon, all. It’s my pleasure to welcome the Foreign Minister Kotzias of Greece. I think everybody knows what incredible, strong, and long ties the United States has with Greece, and obviously Greek-Americans make an enormous contribution to our country. We have a very large Greek-American community in the state I was privileged to represent in the Senate in Massachusetts, but in many parts of our country – New York, California, elsewhere.
So we have strong ties and we are NATO partners, and obviously we are in challenging times. We are very aware of the sacrifices the people of Greece have been called on to make because of the challenges of the economy and also the challenges of terrorism and counterterrorism, but particularly the economy right now. We’re confident about Greece’s ability with reforms and with effort to be able to chart a new course ahead. I would hope very much, Mr. Minister, that we have an ability to be able to maintain the strong U.S.-European partnership with respect to our support for Ukraine, the need to be able to encourage Russia in every way possible to live up to the Minsk agreement and to help bring about peace in the region, and also to work together on longer-term challenges like energy, energy supplies, and diversification for the region.
And our efforts on counterterrorism could not be more important together in the future. Obviously, we’re very concerned that those who have committed acts of terrorism who’ve been incarcerated need to remain incarcerated. And we hope that we can work through all of our policy issues, because the relationship between us is so important, and obviously we wish the new government in this moment of challenge we wish it well and we look forward to being supportive and being helpful in the days ahead. Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER KOTZIAS: Thank you, (inaudible). Thank you, Secretary Kerry. Thank you for your invitation to come here in Washington. I’m here as a friend – as a friend with somebody who’s working together with us for democracy and peace against terrorism (inaudible). And I hope that our relations will be deepened and that we will find new feat of cooperation.
I think I can – we can be sure that the new law in Greece about the prisoners will not let any terrorists become free. It will be not only a test of the detention of – the way of this detention, nobody will become free. I am very thankful for this invitation.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, sir. Welcome.
FOREIGN MINISTER KOTZIAS: Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Good to have you. Thank you. Thank you very much.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS WITH GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER FRANK-WALTER STEINMETER
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Lubeck, Germany
April 15, 2015
FOREIGN MINISTER STEINMEIER: A very special welcome to our friend, John Kerry, who came a long way after his hearings in the Congress yesterday evening. It’s sunny weather in Lubeck, but that shouldn’t irritate us because the weather in international politics is quite stormy. The conflict in the eastern Ukraine is only two hours away from here, and we are discussing the situation in Ukraine, the Ukrainian conflict later on. And we are starting today with the stand on our negotiations with Iran. We have to discuss the situation in the Middle East with ISIS, about Iraq and Syria, and new reporting nearly every day about the changing situation in Yemen. We are quite satisfied that the United Nations Security Council yesterday decided about the resolution against arms delivery to the Houthis in Yemen. This is a little bit progress, but we are far away from a situation in which we are able to calm the situation to de-escalate or to find a political solution. We will discuss about the consequences of climate change for foreign policy and the stability of states and international relations, and we will discuss about maritime security here in a city in which we have a great tradition in which the Hanseatic League was founded and in which there is a (inaudible) experience on a regular base international order, and how to deal with situation in which this order is broken by somebody.
So I think it’s a splendid environment for our discussions today. And again, not only a good morning, but welcome here in Lubeck.
Some words?
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, we’re – first of all, let me say what a tremendous pleasure it is to be here in this world heritage city of Lubeck, which, as Frank Steinmeier just said, was the heart of the Hanseatic League and an important precursor to the rule of law. And we’re very, very privileged to be here with the G7, which has a critical voice right now on the major challenges that we face – ISIS, Yemen, the Middle East, Syria, Ukraine, Libya. The voices of every single country here are critical to the resolution of each of these conflicts. And I’m particularly grateful – and I think the other ministers join me in saying a profound thank you to Germany – for Germany’s great leadership. And Germany, together with France, have been absolutely critical to working through the challenge of Ukraine. We look to their leadership, and they’ve provided it.
So we have a lot to talk about today. And of course, looming large is the challenge of finishing the negotiation with Iran over the course of the next two and a half months. Yesterday, there was a compromise reached in Washington regarding congressional input. We are confident about our ability for the President to negotiate an agreement, and to do so with the ability to make the world safer. And again, every partner here has been absolutely critical to our ability to be able to get where we are today. So I’m grateful to be here to be part of this discussion for the period of time I can be, and I’m really grateful to each and every colleague here for the incredible partnership that is represented by the G7 at this point in time. And it’s wonderful particularly to be here in this historic city. Thank you.
Remarks With German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Lubeck, Germany
April 15, 2015
FOREIGN MINISTER STEINMEIER: A very special welcome to our friend, John Kerry, who came a long way after his hearings in the Congress yesterday evening. It’s sunny weather in Lubeck, but that shouldn’t irritate us because the weather in international politics is quite stormy. The conflict in the eastern Ukraine is only two hours away from here, and we are discussing the situation in Ukraine, the Ukrainian conflict later on. And we are starting today with the stand on our negotiations with Iran. We have to discuss the situation in the Middle East with ISIS, about Iraq and Syria, and new reporting nearly every day about the changing situation in Yemen. We are quite satisfied that the United Nations Security Council yesterday decided about the resolution against arms delivery to the Houthis in Yemen. This is a little bit progress, but we are far away from a situation in which we are able to calm the situation to de-escalate or to find a political solution. We will discuss about the consequences of climate change for foreign policy and the stability of states and international relations, and we will discuss about maritime security here in a city in which we have a great tradition in which the Hanseatic League was founded and in which there is a (inaudible) experience on a regular base international order, and how to deal with situation in which this order is broken by somebody.
So I think it’s a splendid environment for our discussions today. And again, not only a good morning, but welcome here in Lubeck.
Some words?
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, we’re – first of all, let me say what a tremendous pleasure it is to be here in this world heritage city of Lubeck, which, as Frank Steinmeier just said, was the heart of the Hanseatic League and an important precursor to the rule of law. And we’re very, very privileged to be here with the G7, which has a critical voice right now on the major challenges that we face – ISIS, Yemen, the Middle East, Syria, Ukraine, Libya. The voices of every single country here are critical to the resolution of each of these conflicts. And I’m particularly grateful – and I think the other ministers join me in saying a profound thank you to Germany – for Germany’s great leadership. And Germany, together with France, have been absolutely critical to working through the challenge of Ukraine. We look to their leadership, and they’ve provided it.
So we have a lot to talk about today. And of course, looming large is the challenge of finishing the negotiation with Iran over the course of the next two and a half months. Yesterday, there was a compromise reached in Washington regarding congressional input. We are confident about our ability for the President to negotiate an agreement, and to do so with the ability to make the world safer. And again, every partner here has been absolutely critical to our ability to be able to get where we are today. So I’m grateful to be here to be part of this discussion for the period of time I can be, and I’m really grateful to each and every colleague here for the incredible partnership that is represented by the G7 at this point in time. And it’s wonderful particularly to be here in this historic city. Thank you.
Saturday, March 14, 2015
NATO SECRETARY GENERAL STOLTENBERG SAYS ALLIANCE WILL "ADAPT TO NEW THREATS"
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
NATO Prepares for Challenges From East, South
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, March 12, 2015 – NATO commanders are putting in place the infrastructure that will allow the alliance to adapt to new threats, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told the press yesterday at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe in Mons, Belgium.
Stoltenberg spoke alongside Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, NATO’s supreme allied commander, after NATO commanders briefed the secretary general on progress toward meeting the goals of the Wales Summit.
Both men noted the security environment in Europe has grown complicated and that the alliance must change to deal with these new threats. While the alliance continues the train, advise and equip mission in Afghanistan and the peacekeeping operation in Kosovo, it is changing to confront new issues.
Threats From East, South
“We see threats both from the East with the more aggressive actions of Russia in Ukraine, [and] also from the South with violence and turmoil spreading to the Middle East and North Africa,” Stoltenberg said.
The answer to both challengers is a boost to collective security, he added.
The alliance is more than doubling the size of the NATO Response Force from 13,000 to 30,000 troops.
