Nominee to ambassador: United States interested in preserving Ukraine’s territorial integrity

“Ukraine seeks to rid itself of Moscow’s interference and build a government that is accountable, transparent, and responsive to its citizens. One thing that has not changed – and will not change – is that it is in the national security interests of the United States for Ukraine to overcome these challenges and achieve a future in which it is whole, democratic, and free… We must not forget what is at stake,” Keith Dayton, nominee to be U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, said at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearings on August 5.

He underscored that “United States has always been and will be an advocate for a diplomatic resolution [of the war in Donbas]… however fully supports Ukraine’s efforts to defend itself against Russia’s ongoing aggression in eastern Ukraine.”

“At home, Ukraine must continue on the path of implementing rule of law, good governance, and economic reforms that ensure the government is accountable to its citizens,” Dayton said.

U.S. President Donald Trump nominated Keith Dayton for the post of U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine in early May 2020. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba welcomed this decision.

To be officially appointed as U.S. ambassador to a foreign state, a nominee must go through the Senate approval procedure.

Keith W. Dayton currently serves as the Director of the George C. Marshall Center in Garmisch, Germany, a position he has held since 2010. He also serves concurrently as Senior U.S. Defense Advisor to Ukraine, an adjunct duty to his position as Marshall Center Director. This follows a four-decade career in the United States Army from which he honorably retired in 2010 with the rank of Lieutenant General. Among his many assignments, Lt. General Dayton was the U.S. Security Coordinator Israel/Palestinian Authority; Director of Strategy, Plans and Policy, Army Staff, the Pentagon, and Director of Operations for the Defense Intelligence Agency, including as Director of the Iraq Survey Group looking for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

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