U.S. approves Markarova as Ukraine ambassador

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry has received a diplomatic
agrément from the U.S. to appoint former finance minister Oksana Markarova as
Ukraine’s next ambassador to the U.S., deputy minister Yevhen Yenin said in an
interview with the Interfax-Ukraine news agency published on Dec. 30. The final
decision rests with the Ukrainian president, he said. Markarova served as
acting finance minister between June 2018 and November 2019, and in an official
capacity until Mar. 4, 2020.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba announced his
nomination of Markarova on Nov. 20. The current Ukrainian ambassador to the
U.S., Volodymyr Yelchenko, is a classic diplomat who hasn’t drawn criticism for
his work, Kuleba said. With Markarova however, “Ukraine will have an ambassador
in Washington for the first time who is well known in the U.S. administrations,
particularly in the State Department and finance ministry, as well as the IMF,”
Kuleba said.

Zenon Zawada: Zelensky is
likely to approve Markarova as Ukraine’s next ambassador to the U.S. We don’t
doubt that she has solid contacts with U.S. officials. However, it’s not the
diplomats who can improve relations with the U.S., but state policies and
legislation, particularly in the spheres of EU integration and fighting corruption.

The main task at the present moment is approving more legislation to renew fully Ukraine’s anti-corruption
infrastructure, which was disrupted by a scandalous Oct. 27 court
ruling that is widely acknowledged to have been arranged by
pro-Russian forces.