If US recognizes Crimea as "Russian", it will be huge mistake, - former Ambassador Chalyi
For the United States to recognize Crimea as Russian would be a huge mistake. This would mean that Russia would retain control over the eastern part of the Black Sea.
This was stated by Valerii Chalyi, Chairman of the Board of the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center, former Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States, during the International Black Sea Security Forum in Odesa, Censor.NET reports citing Ukrinform.
"After the war, freedom of navigation will be restored, and if you lose Crimea, it can become a problem. I don't even want to discuss it, but if the United States - potentially - recognizes Crimea as belonging to our enemy, it will be another huge mistake. Because without the peninsula, you cannot control the entire eastern part of the Black Sea," the diplomat said.
He recalled that before the war, every NATO warship that entered the Black Sea was counted, but they were not enough to respond to Russia's massive build-up. At the same time, Ukraine also made mistakes in assessing the intentions and potential of the enemy, which began attacking cities and infrastructure with all available means.
"We are grateful to the United States for their position. I was an ambassador to the United States and I know how difficult it was to resolve issues at the presidential level, but they supported Ukraine. I had the opportunity to meet with President Trump several times during my previous term, and I remain optimistic. In a broader context, we still think we can win in the future without the United States. But I think it is our task, the task for Ukrainians, to find a way to bring our strategies - American and Ukrainian - closer together to win in the Black Sea and the wider region... Send us more weapons, apply more sanctions and reduce oil prices for at least six months - it will be a really good deal," the diplomat said.
He noted that Trump had said during his previous presidential term that Crimea could belong to Russia because it was a Russian-speaking region and also "historically." The American leader repeated this position a few weeks ago, the diplomat recalled.
"...The President of the United States is a very important figure, but he is not the whole of America. We get a lot of support from intelligence, from defense agencies, from the State Department, from Congress, from individual governors... It's a very big and complex country. We have to work with everyone - Republicans, Democrats, President Trump, but we also have to remember what President Biden did for us," Chalyi emphasized.
According to him, President Trump's statements sometimes cause excessive emotions in Ukrainians. In this context, the ex-ambassador suggested that people in charge of foreign policy should be less emotional, be ready to meet and talk with Americans and put forward constructive proposals themselves, without waiting for others to offer them.
"I sometimes see statements that the end of the Russian war against Ukraine now depends entirely on President Trump. I do not agree with this. The subject of this war is our military, our Defense Forces. We count on the support of the United States and our European partners. We do not need your actions tomorrow or next year, we need such actions now, at this final stage, when we have a window of opportunity. If you do not take advantage of this, Putin will move on, Putin will come to you. Don't forget that and be realistic," Chalyi emphasized.
Earlier, Donald Trump said that Crimea will remain with Russia. Trump also noted that no one is asking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to recognize Crimea as Russian territory because the peninsula was lost "many years ago."
