Despite the Ukraine-linked impeachment process of U.S. President Donald J. Trump, Ukraine feels the continued support of the United States, the country’s defense minister has said in an interview.
Defense Minister Andriy Zagorodnyuk discussed this with the Canadian television channel CTV News. The exchange was later reported by the Ukrainian news outlet Korrespondent.
“Ukraine is dealing with many people from the State Department, the Pentagon… and everyone says that this situation should in no way be seen as a sign of a change in policy. It is very important for us that the American people and the government are with us in the fight against Russia,” Zagorodnyuk reportedly said of bilateral relations.
The minister also stressed that U.S. support is based on shared values with Ukraine that have not changed.
“We are talking about the values of the free world, the rule of law and territorial integrity, which have remained unchanged. We communicate with senators, diplomats, the military – and all of them argue that support is based on values and cannot change in a short time… we are absolutely sure about this,” he added.
Zahorodnyuk has been visiting Canada and met with his counterpart Harjit Sajjan while participating in the Halifax International Security Forum.
The minister also talked to the local press, where he gave his views on the Ukrainian relations with North America.
During his meeting with the Canadian counterpart, the two ministers discussed the current and future military cooperation of the two countries.
After the meeting, Sajjan wrote on his Facebook account that “Canada’s support of Ukraine and its people is steadfast,” echoing a statement made by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau the same day.
While talking to the Canadian CTV News channel Zagorodnyuk thanked Canada for its continuous support “in material way and also in non-material way” during the crisis years of fighting against Russia-backed insurgents in the east of Ukraine.
He also said that “expanding the relationship is certainly in our interest. And since we have five years of experience fighting with Russia, we would like to help our friends with lessons learned and with our experiences – I know that Canada military are very interested in it as well.”
In the same interview with CTV, Zagorodnyuk spoke on the military reforms in Ukraine and welcomed Canada’s extension of its mission in Ukraine until 2022. He explained that Ukraine is moving towards NATO standards and “will be doing the reform for some years to come.”
Korrespondent reports that Zagorodnyuk also spoke of his certainty about U.S. policy towards Ukraine. The minister was absolutely sure that the Washington’s general support has not seen any changes.
Zagorodnyuk admitted, however, that he would rather Ukraine was not a feature in the Trump impeachment hearings.