“We are setting up a new 5,000-strong quick reaction Spearhead Force, with some units ready to move within as little as 48 hours,” Stoltenberg said. “And we are also creating six command-and-control centers in the Baltic states and three other eastern allied states.”
‘Deliberative and Unified’ Changes
Breedlove said those moves are on track. “We’re in full swing moving forward with our assurance and our adaptation measures and these will make our alliance even more ready and responsive in the future,” the general said.
“The United States is sending 3,000 troops and equipment to the Baltic region for training,” Stoltenberg said. “And in the south, we are preparing to hold this autumn our biggest exercise for many years, expected to include over 25,000 troops in this exercise.” NATO also has ships exercising in the Black and Baltic seas, he added.
The measures are defensive, proportionate and in line with international commitments, the secretary general said.
Changing the alliance posture is tough, involved work, Breedlove said. “We are tackling these changes in a deliberative and unified fashion,” he said. “I’ve spent many years serving among our European allies and I’m pleased to say that I’ve never seen a greater degree of cohesion, resolve and determination to ensure that NATO is ready to meet our future challenges, and I’m confident this will continue as we secure our future together.”
NATO Prepares for Challenges From East, South
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, March 12, 2015 – NATO commanders are putting in place the infrastructure that will allow the alliance to adapt to new threats, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told the press yesterday at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe in Mons, Belgium.
Stoltenberg spoke alongside Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, NATO’s supreme allied commander, after NATO commanders briefed the secretary general on progress toward meeting the goals of the Wales Summit.
Both men noted the security environment in Europe has grown complicated and that the alliance must change to deal with these new threats. While the alliance continues the train, advise and equip mission in Afghanistan and the peacekeeping operation in Kosovo, it is changing to confront new issues.
Threats From East, South
“We see threats both from the East with the more aggressive actions of Russia in Ukraine, [and] also from the South with violence and turmoil spreading to the Middle East and North Africa,” Stoltenberg said.
The answer to both challengers is a boost to collective security, he added.
The alliance is more than doubling the size of the NATO Response Force from 13,000 to 30,000 troops.
“We are setting up a new 5,000-strong quick reaction Spearhead Force, with some units ready to move within as little as 48 hours,” Stoltenberg said. “And we are also creating six command-and-control centers in the Baltic states and three other eastern allied states.”
‘Deliberative and Unified’ Changes
Breedlove said those moves are on track. “We’re in full swing moving forward with our assurance and our adaptation measures and these will make our alliance even more ready and responsive in the future,” the general said.
“The United States is sending 3,000 troops and equipment to the Baltic region for training,” Stoltenberg said. “And in the south, we are preparing to hold this autumn our biggest exercise for many years, expected to include over 25,000 troops in this exercise.” NATO also has ships exercising in the Black and Baltic seas, he added.
The measures are defensive, proportionate and in line with international commitments, the secretary general said.
Changing the alliance posture is tough, involved work, Breedlove said. “We are tackling these changes in a deliberative and unified fashion,” he said. “I’ve spent many years serving among our European allies and I’m pleased to say that I’ve never seen a greater degree of cohesion, resolve and determination to ensure that NATO is ready to meet our future challenges, and I’m confident this will continue as we secure our future together.”
Friday, March 13, 2015
DEFENSE SECRETARY CARTER SAYS U.S. AND U.K. SECURITY TIES STRONG
Right: U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter and British Defense Secretary Michael C. Fallon brief reporters during a joint news conference at the Pentagon, March 11, 2015. The leaders met beforehand to discuss security and other matters of mutual importance. DoD photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Sean Hurt.
Carter: U.S., U.K. Maintain Strong Security Ties
By Claudette Roulo
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, March 11, 2015 – The security ties between the United States and the United Kingdom are enduring and exceptional, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said today in a joint news conference with British Defense Secretary Michael C. Fallon.
For 200 years -- since the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, ending the war of 1812 -- service members from the U.S. and the U.K. have flown together, sailed together and fought together, Carter said.
“And our military collaboration in so many different areas -- from Iraq to Afghanistan -- reinforces the fact that our ‘special relationship’ is a cornerstone of both of our nations’ security,” he said.
The news conference was a first for both leaders -- it was Fallon’s first visit to the Pentagon and Carter’s first trip to the briefing room as defense secretary.
During their meeting before the news conference, the two secretaries discussed the “full scope of issues on which the United States and the United Kingdom are leading together around the world,” Carter said.
Multifaceted Partnership
The U.K. is a stalwart member of the global coalition fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Carter said, noting British contributions in the air and on the ground.
“As we continue to support local forces, the United States is fortunate to have our British allies by our side,” he said.
From the beginning of combat operations in Afghanistan, the U.K. was steadfast in its support, Carter said, and it continues that support as the mission evolves by providing hundreds of troops to train, advise and assist Afghan security forces.
“Their efforts will be critical to making sure that our progress there sticks,” Carter said.
In the Baltics, the U.S. and U.K. are working together to reassure their transatlantic allies and deter further Russian aggression, he said.
Support to Ukraine
“The United States has been clear from the outset of the crisis in Ukraine that we support the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” Carter said. “And we’ve been very clear that if Russia continues to flout the commitments it made in the September and February Minsk agreements, the costs to Russia will continue to rise -- including and especially through sanctions in coordination with our European allies and partners.”
The United States will continue to support Ukraine’s right to defend itself, he said. The White House announced today that it plans to provide Kiev with an additional $75 million in nonlethal security assistance and more than 200 Humvees, Carter noted.
“This brings U.S. security assistance to Ukraine to a total of nearly $200 million, with the new funds going towards unmanned aerial vehicles for improved surveillance, a variety of radios and other secure communications equipment, counter-mortar radars, military ambulances, first-aid kits and other medical supplies,” he said.
The additional assistance underscores the reassurance mission, Carter said, noting the impending arrival of troops and equipment from the U.S. Army’s 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division to train with regional allies as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve.
“And since Russia’s aggression began last year, the United Kingdom has also stepped up militarily, contributing to NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission and serving as a framework nation for NATO’s Very-high Readiness Joint Task Force,” he said.
NATO Endures
The NATO mission’s importance is demonstrated by alliance members’ commitment, agreed to last year in Wales, to invest two percent of their gross domestic product in defense, Carter said.
“Seventy years after we declared victory in Europe, our NATO allies -- and indeed the world -- still look to both [the U.S. and UK] as leaders,” he said. “And it’s clear that the threats and challenges we face -- whether they manifest through cyberattacks, ISIL’s foreign fighters, or Russian aircraft flying aggressively close to NATO’s airspace -- all of those will continue to demand our leadership.”
Leadership requires investment in innovation and modernized capabilities, in prudent reforms and in the forces necessary to meet national security obligations, Carter said.
“These are investments that both our nations -- and both our defense institutions -- must not only make, but embrace in the months and years to come,” he said.
WHITE HOUSE STATEMENT ON NEW IMF PROGRAM FOR UKRAINE
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
March 11, 2015
Statement by the Press Secretary on Approval of a New IMF Program for Ukraine
We welcome today’s approval by the IMF board of a new four-year $17.5 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Ukraine. The EFF, which is underpinned by an ambitious series of economic reforms, underscores both the commitment of the Ukrainian government and central bank to take the steps needed to lay a foundation for robust growth, and the commitment of the international community to provide financing to help stabilize Ukraine’s economy as it implements these reforms. The United States is working alongside international partners to provide Ukraine with the financial support it needs as it continues to take steps that will transform the Ukrainian economy and strengthen its democracy.
March 11, 2015
Statement by the Press Secretary on Approval of a New IMF Program for Ukraine
We welcome today’s approval by the IMF board of a new four-year $17.5 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Ukraine. The EFF, which is underpinned by an ambitious series of economic reforms, underscores both the commitment of the Ukrainian government and central bank to take the steps needed to lay a foundation for robust growth, and the commitment of the international community to provide financing to help stabilize Ukraine’s economy as it implements these reforms. The United States is working alongside international partners to provide Ukraine with the financial support it needs as it continues to take steps that will transform the Ukrainian economy and strengthen its democracy.
