Speaker Lytvyn opts for neutral Ukraine with strong ties to Russia

November20200921:48

In his interview with Fakty i Komentari on Nov. 20, Speaker Lytvyn said, among other things, that he opts for a neutral status for Ukraine and closer ties with Russia.

- We can hear more and more often now your anti-NATO declarations and nostalgia for the USSR. It looks as if you would soon say, following Vladimir Putin, that the collapse of the USSR was a big mistake.

- In fact, even those Western researchers who were earlier called Sovietologists have admitted that the collapse of the FSU was not due to objective reasons. I therefore believe that this period of our history should be reassessed. I had become firm in my belief that Ukraine should not join the NATO long before the presidential campaign started. First, it is apparent that NATO, like the Warsaw Treaty, was originally aimed to deal with the challenges of the Cold War which is now over.

Second, it is stupid to bang on a tightly locked door as NATO does not want Ukraine.

Finally, and this is a very important factor, the majority of Ukrainians are against joining NATO. The issue of NATO is divisive for our society, and that is why Ukraine should remain a non-affiliated state. Ukraine has received guarantees of its security under the 1994 Budapest memorandum. We should spare no effort to make this political document a legal document. Big powers should confirm security guarantees for Ukraine at a qualitatively higher level.

- As the New Year comes closer, do you think Ukraine will enter it without another gas spat with Russia?

- The cabinet claims we have enough natural gas stored in underground reservoirs. Yet, we must normalize our relations with Russia and start a civilized dialog. Otherwise, this or that thorny issue will always surface. We have to forget the myth that Russia is eager to swallow Ukraine. Russia is long past such thinking. It uses global approaches to stay among global players.

Our task is not to stop being attractive to Russia. We have to be aware of our national interests and realize where Russia’s interests are. Where our positions coincide, we have to cooperate. Where they differ, we must either take steps towards each other or take a step back together. What hinders cooperation should be put aside – and continue work. For instance, we can work towards developing industrial-military cooperation which means state-of-the-art technologies. We have severed links in this sector, to the detriment of both Russia and Ukraine.