In the very first years of independence Ukraine embarked on the path of cooperation with international security organizations that function in the Euro-Atlantic area. For 20 years on end, cooperation with NATO has been considered a priority in the system of Ukraine’s international relations.
The Ukraine president’s Decree No. 273/2012 of April 19, 2012, approved the Annual National Program of Ukraine-NATO Cooperation for 2012. The basis of the program is strategic partnership between Ukraine and NATO, which not only provides for reforming and modernizing the armed forces, but also promotes changes in Ukrainian society, as the Annual National Program of Ukraine-NATO Cooperation is also a program to reform this country. The medium-term goal of the partnership is Ukraine’s rapprochement with NATO to the maximum possible level of cooperation allowed by the non-aligned status of a partner country.
On May 20-21, 2012, Chicago, the home city of President Barack Obama, will host the 25th NATO Summit. In view of the upcoming presidential elections in the US, it is obvious that the American president is interested in reaching substantial agreements at this summit.
One of the main issues to be discussed at the summit is withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and transfer of the responsibility to maintain peace and security to the Afghan military in 2014. The EU and the US are planning to annually provide four to five billion dollars worth aid to Afghanistan after the troops have been withdrawn. Ukraine can in turn offer assistance in the training of the Afghan army and police, humanitarian mine clearance, and economic development of Afghanistan, particularly in carrying out energy and construction projects.
It is important for Ukraine, which adheres to the principles of European approaches to conflict settlement and supports the UN and NATO policy in the Middle Eastern region, to support the position of Turkey enshrined in such NATO-participated interaction programs as the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative and the Mediterranean Dialogue. This will in turn increase the value of Ukrainian priorities for Ankara in our negotiations with Turkey, including the ones that focus on economic and energy prospects.
Also on the agenda of the Chicago Summit will be the current condition and development of the Missile Defense System (MDS) in Europe. It is important for Ukraine not to lose the dialogue, to continue forming a common position with the Alliance, to express its positive attitude to the deployment and development of the MDS in Europe, to state that Ukraine cannot remain outside the MDS in Europe and should join the European MDS on the principles of equal participation. Ukraine should suggest resuming discussions on the likely scientific, technological, and industrial cooperation between Ukraine and NATO member states in certain segments of the European MDS development and on the likely use of our early warning stations after they have been updated with the assistance of partners. As one of the world’s leading countries that contribute to the reduction of nuclear threat, Ukraine should initiate a debate on reducing nuclear forces, to which the deployment of the current MDS in Europe could be an impetus.
Reduced military expenditures are forcing NATO states to examine more closely the possibility of cost-effective deals with other countries and seek new cooperation partners. This gives Ukraine some new opportunities. The need to save money in the Alliance provides a chance for the Ukrainian military-industrial complex to get its second wind because, if effectively managed, it would be able to lobby a number of projects. Given the reduction of defense spending in NATO countries and in view of the implementation of the “smart defense” concept as a way of defense rationalization, Ukraine should offer its partners new cost-effective projects, including serial production of the certain types of military transportation aircraft, armored vehicles, warships, precision weapons, certain components of radar and missile equipment, as well as cooperation in the areas that have not been previously considered as promising.
After all, it is necessary to finally join the NATO’s counter piracy operation Ocean Shield because this initiative of the Alliance to combat piracy is important for the Ukrainian people.
President Viktor Yanukovych should offer the international community and the world’s leaders an initiative to defend the principles of “security culture” and encourage NATO to maintain “security culture” in the relations between the government and civil society. Ukraine in turn needs to commit to observing the balance of democratic principles and the effectiveness of law enforcement agencies. Only then can it expect the Euro-Atlantic community to make certain moves to promote its movement towards European standards.
Ukraine should not give in to external pressure regarding its plans for relations with NATO. However, there are some domestic problems due to the lack of understanding security issues on the part of some authorities. The people who came to the national leadership from business know well the price for a ton of metal or a thousand cubic meters of gas, but they often do not know the price of security, and when security cannot be measured or evaluated, it is worth nothing. Today, the Ukrainian authorities often underestimate security issues by contrast with the Russians who go to the other extreme, apparently, under the influence of their conspiratorial past. It is against this backdrop that the Kharkiv Agreement was signed. However, security issues have always been and will remain crucial. For example, the European Union was founded after the establishment of NATO because the security-based foundation made it possible to develop the economy in Europe. Ukraine is no exception. For this country national security is also a strategic value which can not be linked to gas or any other material things. We need to know our real capacity and take care of our own safety. The political and military elite must remember the old proven formula that Motherland is always in danger. A country’s security should be strengthened to a level that exceeds the required reserve of strength many times over.
It is important for Ukraine to continue close cooperation with NATO because this cooperation strengthens the national security of our country. Yet, unfortunately, this cooperation has been reduced to joint maneuvers and peacekeeping missions. However, NATO does not only mean the abovementioned issues, NATO in general means changes in society, it means reforming the judicial system and many other matters that are not directly connected with the army and weapons. This is why it is very important that there is cooperation with NATO in different spheres, which will involve ministries, departments, academics, NGOs, and society because society is more inert and continues to integrate into the European space regardless of the attitudes of some politicians.
President Yanukovych’s participation in the Chicago Summit and a direct dialogue of Kyiv with Brussels, Washington, and other capitals of the Alliance member countries is extremely important. Not through Moscow, as some might want it to be, but directly as befits a great state. Participating in the summit is an opportunity to have a dialogue on all the important issues of policy, security, economy, and energy. There can be not so many big international events in the course of a year, where leaders of independent countries form the future agenda at a roundtable. The site provided by NATO for this purpose should be used to defend Ukraine’s interests in a globalized and not always safe world.
Serhii Dzherdzh is a candidate of Political Science and head of the Ukraine-NATO Civic League