Monday, March 9, 2015
READOUT: VP BIDEN'S CALL WITH POLISH PRESIDENT KOMOROWSKI
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
March 09, 2015
Readout of the Vice President’s Call with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski
Vice President Joe Biden spoke today with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski about bilateral relations, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and European energy security. The Vice President noted U.S.-Polish relations were excellent and agreed to continue close consultations with Poland about threats to European security, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Vice President and President Komorowski agreed that Russia and Russia-backed separatists had to fulfill all of the obligations under the Minsk agreements, including unfettered access for OSCE monitors seeking to verify the withdrawal of heavy weapons, the withdrawal of Russian troops and equipment from Ukrainian territory, and return to Ukrainian control of the international border by the end of the year. They agreed that any further escalation of the conflict by Russia would be met by increasing costs. On energy security, the leaders agreed on the importance of infrastructure projects that would help create a single, integrated energy market in Europe.
March 09, 2015
Readout of the Vice President’s Call with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski
Vice President Joe Biden spoke today with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski about bilateral relations, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and European energy security. The Vice President noted U.S.-Polish relations were excellent and agreed to continue close consultations with Poland about threats to European security, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Vice President and President Komorowski agreed that Russia and Russia-backed separatists had to fulfill all of the obligations under the Minsk agreements, including unfettered access for OSCE monitors seeking to verify the withdrawal of heavy weapons, the withdrawal of Russian troops and equipment from Ukrainian territory, and return to Ukrainian control of the international border by the end of the year. They agreed that any further escalation of the conflict by Russia would be met by increasing costs. On energy security, the leaders agreed on the importance of infrastructure projects that would help create a single, integrated energy market in Europe.
REMARKS BY SAMANTHA POWER ON UKRAINE
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
March 6, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. President. We continue to believe that compliance with the September Minsk Agreements and the February Implementation Package provides a roadmap to peace in Ukraine.
For the first time since the Minsk Implementation Package was signed on February 12th, we have seen a reduction in violence. Of course no one forgets that Russia and the separatists they trained, armed, directed, and fought alongside, started violating their commitments in the Package from the first minutes and hours after the deal was signed – by laying siege to Debaltseve, a city dozens of kilometers beyond the contact line, with their deadly and indiscriminate pummeling. Violations started on day one, and violations of the ceasefire continue in a number of places, particularly outside Mariupol, where Russian-backed separatists have engaged in intense fighting attacking the village of Shirokyne in recent days.
Unfortunately, although the violence has decreased, there has been only partial compliance with the Minsk Implementation Package. As members of this Council know, the package calls for, “an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire,” not a gradual and partial reduction in fire. It does not say that Russian-backed separatists can continue to shell, engage in sniper fire, or use barrel and rocket artillery – yet they have carried out all of these attacks in recent days. Since, February 20th, Russian separatist attacks like these have killed 15 Ukrainian military personnel and wounded nearly one hundred more.
A second condition in the Minsk Implementation Package is full, unfettered access for OSCE monitors to the entire conflict zone. While there have been occasional instances when the SMM has been stopped at Ukrainian checkpoints, the restrictions on the SMM by Russia and the separatists are documented as widespread.
Just as Russia and Russian-backed separatists prevented the SMM from going to Debaltseve while these forces carried out their vicious attack, recent SMM reports chronicle repeated, persistent obstruction by Russian-backed separatists, obstructions that include even threatening to kill OSCE monitors.
To date, the separatists have granted OSCE monitors sporadic access limited to certain roads, when and where it suits them. As we have asked before, it bears asking again: Who obstructs an objective observer other than someone who has something to hide from an unbiased eye?
The Minsk Implementation Package also calls for the full pullback of all heavy weapons. That, too, has not happened. Shortly after the package was signed, the OSCE’s Chief Monitor sent a letter to all of the signatories requesting that they provide information on what heavy weapons were present in eastern Ukraine, where they are, which routes will be used to withdraw them, and where they will be located after being withdrawn. Russia has not replied, as though by pretending it has no heavy weapons in Ukraine, we will forget all of the tanks, Grad missiles, and other heavy weapons we watched Russia send across the border.
All signatories to the Minsk Agreements and the Implementation Package – Ukraine on the one side, and Russia, and the so-called “DPR” and “LPR” on the other – are responsible for pulling back heavy weapons. The OSCE must have unfettered, unconditional access to verify the withdrawal.
Two days ago, Russia sent its 17th so-called humanitarian convoy into Ukraine, once again denying international observers and Ukrainian border guards the right to conduct a full and complete inspection of its contents. Russian convoys that should be coming out of Ukraine are instead going in. If these convoys are carrying humanitarian assistance, why not allow a full inspection?
Colleagues, the ceasefire, weapons pullback, and OSCE verification – none of which are complete – are all among just the immediate steps in the Implementation Package. Further, all of the Minsk Agreements to date have called for the release of all hostages by all sides. Nadiya Savchenko and other Ukrainians being held in Russia are hostages, just as surely as those being kept in basements in Donetsk and Luhansk. Again, we call on Russia to release Nadiya Savchenko, who has been on hunger strike for over 80 days, and her Ukrainian counterparts. This is something Russia can do today.
As we’ve seen before, the separatists have an established track record of using a lull in the fighting to regroup, rearm, and resupply. Russia supports this process by providing an unlimited supply of guns and weaponry. The United States and the rest of the world hopes that that is not the case this time. We are carefully watching what happens in Shyrokyne, a town just east of the strategic port city of Mariupol, which many fear will be the next target of the separatists and Russian military.
The devastating consequences of this conflict are brought into sharp relief by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights’ most recent report. More than 1.7 million people displaced. More than 5,800 people killed – a casualty count that does not include the hundreds of bodies found once Russian-backed separatists finished their deadly siege of Debaltseve.
An OCHA report from the end of last month said that 500 bodies had been found in houses and basements at the end of the siege – 500 bodies. Homes and basements where people took shelter from the endless barrage of Russian-made mortars and rockets as they rained down on the city’s residents – residents who could not escape. Weeks into the siege, at the end of January, the self-declared leader of the Russian-backed separatists had announced, “Anybody who leaves…will be in the interlocking field of fire of our artillery. From today, the road is under fire.” And so those inside were left with a choice: risk your life by staying, or risk your life by leaving. Civilians were killed doing both, and again, 500 hundred bodies found in homes and basements where people took shelter.
And the casualties and the displaced are one of the devastating consequences of this conflict. Another – and one we rarely speak about in this Council anymore – is the ongoing illegal occupation and attempted annexation of Crimea by a permanent member of this Council.
Crimea is important not only because it constitutes the continuing violation of the territorial integrity of a sovereign nation – a violation orchestrated in Moscow, and dressed up in a sham referendum – but also because it offers a preview of the kind of rule that we can expect in the other parts of Ukraine seized by those who see themselves as part of Novorossiya.
Let me give just one example of what it’s like to live in that world, from the long list of repressive practices documented in the UN’s February human rights report – part of the relentless persecution of the Crimean Muslim Tatar minority. According to the report, on January 29th, 2015, the de facto authorities arrested Akhtem Chiigoz, the Deputy Chairman of the Tatar Mejlis, the Tatars’ representative council. He was charged under the Russian criminal code with having participated in a “mass disturbance,” for protesting against what was then the imminent Russian occupation, which ended in a clash with pro-Russian demonstrators. On February 7th, another Crimean Tatar was detained on the same charges.
Both men are charged with violating Russian law – even though Russian law had not even taken effect at the time that they participated in the protest. Yesterday the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media released a statement saying that media freedom in Crimea was at an all-time low.
Among other violations, she reported that, “Journalists from at least thirteen independent media outlets, freelance journalists, and bloggers have been threatened, assaulted, physically attacked, banned from entry, interrogated, and kidnapped; their equipment confiscated or damaged.”
So, occupy territory, unilaterally attempt to annex it, and then retroactively and arbitrarily apply your laws to those who dared to question your takeover as it was occurring. It does not get much more Orwellian than that. And as anyone who has read the human rights report knows, this is just one in a long list of repressive tactics – including torture, enforced disappearances, and targeted political killings – that have defined Russia’s occupation.
