Zelensky administration outlines 2021 foreign policy goals

The Zelensky administration has three key goals that
will determine the priority of its foreign policy in 2021, said Ihor Zhovkva, a
deputy head in the President’s Office, in a text published on Jan. 1 on the
dt.ua news site. They are (1) peace in a deoccupied Donbas, (2) Crimea as part
of the Ukrainian state, and (3) Ukraine as an active international player. The
administration’s top priority is maintaining and strengthening Ukraine’s
international support, particularly its bilateral relations with its strategic
partners, which include the U.S., France and Germany.

The Zelensky administration also plans ongoing work to
fulfill the agreements reached at the Normandy Four conference in Paris in
December 2019, Zhovkva wrote. It has set the goal of holding another Normandy
Four summit “whose strategic task will be discussing key issues on establishing
peace in Donbas on Ukrainian conditions,” he wrote. “Here we will continue to
count on the support of our partners in the Normandy Four – France and
Germany.”

The administration’s tactical goals in Donbas consist
of preserving the ongoing reconciliation, activating the work of the Trilateral
Contact Group, further exchanges of prisoners, the functioning of existing
border crossings and opening new ones, withdrawing forces and equipment at
newly agreed upon territories, fulfilling the renewed plan for demining, and
ensuring access for the Red Cross, the OSCE special monitoring mission and
other international organizations to detained persons.

It will also work to strengthen international pressure
on the Russian Federation to fulfill its objectives, Zhovkva wrote. A summit of
Ukraine’s allies – in support of the launch of the Crimean Platform
international partnership – is scheduled for the summer of 2021, he wrote.

The Zelensky administration will work towards building
an effective dialogue with the expected new U.S. presidential administration
and arrange a visit of Ukraine’s president to Washington, Zhovkva wrote.
“Already now we are working towards a new meaningful roadmap for bilateral
relations, which we should discuss and begin to fulfill already in 2021. Among
the important tasks is arranging a systemic dialogue with the representatives
of the renewed Congress for the further strengthening of bipartisan support for
Ukraine,” he wrote.   

Zenon Zawada: These
points make sense and reflect sensible foreign policy goals for Ukraine. At the
same time, they are unrealistic as Russia continues to enjoy a solid upperhand
in the armed conflict in Donbas and has no reason to return to the table for
another summit.

Noticeably absent from Zhovkva’s text is any mention
of the IMF or leading international lenders. We don’t think that is
intentional, as Zelensky has recognized since the start of his presidency that
he needs IMF loans more than anything. We believe that is excluded because it’s
an assumed given.