Please read the August 21 update below from the UKRAINIAN NATIONAL INFORMATION SERVICE (UNIS), which together with the POLISH AMERICAN CONGRESS is a member organization of the CENTRAL AND EAST EUROPEAN COALITION.
THE UNIS UPDATE BELOW IN ITS HISTORICAL CONTEXT
by John Czop
On August 21, President Biden issued an Executive Order to implement all sanctions against Putin’s Kremlin intended to stop the construction of Nord Stream 2 that Congress previously enacted. This shows that the Biden Administration is responding to pressure from our fellow Americans and many members of Congress who want the President to stop Nord Stream 2. Nevertheless, President Biden’s present position will permit Nord Stream 2 to go forward unless Congress stops it.
This is why we need to continue to phone the District Offices of our United States Senators and Members of the House of Representatives and let them know that: Congress must stop Nord Stream 2 because it threatens the energy independence and sovereignty not only of Poland, but of all the countries between the Baltic and Black Seas, with Ukraine especially vulnerable.
With the connivance of Germany, Nord Stream 2 will allow Putin to reestablish imperium over the former space of the Soviet Union.
We need to remember two past events.
First, in August 2008, Putin ordered the invasion of Georgia.United States Senator John McCain, then Republican candidate for president, and Poland’s President Lech Kaczynski went to Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, and delivered speeches which warned that if Putin is NOT challenged in Georgia, then he will move against Ukraine, the Baltic States, Poland, and other countries to reestablish the Soviet empire. They both used history to justify a strong response to Putin’s aggression by comparing him to Hitler.
When speaking in Tbilisi, McCain and Kaczynski appropriately invoked the well known and often repeated, Lesson of World War II, or the Munich Analogy. This asserts that World War II could have been avoided had the West decisively taken action to oppose Nazi Germany’s serial violations of international law, like enlarging its armed forces and remilitarizing the Rhineland, annexing Austria, and participating in Munich Conference to partition Czechoslovakia. Like Hitler, Putin, is a murderer and a serial violator of International Law, and Putin must be stopped before he sets the world on fire.
Second, as we approach on August 23, 2021, the 81st anniversary of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which led to the German and Soviet invasions of Poland which ignited World War II in Europe and prepared the division of Eastern Europe between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, let us be mindful that today’s Russo-German collaboration on Nord Stream 2 echoes past cooperation by these two powers to control the lands between the Baltic and Black Seas. In the years before 1914, the German Empire and the Russian Empire, and again in 1939 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union first cooperated to control the lands between the Baltic and Black Seas and then went to war against each other to dominate this area with terrible consequences for the peoples of this region. Nord Stream 2 sets the stage for the third replay of this brutal struggle.
This is why Nord Stream 2 is a danger to world peace. Please phone your representatives in Congress and ask them to stop Nord Stream 2.
Please carefully read the below update from the Ukrainian National Information Service.
Dear Friends of Ukraine,
Today, the White House issued an Executive Order for sanctions on Russian energy entities that have been mandated by the National Defense Authorization Acts (NDAA) of 2020 and 2021, as well as the Protecting Europe’s Energy Security Act (PEESA) of 2019. When reading through the sanctions order, please note that the national security waiver remains. Below is a link to the White House Executive Order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/08/20/executive-order-on-blocking-property-with-respect-to-certain-russian-energy-export-pipelines/Following the issuance of the Executive Order, the U.S. Department of State issued its statement on the imposition of sanctions on Russian energy entities. Please see link below:https://www.state.gov/imposition-of-sanctions-in-connection-with-nord-stream-2/All of this information coincides with the release of a congressionally-mandated report on entities engaged in the construction of the NordStream2 pipeline. Rep. Mike McCaul (R-TX), Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released a statement regarding the report. For your information, a link to the Ranking Member’s statement is provided below:https://gop-foreignaffairs.house.gov/press-release/mccaul-bidens-nord-stream-2-policy-weakening-u-s-credibility-with-friends-and-foes-alike/*** REMINDERThe Ukrainian National Information Service (UNIS) urges you to contact the White House and your elected officials (Senators and Representatives) and express your deep concern about the NordStream2 project.As the Senate and the House of Representatives are on their traditional August recess and have returned to their districts, this is a good opportunity to interact with the state and district offices and arrange a meeting with your elected official (in-person or virtual) to discuss NordStream2 and other relevant Ukraine-related matters.Should you have any questions or comments, please contact the Ukrainian National Information Service (UNIS) at: unis.sawkiw@gmail.com. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Michael Sawkiw, Jr.
UCCA Executive Vice PresidentandDirector – Ukrainian National Information Service
(Washington Bureau – Ukrainian Congress Committee of America)
Ukrainian National Information Service
311 Massachusetts Avenue, NE
Washington, DC 20002
tel: (202) 547-0018
fax: (202) 547-0019
e-mail: unis.sawkiw@gmail.com
Twitter/Instagram: @UNISdirect
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ukrainian-National-Information-Service-UNIS/198575390157933
Visit us on the web at: www.ucca.org