It is to avoid an Orwellian world like this – where we talk of peace while undermining it – that we must ensure that Minsk is implemented. The Council members around this table must confront the situation on the ground as it exists rather than as we wish it were. Peace will not come from more words – and there have been so many words in this Chamber. It will come from the long-awaited and faithful implementation of the many agreements that have been entered into, and renewed respect for the territorial integrity of a Member State of the United Nations.
Thank you.
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
March 6, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. President. We continue to believe that compliance with the September Minsk Agreements and the February Implementation Package provides a roadmap to peace in Ukraine.
For the first time since the Minsk Implementation Package was signed on February 12th, we have seen a reduction in violence. Of course no one forgets that Russia and the separatists they trained, armed, directed, and fought alongside, started violating their commitments in the Package from the first minutes and hours after the deal was signed – by laying siege to Debaltseve, a city dozens of kilometers beyond the contact line, with their deadly and indiscriminate pummeling. Violations started on day one, and violations of the ceasefire continue in a number of places, particularly outside Mariupol, where Russian-backed separatists have engaged in intense fighting attacking the village of Shirokyne in recent days.
Unfortunately, although the violence has decreased, there has been only partial compliance with the Minsk Implementation Package. As members of this Council know, the package calls for, “an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire,” not a gradual and partial reduction in fire. It does not say that Russian-backed separatists can continue to shell, engage in sniper fire, or use barrel and rocket artillery – yet they have carried out all of these attacks in recent days. Since, February 20th, Russian separatist attacks like these have killed 15 Ukrainian military personnel and wounded nearly one hundred more.
A second condition in the Minsk Implementation Package is full, unfettered access for OSCE monitors to the entire conflict zone. While there have been occasional instances when the SMM has been stopped at Ukrainian checkpoints, the restrictions on the SMM by Russia and the separatists are documented as widespread.
Just as Russia and Russian-backed separatists prevented the SMM from going to Debaltseve while these forces carried out their vicious attack, recent SMM reports chronicle repeated, persistent obstruction by Russian-backed separatists, obstructions that include even threatening to kill OSCE monitors.
To date, the separatists have granted OSCE monitors sporadic access limited to certain roads, when and where it suits them. As we have asked before, it bears asking again: Who obstructs an objective observer other than someone who has something to hide from an unbiased eye?
The Minsk Implementation Package also calls for the full pullback of all heavy weapons. That, too, has not happened. Shortly after the package was signed, the OSCE’s Chief Monitor sent a letter to all of the signatories requesting that they provide information on what heavy weapons were present in eastern Ukraine, where they are, which routes will be used to withdraw them, and where they will be located after being withdrawn. Russia has not replied, as though by pretending it has no heavy weapons in Ukraine, we will forget all of the tanks, Grad missiles, and other heavy weapons we watched Russia send across the border.
All signatories to the Minsk Agreements and the Implementation Package – Ukraine on the one side, and Russia, and the so-called “DPR” and “LPR” on the other – are responsible for pulling back heavy weapons. The OSCE must have unfettered, unconditional access to verify the withdrawal.
Two days ago, Russia sent its 17th so-called humanitarian convoy into Ukraine, once again denying international observers and Ukrainian border guards the right to conduct a full and complete inspection of its contents. Russian convoys that should be coming out of Ukraine are instead going in. If these convoys are carrying humanitarian assistance, why not allow a full inspection?
Colleagues, the ceasefire, weapons pullback, and OSCE verification – none of which are complete – are all among just the immediate steps in the Implementation Package. Further, all of the Minsk Agreements to date have called for the release of all hostages by all sides. Nadiya Savchenko and other Ukrainians being held in Russia are hostages, just as surely as those being kept in basements in Donetsk and Luhansk. Again, we call on Russia to release Nadiya Savchenko, who has been on hunger strike for over 80 days, and her Ukrainian counterparts. This is something Russia can do today.
As we’ve seen before, the separatists have an established track record of using a lull in the fighting to regroup, rearm, and resupply. Russia supports this process by providing an unlimited supply of guns and weaponry. The United States and the rest of the world hopes that that is not the case this time. We are carefully watching what happens in Shyrokyne, a town just east of the strategic port city of Mariupol, which many fear will be the next target of the separatists and Russian military.
The devastating consequences of this conflict are brought into sharp relief by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights’ most recent report. More than 1.7 million people displaced. More than 5,800 people killed – a casualty count that does not include the hundreds of bodies found once Russian-backed separatists finished their deadly siege of Debaltseve.
An OCHA report from the end of last month said that 500 bodies had been found in houses and basements at the end of the siege – 500 bodies. Homes and basements where people took shelter from the endless barrage of Russian-made mortars and rockets as they rained down on the city’s residents – residents who could not escape. Weeks into the siege, at the end of January, the self-declared leader of the Russian-backed separatists had announced, “Anybody who leaves…will be in the interlocking field of fire of our artillery. From today, the road is under fire.” And so those inside were left with a choice: risk your life by staying, or risk your life by leaving. Civilians were killed doing both, and again, 500 hundred bodies found in homes and basements where people took shelter.
And the casualties and the displaced are one of the devastating consequences of this conflict. Another – and one we rarely speak about in this Council anymore – is the ongoing illegal occupation and attempted annexation of Crimea by a permanent member of this Council.
Crimea is important not only because it constitutes the continuing violation of the territorial integrity of a sovereign nation – a violation orchestrated in Moscow, and dressed up in a sham referendum – but also because it offers a preview of the kind of rule that we can expect in the other parts of Ukraine seized by those who see themselves as part of Novorossiya.
Let me give just one example of what it’s like to live in that world, from the long list of repressive practices documented in the UN’s February human rights report – part of the relentless persecution of the Crimean Muslim Tatar minority. According to the report, on January 29th, 2015, the de facto authorities arrested Akhtem Chiigoz, the Deputy Chairman of the Tatar Mejlis, the Tatars’ representative council. He was charged under the Russian criminal code with having participated in a “mass disturbance,” for protesting against what was then the imminent Russian occupation, which ended in a clash with pro-Russian demonstrators. On February 7th, another Crimean Tatar was detained on the same charges.
Both men are charged with violating Russian law – even though Russian law had not even taken effect at the time that they participated in the protest. Yesterday the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media released a statement saying that media freedom in Crimea was at an all-time low.
Among other violations, she reported that, “Journalists from at least thirteen independent media outlets, freelance journalists, and bloggers have been threatened, assaulted, physically attacked, banned from entry, interrogated, and kidnapped; their equipment confiscated or damaged.”
So, occupy territory, unilaterally attempt to annex it, and then retroactively and arbitrarily apply your laws to those who dared to question your takeover as it was occurring. It does not get much more Orwellian than that. And as anyone who has read the human rights report knows, this is just one in a long list of repressive tactics – including torture, enforced disappearances, and targeted political killings – that have defined Russia’s occupation.
It is to avoid an Orwellian world like this – where we talk of peace while undermining it – that we must ensure that Minsk is implemented. The Council members around this table must confront the situation on the ground as it exists rather than as we wish it were. Peace will not come from more words – and there have been so many words in this Chamber. It will come from the long-awaited and faithful implementation of the many agreements that have been entered into, and renewed respect for the territorial integrity of a Member State of the United Nations.
Thank you.
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
WHITE HOUSE ANNOUNCES CONTINUATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES WITH REGARDS TO UKRAINE AND ZIMBABWE
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
March 03, 2015
Message -- Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Ukraine
TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:
Section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)) provides for the automatic termination of a national emergency unless, within 90 days prior to the anniversary date of its declaration, the President publishes in the Federal Register and transmits to the Congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date. In accordance with this provision, I have sent to the Federal Register for publication the enclosed notice stating that the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13660 of March 6, 2014, is to continue in effect beyond March 6, 2015.
The actions and policies of persons that undermine democratic processes and institutions in Ukraine; threaten its peace, security, stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity; and contribute to the misappropriation of its assets, as well as the actions and policies of the Government of the Russian Federation, including its purported annexation of Crimea and its use of force in Ukraine, continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States. Therefore, I have determined that it is necessary to continue the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13660 with respect to Ukraine.
