Brzezinski criticizes Yanukovich for Black Sea Fleet

17.06.2010 Authoritative Western experts characterized Ukraine's refusal to join NATO, its legislative off-alliance status, and prolongation of Russian Black Sea Fleet (BSF) deployment as political blunders of President Yanukovich. That was said in World Policy Institute's report on initial outcomes of the foreign policy of Viktor Yanukovich made with participation of Zbigniew Brzezinski, James Sherr, and Steven Pifer.

The experts are convinced that Yanukovich having settled short-range budget problems, placed perspective of Ukraine's independent foreign policy in jeopardy. The authors said the BSF decision was non-serving national interests of Ukraine as a state.

Specific emphasis was placed on two matters. First is that the treaty was signed in a shady and non-transparent way. Second is that agreements are valid for very long period – 25 years. Thus, current Ukraine's administration bound over the subsequent generations of Ukrainian political elite which won't be able to react on security threat adequately due to blunders of their predecessors.

In addition, the authors pointed out that prolongation of BSF deployment in Crimea would be a destabilizing factor for Ukrainian nationhood. Allegedly, crisis in Crimea would grow, Ukraine would be drawn into conflicts between Russia and third countries etc.

Criticizing Yanukovich for non-alignment, the authors, however, expressed hope that the Ukrainian president would eventually revise his position on this matter.