We seem to have got off lightly this time with a relatively “mild” resolution passed at the regular session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, although Minister of Foreign Affairs Borys Tarasiuk remains dissatisfied with this decision., as did most of Ukrainian parliamentary commentators who spoke about interference in the internal affairs of Ukraine, unjustifiably harsh wording, etc.
The serial running years on end called “Will They or Won’t They Kick Us Out?” has in fact long turned into a farce, for it now quite clear that nobody is going to kick Ukraine or Russia out of the Council of Europe, but they can put a scare into both. Still, we are not afraid. Perhaps because we never developed, over the years of independence, sufficient respect for ourselves, so why on earth should we respect what are known as democratic principles, general norms, and, finally, common sense?
Frankly, the Council of Europe is far from being the most influential international organization. We seem to have been shamed internationally, and this is bad enough even without the endless Kyiv vs. Strasbourg litigation. Is it surprising, then, that our state has such an unattractive image in foreign publications?
Our state really seems to lack elementary self-respect. How can you explain otherwise, in particular, the fact that the US ambassador in Kyiv, Steven Pifer, who undoubtedly has a favorable attitude toward Ukraine, is constantly trying to teach this country right from wrong? Why does the official leadership have to constantly explain that any talks about its European integration can only materialize when this wish materializes in the shape of attracting tangible economic, social, commercial, investments, and technical achievements? For it is the radical increase in the well- being of our own population, which will be voting for things in various elections and referendums, that in the long run determines our visa treatment by other countries, the inflow of tourists, the wish to work in this state’s market, and to invest money here. What also matters is our firm voice on the international arena, which will be heard because it will have to be taken into account by those who resort to various combinations.
How else you I explain that only professional diplomacy should coordinate relations with all foreign countries, including Russia, and that only in this case the former can be appreciated and expected to yield real results; that there are and will be some interests of this country which will not always coincide with those of the US, Russia, and Germany? There is nothing tragic in this, as well as in the fact that these interests may not always coincide with those of our own so-called business or the so-called bureaucrats. And it does not befit a country, which wants to appear attractive, to abandon its own obvious interests, being only guided by visible international or Russian pressure.
How can one expect somebody to treat you in earnest if you have perennial problems with the Council of Europe, endless accusations about financial machinations, and show a stubborn unwillingness to pay Russia the debts owed? Even Turkish poachers do not seem to believe that Ukraine is a state to respect, perhaps for the same reason.
Whatever is written or said on this subject, the scandals, accusations, and problems this country has in its foreign relations continue, to a large extent, for the simple reason that Ukraine has not yet been accepted as a normal, independent and self-sufficient state in the minds of its own political leadership. Otherwise, it is difficult to explain why all this has been dragging on for years, with no basic changes in sight. No United States ambassador will bring Ukraine closer to what may seem the coveted Western Europe as long as such scandals continue, as long as Kyiv plays the role of a mendicant, and as long as the average Ukrainian is an unwelcome guest in France or the Czech Republic because of his very low living standards and the country still shows corruption, the inability to carry out real reform, and immoderate dependence on others. This is an axiom.