BARACK OBAMA
March 03, 2015
Notice -- Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Zimbabwe
NOTICE
- - - - - - -
CONTINUATION OF THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO ZIMBABWE
On March 6, 2003, by Executive Order 13288, the President declared a national emergency and blocked the property of certain persons, pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701-1706), to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to the foreign policy of the United States constituted by the actions and policies of certain members of the Government of Zimbabwe and other persons to undermine Zimbabwe's democratic processes or institutions. These actions and policies had contributed to the deliberate breakdown in the rule of law in Zimbabwe, to politically motivated violence and intimidation in that country, and to political and economic instability in the southern African region.
On November 22, 2005, the President issued Executive Order 13391 to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13288 by ordering the blocking of the property of certain persons who undermine democratic processes or institutions in Zimbabwe.
On July 25, 2008, the President issued Executive Order 13469, which expanded the scope of the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13288 and authorized the blocking of the property of certain persons determined to have engaged in actions or policies to undermine democratic processes or institutions in Zimbabwe, to commit acts of violence and other human rights abuses against political opponents, and to engage in public corruption.
The actions and policies of these persons continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the foreign policy of the United States. For this reason, the national emergency declared on March 6, 2003, and the measures adopted on that date, on November 22, 2005, and on July 25, 2008, to deal with that emergency, must continue in effect beyond March 6, 2015. Therefore, in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13288.
This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress.
BARACK OBAMA
March 03, 2015
Message -- Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Ukraine
TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:
Section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)) provides for the automatic termination of a national emergency unless, within 90 days prior to the anniversary date of its declaration, the President publishes in the Federal Register and transmits to the Congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date. In accordance with this provision, I have sent to the Federal Register for publication the enclosed notice stating that the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13660 of March 6, 2014, is to continue in effect beyond March 6, 2015.
The actions and policies of persons that undermine democratic processes and institutions in Ukraine; threaten its peace, security, stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity; and contribute to the misappropriation of its assets, as well as the actions and policies of the Government of the Russian Federation, including its purported annexation of Crimea and its use of force in Ukraine, continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States. Therefore, I have determined that it is necessary to continue the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13660 with respect to Ukraine.
BARACK OBAMA
March 03, 2015
Notice -- Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Zimbabwe
NOTICE
- - - - - - -
CONTINUATION OF THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO ZIMBABWE
On March 6, 2003, by Executive Order 13288, the President declared a national emergency and blocked the property of certain persons, pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701-1706), to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to the foreign policy of the United States constituted by the actions and policies of certain members of the Government of Zimbabwe and other persons to undermine Zimbabwe's democratic processes or institutions. These actions and policies had contributed to the deliberate breakdown in the rule of law in Zimbabwe, to politically motivated violence and intimidation in that country, and to political and economic instability in the southern African region.
On November 22, 2005, the President issued Executive Order 13391 to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13288 by ordering the blocking of the property of certain persons who undermine democratic processes or institutions in Zimbabwe.
On July 25, 2008, the President issued Executive Order 13469, which expanded the scope of the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13288 and authorized the blocking of the property of certain persons determined to have engaged in actions or policies to undermine democratic processes or institutions in Zimbabwe, to commit acts of violence and other human rights abuses against political opponents, and to engage in public corruption.
The actions and policies of these persons continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the foreign policy of the United States. For this reason, the national emergency declared on March 6, 2003, and the measures adopted on that date, on November 22, 2005, and on July 25, 2008, to deal with that emergency, must continue in effect beyond March 6, 2015. Therefore, in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13288.
This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress.
BARACK OBAMA
Thursday, February 26, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY MAKES REMARKS WITH SERBIAN FOREIGN MINISTER DACIC
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Ben Franklin Room
Washington, DC
February 26, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY: I think it’s still morning. Yes, good morning. I’m very happy to welcome the deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Serbia and to welcome Ivica Dacic here to Washington at a time when Serbia is taking on an increasingly important role in many respects. First of all, they are assuming the chairmanship of the OSCE. And this comes at a really important time given the Minsk agreement, the efforts that we are all making to try to see that agreement implemented. And under the chairmanship of Foreign Minister Dacic, we will all be looking for accountability in the process of trying to stabilize Ukraine, the eastern part of Ukraine, and see if we can’t get on a different road. The OSCE observation/observer status is absolutely critical to our ability to know which side, both sides are adhering to the agreements, and so we welcome the assumption of this responsibility.
We also welcome the fact that Serbia has taken the step of moving towards EU accession. This is very important. It will require a process of reforms and engagement. We certainly look forward to working with Serbia in that endeavor.
And finally, while there are many other issues, most importantly, Serbia has exhibited great leadership in helping to engage seriously in the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue and in helping to reach an agreement that really could begin to move us on a road towards the longer-term stability that we have all sought in that relationship. We know it’s difficult and we know there are complications, but we applaud the fact that most recently there was a meeting with the EU High Representative Mogherini. There was a successful outcome of that dialogue with important next steps taken.
So my pleasure to welcome Foreign Minister Dacic here. Very, very appreciative of the fact that he’s taken the time to come here, and I look forward to our dialogue. Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER DACIC: (Via interpreter) Thank you. It is my great honor for me personally, but also for the Republic of Serbia, to have this opportunity to talk today with the Secretary of State, Mr. Kerry. Serbia dedicates great attention to bilateral relations with the United States, especially in a time when Serbia is chairing a very important organization – international organization, the OSCE.
We – as the chairmanship-in-office, we will be fully committed to the principles and commitments, having in mind that Yugoslavia was one of the founders of the OSCE, and we will invest maximal efforts to contribute to have on this OSCE region and the whole (inaudible) from Vladivostok to Vancouver to bring about peace and to coordinate all our actions.
In line with this, we will have consultations in various places within the OSCE structures. In order for us to draw and make adequate steps today, we will discuss not only the OSCE topics, but we will also touch upon some bilateral issues. And it is my great pleasure to have our bilateral relations advancing and going upwards, and I think that it is very important to renew the strategic partnership, which dates way back. Because 400 years now, our diplomatic relations – our diplomatic relations have been established 130 years ago. And in line with this, it is going to be my distinct pleasure for – to invite Mr. Secretary of State, Mr. Kerry, to come and attend a Ministerial Council meeting in Belgrade in December this year.
I will not miss this opportunity to say that we are extremely joyful and happy due to the fact that we will see more frequent visits and the dynamic of our relations extend and expand. And I have to say that we cannot even remember who was the last president of the United States who visited Serbia. I think that this was Mr. Ford. And due to this, I think that it would be very good and beneficial for our relations to advance, because we want Serbia to be a factor of stability and peace within the region, to resolve all the outstanding issues with its neighbor in a diplomatic way and through dialogue. And we will invest our maximum efforts and our full capacities and to demonstrate responsibility as the chairs in the OSCE, because the OSCE and the world is facing this great crisis, and the whole world is watching what the OSCE, with its capacities, can do in this regard.
So these kinds of consultations with you are of great importance, and I’m very thankful to you for accepting to meet me. Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much.
Remarks With Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Ben Franklin Room
Washington, DC
February 26, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY: I think it’s still morning. Yes, good morning. I’m very happy to welcome the deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Serbia and to welcome Ivica Dacic here to Washington at a time when Serbia is taking on an increasingly important role in many respects. First of all, they are assuming the chairmanship of the OSCE. And this comes at a really important time given the Minsk agreement, the efforts that we are all making to try to see that agreement implemented. And under the chairmanship of Foreign Minister Dacic, we will all be looking for accountability in the process of trying to stabilize Ukraine, the eastern part of Ukraine, and see if we can’t get on a different road. The OSCE observation/observer status is absolutely critical to our ability to know which side, both sides are adhering to the agreements, and so we welcome the assumption of this responsibility.
We also welcome the fact that Serbia has taken the step of moving towards EU accession. This is very important. It will require a process of reforms and engagement. We certainly look forward to working with Serbia in that endeavor.
And finally, while there are many other issues, most importantly, Serbia has exhibited great leadership in helping to engage seriously in the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue and in helping to reach an agreement that really could begin to move us on a road towards the longer-term stability that we have all sought in that relationship. We know it’s difficult and we know there are complications, but we applaud the fact that most recently there was a meeting with the EU High Representative Mogherini. There was a successful outcome of that dialogue with important next steps taken.
