Delivering remarks at the flag-raising ceremony in Chicago, Illinois
Today marks 34 years since Ukraine declared independence.
Like much of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, Ukraine experienced growing pains and challenges during the first years of statehood following the collapse of the USSR. As the country undertook a path of modernization, political reform, and alignment with Europe and liberal democracy, Russia was determined to pull Ukraine back into its sphere of influence and prevent any possibility for true independence and sovereignty. This first came in the form of political meddling. Russia’s attempts to prop-up its proxy candidate and steal Ukraine’s 2004 presidential election was the instigating factor behind the 2004 Orange Revolution. Nearly ten years later, Putin would again interfere in Ukrainian politics by pressuring then-president Yanukovych to suddenly cancel a long-awaited treaty with the European Union and instead pursue closer ties with Russia. The pub…
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