U.S. State Department considering sanctions against Ukraine leaders

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee met on Jan. 15 to discuss the political crisis in Ukraine. Among those participating were Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Melia, U.S. Senator John McCain and former U.S. National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski. Nuland called on both sides in the conflict not to resort to violence, the Ukrayinska Pravda news site reported. She recommended that the government renew cooperation with the IMF because it faces a default situation every three months (under the conditions of the USD 15 bln Russian loan). The State Department is considering sanctions against top government officials, she said. Brzezinski said Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fears honest elections because he will lose them. He suggested that the opposition rally behind a single candidate for the March 2015 presidential vote.

Zenon Zawada: The threat of sanctions against key officials and oligarchs had an effect. Ever since Nuland’s visit to Kyiv in mid-December, the government has refrained from applying force to the EuroMaidan, which begins its ninth week today. It has retained under its control Kyiv’s main boulevard Khreshchatyk, Independence Square (Maidan) and the Kyiv City Council building, though reports surfaced yesterday that provocations and a possible police raid are in the pipeline for th e next few days. We don’t expect the U.S. government will take any further steps in the sanctions sphere unless significant use of violence is applied.