So my pleasure to welcome Foreign Minister Dacic here. Very, very appreciative of the fact that he’s taken the time to come here, and I look forward to our dialogue. Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER DACIC: (Via interpreter) Thank you. It is my great honor for me personally, but also for the Republic of Serbia, to have this opportunity to talk today with the Secretary of State, Mr. Kerry. Serbia dedicates great attention to bilateral relations with the United States, especially in a time when Serbia is chairing a very important organization – international organization, the OSCE.
We – as the chairmanship-in-office, we will be fully committed to the principles and commitments, having in mind that Yugoslavia was one of the founders of the OSCE, and we will invest maximal efforts to contribute to have on this OSCE region and the whole (inaudible) from Vladivostok to Vancouver to bring about peace and to coordinate all our actions.
In line with this, we will have consultations in various places within the OSCE structures. In order for us to draw and make adequate steps today, we will discuss not only the OSCE topics, but we will also touch upon some bilateral issues. And it is my great pleasure to have our bilateral relations advancing and going upwards, and I think that it is very important to renew the strategic partnership, which dates way back. Because 400 years now, our diplomatic relations – our diplomatic relations have been established 130 years ago. And in line with this, it is going to be my distinct pleasure for – to invite Mr. Secretary of State, Mr. Kerry, to come and attend a Ministerial Council meeting in Belgrade in December this year.
I will not miss this opportunity to say that we are extremely joyful and happy due to the fact that we will see more frequent visits and the dynamic of our relations extend and expand. And I have to say that we cannot even remember who was the last president of the United States who visited Serbia. I think that this was Mr. Ford. And due to this, I think that it would be very good and beneficial for our relations to advance, because we want Serbia to be a factor of stability and peace within the region, to resolve all the outstanding issues with its neighbor in a diplomatic way and through dialogue. And we will invest our maximum efforts and our full capacities and to demonstrate responsibility as the chairs in the OSCE, because the OSCE and the world is facing this great crisis, and the whole world is watching what the OSCE, with its capacities, can do in this regard.
So these kinds of consultations with you are of great importance, and I’m very thankful to you for accepting to meet me. Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
REMARKS ON UKRAINE BY AMBASSADOR PRESSMAN
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Ambassador David Pressman
Alternate Representative to the UN for Special Political Affairs
New York, NY
February 24, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. President. I would like to welcome the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Minister Dacic, to the Security Council and thank you for your briefing on OSCE activities under Serbia’s leadership. The partnership between the OSCE and the United Nations is critically important and we welcome the opportunity to hear about the OSCE's priorities.
Mr. President, the OSCE has taken on a very difficult and very important set of responsibilities in Ukraine, and we strongly endorse the Chairman-in-Office’s continued focus on brokering peace in Ukraine and serving as an impartial observer to the September 2014 agreements and February 2015 implementation package signed in Minsk. Of course, OSCE engagement and focus cannot alone turn commitments on the many papers that have been signed in Minsk into tangible realities on the ground, though the OSCE can uniquely shed light on those who undermine the path to peace. So it should come as no surprise that – in addition to repeated attacks on Ukrainian positions well past the agreed line of contact, repeated failure to withdraw foreign fighters and military equipment, and repeated failure to pull back heavy weaponry – Russian-backed separatists have also repeatedly frustrated the access of OSCE observers to the very places they have pledged to ensure such access.
This must end. It is imperative that OSCE observers be allowed to operate safely and be granted unfettered access to all areas in order to effectively monitor the terms of the ceasefire and the subsequent withdrawal of heavy weaponry, foreign troops, and mercenaries in accordance with the Minsk agreements and Security Council Resolution 2202, which we just adopted last week.
Under the terms of the Minsk Memorandum, OSCE observers are supposed to be allowed to monitor and verify the ceasefire, monitor and verify security zones in the border regions of Ukraine and the Russian Federation. Under the terms of the Minsk Protocol, OSCE observers are supposed to be allowed to monitor the ceasefire, monitor the withdrawal of heavy weapons, and monitor the withdrawal of all foreign militarized formations, military equipment, militants and mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine. Under the terms of the Minsk Implementation Package, OSCE observers are supposed to facilitate the withdrawal of heavy weapons and monitor and verify the ceasefire regime and withdrawal of heavy weapons, from day one.
And, yet, six months after the signing of the Minsk Memorandum and Protocol and almost two weeks after the signing of the Minsk Implementation Package, OSCE observers have yet to receive full access from the separatists to all areas to monitor and verify the ceasefire, the withdrawal of heavy weapons and foreign fighters, or security along the border.
Even today, after laying ruthless and deadly siege to the city of Debaltseve last week, approximately 30 to 40 kilometers beyond lines established by the September Minsk Agreements, separatists have yet to allow the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission unrestricted and unfettered access to that city to observe the situation on the ground. So if we are serious about improving cooperation between regional organizations and the United Nations, let’s start with this: Let’s recognize that the work of the OSCE is critical to making the agreed ceasefire and any effort at de-escalation stick, as agreed by all 57 OSCE participating States. And let’s take whatever action is necessary to ensure that all actors uphold their commitment to provide unfettered access to the OSCE in eastern Ukraine, and that all parties respect the neutrality of its mission and its monitors.
Protecting their access is important because the reports of the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine have been a key source for timely and impartial information on the situation in the Donbas area, and notably, on incidents like the downing of the MH17 plane; the appearance of weapons, troops, and support flowing from Russia into Ukraine; and the shelling of civilian targets in eastern Ukraine.
Mr. Chairman, we commend the OSCE’s efforts thus far and encourage your continued dedication to monitoring the ceasefire and ensuring all commitments made in Minsk are upheld, despite the very difficult conditions in which the mission works. You have the full backing of the United States and with the adoption of Resolution 2202, the endorsement of the United Nations Security Council to implement the Minsk Agreements.
Mr. President, the United States strongly endorses the Chairman-in-Office’s focus on bolstering OSCE field missions and independent institutions, like the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the High Commissioner for National Minorities, and the Representative on Freedom of the Media. The OSCE’s field missions contribute to our collective respect for human rights, and the institutionalization of rule of law.
We also welcome the passage by the OSCE Ministerial Council in December of 2014 of two decisions on Countering the Phenomenon of Foreign Fighters and Countering Kidnapping for Ransom. We support your efforts as Chairperson-in-Office to encourage implementation of these important decisions and to continue the work of OSCE field missions in the Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Balkans on counterterrorism issues, including countering violent extremism. We welcome more OSCE awareness-raising and capacity building efforts, which promote a multi-dimensional approach to countering violent extremism, and we encourage collaboration amongst stakeholders, particularly in the areas of youth/civil society, gender, community-policing, and human rights compliant approaches to addressing terrorism and violent extremism. We also thank the Chairman-in-Office for planning to host a regional “expert-level” summit in June to follow-up on all of these efforts.
Mr. President, lastly but importantly, in recent months, we have seen what should be an alarming display of anti-Semitism in Europe. From the shootings at the Jewish Museum in Brussels, to the horrific anti-Semitic attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris, to the recent wide scale desecration of a Jewish cemetery. Just as anti-Semitism in Europe is rising, so too, must our will to combat it and defeat it. For any organization that has a role in the maintenance of security and peace, it must also confront the kind of hate that undermines both – and anti-Semitism, as history has shown time and time again, is certainly that. As such, it is all the more important that the OSCE has undertaken the important work that it has to address anti-Semitism and intolerance, including its Declaration to Enhance Efforts to Combat Anti-Semitism adopted at the Basel Ministerial as a follow-up to the commemoration in November of the 10th anniversary of the OSCE Anti-Semitism Conference in Berlin. And yet, despite all that has been unfolding across Europe, at this 10-year anniversary meeting of the historic inaugural session, a third fewer countries showed up at the 2014 conference.
Of course, meetings and declarations will never alone crush hate, but they are important to focus our collective efforts, galvanize our collective will, and force our collective action.
Mr. Chair, the United States urges you to continue the OSCE’s critical work on this issue and we encourage OSCE participating States to help uphold the commitments enshrined in the Declaration.
