Amendments to the Ukrainian Constitution
Implications for Kiev’s Relations with the EU and the US

The American Institute in Ukraine is pleased to sponsor a press briefing for Ukrainian experts and media with Anthony T. Salvia, Executive Director of the American Institute in Ukraine.s The topic of the briefing will be:

Amendments to the Ukrainian Constitution:
Implications for Kiev’s Relations with the EU and the US

Time and location: Tuesday, October 5, 2010 Ukraine Ukrainian News NA, 20 Esplanadna str. near “Palace of Sport” metro station.

Specific topics to be addressed include:

• Recent developments in Ukraine’s relations with Washington and Brussels indicate that Ukraine is emerging, as Viktor Yanukovich promised during the recent presidential campaign, as a bridge between the Eastern and Western parts of pan-Europe.
• There is a new pragmatism evident in how both Washington and Brussels view Kiev and its relations with Moscow. This is occasioned by the on-going economic travails of the Western powers, and a growing awareness of Russia’s strategic importance, but also by Ukraine’s declaration of its non-aligned status vis a vis the military blocs. The days when Ukraine’s was seen by Washington as a pawn to be deployed against Moscow are over..
• What did President Yanukovich achieve in his recent visits to Brussels and Berlin? How will Prime Minister Azarov be received in Brussles next week? What are the immediate and long-term prospects for Ukraine in the 20th year of its independence?

Anthony T. Salvia, Executive Director of the American Institute in Ukraine, served as an appointee of President Ronald Reagan to the US Department of State during the critical years leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. From his vantage point as Special Advisor to the Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs and Deputy Director of Congressional Affairs in the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (1981-1987), we was able to gain unique insight into the events leading up to the end of the Cold War. Subsequently, he was director of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Moscow bureau (1993 to 1996), and Executive Assistant to the President of RFE/RL in Munich (1988 to 1993).

The press briefing is part of AIU’s informational and educational program to bring to the people of Ukraine a sense of the diversity of opinion that exists among Americans regarding NATO and other relevant issues. AIU believes such diversity allows for a better informed debate among Ukraine’s people about the future of their country. AIU is a privately funded U.S. nonprofit organization and neither receives, solicits, nor accepts funds from any government.