Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba fleshes out new alliance between Ukraine, Poland and UK
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba described some details of the new security framework declared between Ukraine, Poland and the UK, in a Facebook post on Feb. 1.
“News about the new tight-knit alliance of Ukraine, Poland and the UK has made its way into public discourse, creating a bit of frenzy; now’s the time for some clarity,” Kuleba said.
According to the minister, Ukraine suggested this new alliance last October, as part of its “strategy of minor alliances as a proactive foreign policy stance.”
“The thing is, we can’t sit and wait for security and prosperity to come in some distant future once we join the EU and NATO – we need that here and now,” the minister’s post said.
“We’re establishing a belt of security and prosperity, strengthening the Baltic-Black Sea axis; that’s why we’re engaged in the Lublin Triangle with Poland and Lithuania, Quad Alliance with Turkey and Associated Trio with Georgia and Moldova.”
Oleksandr Kornienko, the Deputy Speaker of Ukraine’s parliament, said that the new alliance is not a substitute for EU or NATO membership.
“This (alliance) is not an alternative to NATO, not an alternative to EU; it’s not even an alternative to other regional frameworks like the Intermarium, which could bind the Baltics, Poland, Ukraine and possibly other countries on the Black Sea coast,” said Kornienko.
Kuleba added that the emerging diplomatic framework is not bound by geography, but instead ties together countries on the basis of shared values, interests in enhancing security and trade, and a proactive foreign policy.
“Our efforts to bind the Atlantic, the Baltic and Black Sea are creating new opportunities for our countries and the region in general,” said Kuleba.
According to him, the new alliance was initially supposed to be announced during the upcoming visit of UK’s Foreign Secretary Liz Truss to Kyiv, but the official announcement was pushed back to a later date due to Truss coming down with COVID.
“In the meantime,”, Kuleba said, “our teams won’t sit out their hand but will instead continue to hammer out the details of this new (diplomatic) format.”
Earlier reports by various media suggested the new Kyiv-Warsaw-London alliance will be announced on Feb. 1, when Polish and British Prime Ministers are scheduled to visit Ukraine.
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