The United States, as an active member of the OSCE, remains fully committed to the important work of the organization. A strong OSCE is a good partner for the United Nations, and it is a good partner in our cause of championing fairness, security, justice, and peace.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Ambassador David Pressman
Alternate Representative to the UN for Special Political Affairs
New York, NY
February 24, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. President. I would like to welcome the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Minister Dacic, to the Security Council and thank you for your briefing on OSCE activities under Serbia’s leadership. The partnership between the OSCE and the United Nations is critically important and we welcome the opportunity to hear about the OSCE's priorities.
Mr. President, the OSCE has taken on a very difficult and very important set of responsibilities in Ukraine, and we strongly endorse the Chairman-in-Office’s continued focus on brokering peace in Ukraine and serving as an impartial observer to the September 2014 agreements and February 2015 implementation package signed in Minsk. Of course, OSCE engagement and focus cannot alone turn commitments on the many papers that have been signed in Minsk into tangible realities on the ground, though the OSCE can uniquely shed light on those who undermine the path to peace. So it should come as no surprise that – in addition to repeated attacks on Ukrainian positions well past the agreed line of contact, repeated failure to withdraw foreign fighters and military equipment, and repeated failure to pull back heavy weaponry – Russian-backed separatists have also repeatedly frustrated the access of OSCE observers to the very places they have pledged to ensure such access.
This must end. It is imperative that OSCE observers be allowed to operate safely and be granted unfettered access to all areas in order to effectively monitor the terms of the ceasefire and the subsequent withdrawal of heavy weaponry, foreign troops, and mercenaries in accordance with the Minsk agreements and Security Council Resolution 2202, which we just adopted last week.
Under the terms of the Minsk Memorandum, OSCE observers are supposed to be allowed to monitor and verify the ceasefire, monitor and verify security zones in the border regions of Ukraine and the Russian Federation. Under the terms of the Minsk Protocol, OSCE observers are supposed to be allowed to monitor the ceasefire, monitor the withdrawal of heavy weapons, and monitor the withdrawal of all foreign militarized formations, military equipment, militants and mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine. Under the terms of the Minsk Implementation Package, OSCE observers are supposed to facilitate the withdrawal of heavy weapons and monitor and verify the ceasefire regime and withdrawal of heavy weapons, from day one.
And, yet, six months after the signing of the Minsk Memorandum and Protocol and almost two weeks after the signing of the Minsk Implementation Package, OSCE observers have yet to receive full access from the separatists to all areas to monitor and verify the ceasefire, the withdrawal of heavy weapons and foreign fighters, or security along the border.
Even today, after laying ruthless and deadly siege to the city of Debaltseve last week, approximately 30 to 40 kilometers beyond lines established by the September Minsk Agreements, separatists have yet to allow the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission unrestricted and unfettered access to that city to observe the situation on the ground. So if we are serious about improving cooperation between regional organizations and the United Nations, let’s start with this: Let’s recognize that the work of the OSCE is critical to making the agreed ceasefire and any effort at de-escalation stick, as agreed by all 57 OSCE participating States. And let’s take whatever action is necessary to ensure that all actors uphold their commitment to provide unfettered access to the OSCE in eastern Ukraine, and that all parties respect the neutrality of its mission and its monitors.
Protecting their access is important because the reports of the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine have been a key source for timely and impartial information on the situation in the Donbas area, and notably, on incidents like the downing of the MH17 plane; the appearance of weapons, troops, and support flowing from Russia into Ukraine; and the shelling of civilian targets in eastern Ukraine.
Mr. Chairman, we commend the OSCE’s efforts thus far and encourage your continued dedication to monitoring the ceasefire and ensuring all commitments made in Minsk are upheld, despite the very difficult conditions in which the mission works. You have the full backing of the United States and with the adoption of Resolution 2202, the endorsement of the United Nations Security Council to implement the Minsk Agreements.
Mr. President, the United States strongly endorses the Chairman-in-Office’s focus on bolstering OSCE field missions and independent institutions, like the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the High Commissioner for National Minorities, and the Representative on Freedom of the Media. The OSCE’s field missions contribute to our collective respect for human rights, and the institutionalization of rule of law.
We also welcome the passage by the OSCE Ministerial Council in December of 2014 of two decisions on Countering the Phenomenon of Foreign Fighters and Countering Kidnapping for Ransom. We support your efforts as Chairperson-in-Office to encourage implementation of these important decisions and to continue the work of OSCE field missions in the Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Balkans on counterterrorism issues, including countering violent extremism. We welcome more OSCE awareness-raising and capacity building efforts, which promote a multi-dimensional approach to countering violent extremism, and we encourage collaboration amongst stakeholders, particularly in the areas of youth/civil society, gender, community-policing, and human rights compliant approaches to addressing terrorism and violent extremism. We also thank the Chairman-in-Office for planning to host a regional “expert-level” summit in June to follow-up on all of these efforts.
Mr. President, lastly but importantly, in recent months, we have seen what should be an alarming display of anti-Semitism in Europe. From the shootings at the Jewish Museum in Brussels, to the horrific anti-Semitic attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris, to the recent wide scale desecration of a Jewish cemetery. Just as anti-Semitism in Europe is rising, so too, must our will to combat it and defeat it. For any organization that has a role in the maintenance of security and peace, it must also confront the kind of hate that undermines both – and anti-Semitism, as history has shown time and time again, is certainly that. As such, it is all the more important that the OSCE has undertaken the important work that it has to address anti-Semitism and intolerance, including its Declaration to Enhance Efforts to Combat Anti-Semitism adopted at the Basel Ministerial as a follow-up to the commemoration in November of the 10th anniversary of the OSCE Anti-Semitism Conference in Berlin. And yet, despite all that has been unfolding across Europe, at this 10-year anniversary meeting of the historic inaugural session, a third fewer countries showed up at the 2014 conference.
Of course, meetings and declarations will never alone crush hate, but they are important to focus our collective efforts, galvanize our collective will, and force our collective action.
Mr. Chair, the United States urges you to continue the OSCE’s critical work on this issue and we encourage OSCE participating States to help uphold the commitments enshrined in the Declaration.
The United States, as an active member of the OSCE, remains fully committed to the important work of the organization. A strong OSCE is a good partner for the United Nations, and it is a good partner in our cause of championing fairness, security, justice, and peace.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
SAMANTHA POWER'S EXPLANATION OF U.S. VOTE ON UKRAINE
FROM U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 17, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you. We’ve gotten used to living in an upside-down world with respect to Ukraine. Russia speaks of peace, and then fuels conflict. Russia signs agreements, and then does everything within its power to undermine them. Russia champions the sovereignty of nations, and then acts as if a neighbor’s borders do not exist. Yet even for those of us growing accustomed to living in an upside-down world, the idea that Russia – which manufactured and continues to escalate the violence in Ukraine – has tabled a resolution today calling for the conflict’s peaceful solution, is ironic, to say the least. Bitterly ironic, given that this Council has dedicated some thirty meetings to calling on Russia to stop escalating the very same conflict, and given the human consequences that are growing daily.
Even as Russia puts forward this resolution, separatists that Russia has trained, armed and that it fights alongside are laying ruthless and deadly siege to the Ukrainian-held city of Debaltseve, approximately 30 to 40 kilometers beyond lines established by the September Minsk agreements. Throughout the day, we’ve heard conflicting reports as to whether Debaltseve has fallen. According to press reports, the so-called “road of life” leading out of Debaltseve has become a “road of death,” littered with the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers. At just the time this Council is calling for the cease-fire that was supposed to take effect Saturday night at midnight, Russia is backing an all-out assault.
We do not know how many civilians are left in Debaltseve, because Russia and the separatists it supports have refused to guarantee the safety of impartial OSCE monitors who have been trying for days to enter the area – a commitment that, in this upside-down world, Russia and the separatists made on February 12th at Minsk.
But we know from credible press reports that thousands of civilians in Debaltseve and neighboring villages have been sheltering from heavy shelling in dank basements, often without running water, food, electricity, or basic medical supplies. We know that many of the civilians left, who are enduring the terror of this relentless assault, are the elderly and small children – people who could not evacuate on their own.
