As delivered by Ambassador Daniel B. Baer
to the Permanent Council Vienna, March 21, 2014
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
In connection with the Permanent Council decision adopted on the OSCE Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, and in accordance with paragraph IV.1(A)6 of the Rules of Procedure of the OSCE, the United States makes the following interpretative statement:
The U.S. delegation played an active part in the formation of consensus on this important decision (PDF 74.4 KB). This required considerable effort on the part of all delegations involved in the negotiation process.
In supporting this decision, the U.S. reaffirms our firm commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders. The illegal “referendum” held on Sunday in Crimea violated the Constitution and the sovereignty of Ukraine, and will not be recognized. Crimea is Ukraine. Only one participating State pretends that it anything other than Ukraine. It is clear that with the adoption of this decision this mission has a mandate to work in Crimea and in all other parts of Ukraine. We note that all participating States must cooperate with this mission and should take no actions to obstruct its access to Crimea or any other region of Ukraine. We call on all parties involved to take action to reduce tensions and resolve any disputes peacefully through diplomatic means.
I request that the text of this statement be attached to the Permanent Council decision adopted and included in the journal of today’s meeting.
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