Ewa Malcher
„Krym jest integralną częścią Ukrainy i jako taki podlega ukraińskiej konstytucji i obowiązującym w tym kraju regulacjom prawnym. (...) Prezydent Federacji Rosyjskiej Władimir Putin pod żadnym pozorem nie ma prawa wprowadzenia swych wojsk na terytorium Ukrainy” – czytamy m.in. w liście.
Prezes Spula pisze również, że polska społeczność w USA oczekuje od NATO i amerykańskich władz z prezydentem Obamą na czele konkretnych działań na rzecz obrony suwerenności Ukrainy i poszanowania praw jej mieszkańców.
March 4, 2014
The Honorable Barack H. Obama
President of the United States
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC
Dear Mr. President,
The Polish American Congress, the largest Polish American umbrella organization, dedicated for 70 years to the defense of freedom and democracy at home, in our ancestral homeland and abroad, wishes to express its grave concerns about the threat to Ukraine's independence and integrity posed by the actions of the leadership and military of the Russian Federation.
We firmly support the principles proclaimed in Articles 1 and 2 of the Charter of the United Nations, including that "members shall refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations." The Polish American Congress thus stands with you and the overwhelming bi-partisan majority in Congress in underscoring that Ukraine is a sovereign, independent state with integral and inviolable territory and that any military intervention in the internal affairs of that country is therefore inadmissible.
The Autonomous Republic of Crimea is an integral part of Ukraine, subject to the scope of the Constitution of Ukraine and the laws of that country, which guarantee protection of the basic rights and freedoms of citizens residing in its territory, including the freedom of conscience and respect for diverse views.
Moreover, the inadmissibility of territorial claims to Ukraine is established and guaranteed in the Budapest Memorandum of 1994 and the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership between the Russian Federation and Ukraine of 1997.
For that reason, the President of the Russian Federation, Mr. V. Putin, should not to be allowed under any circumstances to bring Armed Forces of the Russian Federation into the territory of Ukraine, or to be left unchallenged once they are there. We believe that key to respect for international law is the strict implementation of the framework Agreements on the stay of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine, and particularly, the necessary withdrawal of troops to the places of their deployment.
We remember that in his September 11, 2013 op-ed piece to the New York Times, President Vladimir Putin stated, in relation to Syria, that the Russian Federation's position was not to protect the Syrian government, "but international law. We need to use the United Nations Security Council and believe that preserving law and order in today's complex and turbulent world is one of the few ways to keep international relations from sliding into chaos. The law is still the law, and we must follow it whether we like it or not." Mr. Putin should be held accountable for his words, which should be held equally applicable to his actions in Ukraine.
Until Mr. Putin shows, in deed as well as in declaration, his willingness and that of the country he leads to respect international law and the rights of neighboring nations, we ask that the United States together with its NATO allies engage in a pro-active policy of enforcement of those laws and rights. The Polish American community looks to your leadership to ensure that Russia's brazen policies of intimidation and aggression against a neighboring state not be allowed to stand.
Sincerely yours,
Frank J. Spula President