And even with such limited information, we know with certainty that at the same time that Russia signs onto yet another agreement committing itself to de-escalation and peace, forces that Russia trains, equips, and joins on the battlefield have only escalated this fighting, grabbing more territory and killing the Ukrainian soldiers who stand in their way.
We are caught in a deadly feedback loop. International leaders engage in rigorous, exhaustive negotiations to get Russia to commit to peace – in Geneva, in Normandy, in September in Minsk, in Berlin in February, and then again in Minsk on February 12th when the implementations were signed; and now in New York. Yet Russia’s commitments have no bearing on the actions of its soldiers and the separatists they back on the ground.
Mr. President, the United States has maintained the same position across thirty meetings before this Council with respect to Ukraine. Let me reiterate that position. We are for peace in Ukraine. We are for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity. We are for ending the violence in eastern Ukraine that has taken more than 5,600 lives since last April, and displaced already approximately one million people. We are for all of the signatories to the agreements signed in Minsk in September 2014 – particularly Russia and the separatists they back – fulfilling the commitments that they have made. And we are for the “Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements” of September 5 and September 19th, the package of measures endorsed last week by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France. To be clear, the February 12th implementation package is a roadmap to fulfilling commitments made by these same signatories in the September Minsk Agreements.
President Hollande, President Poroschenko, Chancellor Merkel, and President Putin each made this clear when they endorsed the implementation package on February 12th and issued their joint declaration that they “remain committed to the implementation of the Minsk Agreements.” The “Minsk Agreements” in the title – plural – refer to those signed on September 5 and September 19 by the same signatories, while the “measures for implementation” in the title make clear that the February 12th package was designed to begin carrying out the September agreements, and not to supplant them, as Russia has now begun to argue.
The United States rejects any interpretation of this resolution that would abrogate the parties’ earlier commitments. All parties must implement all of the commitments made in the September Minsk agreements. The implementation steps agreed upon in the February 12th package include a comprehensive cease-fire; the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the September line of contact; the release of all hostages; and the eventual restoration of Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty and control of its international border.
Too often, debates in this Council occur in a vacuum, removed from the real world. In the real world, a man named Aleksei Kravchenko, a 73-year-old in the Ukrainian held-town of Svitlodarsk, near Debaltseve, recently told a reporter that he had spent nights huddled together with his grandchildren in a bomb shelter on his property as shelling continued through the night. Aleksei told the reporter that his grandchildren said to him in the shelter, “Grandpa, I don’t want to die young.” He said, “I held my grandchildren, and they were shaking, and I looked in their eyes, and they were afraid.” With the February 12th agreement, Aleksei said, “Now we are hoping.” The fighting, unfortunately, has in fact increased dramatically near Aleksei’s home.
But we call on Russia to translate hope into real action; to translate hope into real results, and to do so urgently.
Today’s Council session is an effort to throw the Council’s weight behind an agreement already jeopardized by statements by the separatists dismissing the full cease-fire, by their continued attacks on Debaltseve, and by the separatists’ refusal – together with Russia’s – to allow access to the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission. We are looking to Russia, which manufactured and fueled this conflict, to leave the upside-down world it has created and to honor the resolution it tabled today supporting efforts to end it. Thank you.
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 17, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you. We’ve gotten used to living in an upside-down world with respect to Ukraine. Russia speaks of peace, and then fuels conflict. Russia signs agreements, and then does everything within its power to undermine them. Russia champions the sovereignty of nations, and then acts as if a neighbor’s borders do not exist. Yet even for those of us growing accustomed to living in an upside-down world, the idea that Russia – which manufactured and continues to escalate the violence in Ukraine – has tabled a resolution today calling for the conflict’s peaceful solution, is ironic, to say the least. Bitterly ironic, given that this Council has dedicated some thirty meetings to calling on Russia to stop escalating the very same conflict, and given the human consequences that are growing daily.
Even as Russia puts forward this resolution, separatists that Russia has trained, armed and that it fights alongside are laying ruthless and deadly siege to the Ukrainian-held city of Debaltseve, approximately 30 to 40 kilometers beyond lines established by the September Minsk agreements. Throughout the day, we’ve heard conflicting reports as to whether Debaltseve has fallen. According to press reports, the so-called “road of life” leading out of Debaltseve has become a “road of death,” littered with the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers. At just the time this Council is calling for the cease-fire that was supposed to take effect Saturday night at midnight, Russia is backing an all-out assault.
We do not know how many civilians are left in Debaltseve, because Russia and the separatists it supports have refused to guarantee the safety of impartial OSCE monitors who have been trying for days to enter the area – a commitment that, in this upside-down world, Russia and the separatists made on February 12th at Minsk.
But we know from credible press reports that thousands of civilians in Debaltseve and neighboring villages have been sheltering from heavy shelling in dank basements, often without running water, food, electricity, or basic medical supplies. We know that many of the civilians left, who are enduring the terror of this relentless assault, are the elderly and small children – people who could not evacuate on their own.
And even with such limited information, we know with certainty that at the same time that Russia signs onto yet another agreement committing itself to de-escalation and peace, forces that Russia trains, equips, and joins on the battlefield have only escalated this fighting, grabbing more territory and killing the Ukrainian soldiers who stand in their way.
We are caught in a deadly feedback loop. International leaders engage in rigorous, exhaustive negotiations to get Russia to commit to peace – in Geneva, in Normandy, in September in Minsk, in Berlin in February, and then again in Minsk on February 12th when the implementations were signed; and now in New York. Yet Russia’s commitments have no bearing on the actions of its soldiers and the separatists they back on the ground.
Mr. President, the United States has maintained the same position across thirty meetings before this Council with respect to Ukraine. Let me reiterate that position. We are for peace in Ukraine. We are for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity. We are for ending the violence in eastern Ukraine that has taken more than 5,600 lives since last April, and displaced already approximately one million people. We are for all of the signatories to the agreements signed in Minsk in September 2014 – particularly Russia and the separatists they back – fulfilling the commitments that they have made. And we are for the “Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements” of September 5 and September 19th, the package of measures endorsed last week by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France. To be clear, the February 12th implementation package is a roadmap to fulfilling commitments made by these same signatories in the September Minsk Agreements.
President Hollande, President Poroschenko, Chancellor Merkel, and President Putin each made this clear when they endorsed the implementation package on February 12th and issued their joint declaration that they “remain committed to the implementation of the Minsk Agreements.” The “Minsk Agreements” in the title – plural – refer to those signed on September 5 and September 19 by the same signatories, while the “measures for implementation” in the title make clear that the February 12th package was designed to begin carrying out the September agreements, and not to supplant them, as Russia has now begun to argue.
The United States rejects any interpretation of this resolution that would abrogate the parties’ earlier commitments. All parties must implement all of the commitments made in the September Minsk agreements. The implementation steps agreed upon in the February 12th package include a comprehensive cease-fire; the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the September line of contact; the release of all hostages; and the eventual restoration of Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty and control of its international border.
Too often, debates in this Council occur in a vacuum, removed from the real world. In the real world, a man named Aleksei Kravchenko, a 73-year-old in the Ukrainian held-town of Svitlodarsk, near Debaltseve, recently told a reporter that he had spent nights huddled together with his grandchildren in a bomb shelter on his property as shelling continued through the night. Aleksei told the reporter that his grandchildren said to him in the shelter, “Grandpa, I don’t want to die young.” He said, “I held my grandchildren, and they were shaking, and I looked in their eyes, and they were afraid.” With the February 12th agreement, Aleksei said, “Now we are hoping.” The fighting, unfortunately, has in fact increased dramatically near Aleksei’s home.
But we call on Russia to translate hope into real action; to translate hope into real results, and to do so urgently.
Today’s Council session is an effort to throw the Council’s weight behind an agreement already jeopardized by statements by the separatists dismissing the full cease-fire, by their continued attacks on Debaltseve, and by the separatists’ refusal – together with Russia’s – to allow access to the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission. We are looking to Russia, which manufactured and fueled this conflict, to leave the upside-down world it has created and to honor the resolution it tabled today supporting efforts to end it. Thank you.
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