Kyiv Post’s Correspondent in Action in the US State Department

Kyiv Post is proud to have its own correspondent in the US State Department who is in the right place to ask all the pertinent questions and to be the first to provide insights and scoops.

Our Chief Correspondent in Washington DC is Alex Raufoglu. He covers the US State Department, regularly traveling with the US Secretary of State.

Alex has worked extensively in the South Caucasus and Black Sea regions for several international broadcast outlets, such as VoA, BBC, RFE/RL, etc. He holds an MA in Interactive Journalism from the American University, Washington DC.

Here’s a transcription of the questions posed by Alex and the responses.

QUESTION: On Ukraine, if I may. The Secretary, in an interview this morning, revealed that the U.S. engaged with, quote, “Putin’s top people,” unquote, early this week, and it didn’t pan out. Can you please enlighten us who met with whom? We know the Secretary was in the building. He didn’t travel. We know that Russian ambassador was in the building yesterday. Beyond that, there is no public record of any Russia-U.S. engagement.

MR PIGOTT: Well, I have nothing to read out for you from here.

QUESTION: Were Ukrainians involved as well?

MR PIGOTT: Again, I have nothing to preview from here.

QUESTION: And I know you have heard this from me before, that Kyiv is under attack. And last night we had an unprecedented, again, attack on civilians. The timing of it is eye-popping. Any reaction to this?

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MR PIGOTT: Well, we have been clear, the President has been clear and so has the Secretary about how we view recent actions from Russia. We’ve seen the President discuss the new timeline that he has in place in terms of actions he may take regarding Russia – secondary sanctions or other items. So, what we are seeing here – or tariffs, excuse me, and other items – what we are seeing here, again, is a clear indication and transparency from this administration about how we view these recent actions. The fact that we have tried in good faith to approach these discussions, to encourage both parties to come to the table, we have seen that happen, which is a credit to the leadership of this administration.

But also, the fact, as the President said, we need to see action, not words. And so, the President’s been very clear on that. He’s been very consistent, and he’s spoken on this very publicly in recent days.

QUESTION: Thank you, Tommy. If I may, one more topic on Moldova – please.

MR PIGOTT: Okay. One more.

QUESTION: Moldovan president yesterday, she revealed that her country’s under attack by Russia disinformation campaign going on prior to election. Your allies in Romania also confirmed that. Is this something that you guys are concerned about? Is there anything you can do to stop this?

MR PIGOTT: Well, let me take that back and see if we can get you more details on that question.