Since When Did Ukraine Become an Important U.S. “Ally?â€
Ted Galen Carpenter
By
Ted Galen Carpenter
The U.S. government has taken on an abundance of highly questionable security commitments over the decades. That trend has become even worse during the post-Cold War era than it was during the Cold War itself. Washington’s growing political and military ties with Ukraine epitomize an especially reckless policy.
President George W Bush strongly lobbied to bring Ukraine (as well as Georgia) into NATO in 2008, despite Russia’s strenuous objections. However, two key allies, France and Germany, balked at that proposal. They were uneasy about the continuing corruption and authoritarian tendencies in Kiev, despite the professed democratic ideals of Ukraine’s “Orange Revolution.†French and German officials also worried (with good reason) that making Ukraine a NATO member would provoke Russia beyond endurance and risk a dire East-West military confrontation. Allied intransigence on the membership issue persisted when Barack Obama continued the U.S. effort to bring Kiev into NATO.
https://www.19fortyfive.com/2021/03/since-when-did-ukraine-become-an-important-u-s-ally/