Senators Jerry Moran (R., Kansas) and Steve Daines (R., Mont.) on Tuesday urged Secretary of State Antony Blinken to “fully” reopen the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv to “symbolically affirm” America’s commitment to Ukraine’s territory.
“With Ukraine’s successful defense of Kyiv and Russia’s subsequent withdrawal of forces from the areas surrounding the capital, we encourage you to fully open the United States embassy without delay,” the senators wrote a letter to Blinken, obtained by Politico.
“Ukraine faces enormous military, economic, and humanitarian challenges as a result of this war. America’s restored diplomatic presence in Kyiv will enhance cooperation with a democratic partner as it wages an existential defense and symbolically affirm our nation’s commitment to Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty,” the pair added.
The letter comes nearly two months after Russia first invaded Ukraine. Shortly before the war began, Blinken announced the U.S. would be “temporarily relocating” its embassy operations from Kyiv to Lviv. On the first day of the invasion, the State Department announced that embassy operations had been suspended. The move relocated the core team that had been working in Lviv to Poland.
Now that Russia has seemingly shifted its strategy away from capturing the capital city, the two lawmakers are calling on Blinken to follow in the footsteps of the European Union, Italy and Spain, all of which have recently announced plans to resume diplomatic operations in Kyiv.
Moran and Daines wrote to Blinken that the United States’s failure to return its diplomatic operations to Kyiv “signals a lack of confidence in Ukraine’s ability to defend itself and the diplomatic missions under its protection.”
“Resuming normal embassy operations at once will reinforce the importance of diplomacy and America’s full support for a Ukraine whole and free,” the letter adds.
The senators go on to add that the U.S. “historically has maintained embassies in nations at war, including those capitals under direct attack.”
“The diplomats and all who serve at our Kyiv embassy will continue a long tradition of advancing America’s relationships even under duress,” Moran and Daines added.