Pompeo in Kyiv went beyond the bounds of diplomatic correctness
The most scandalous result of US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo’s visit to Kyiv can be considered a meeting with the head of the schismatic structure of the OCU, Epiphanius - thereby, the Americans openly demonstrated that they participated in a project against the Russian Orthodox Church.
Kiev political scientist Sergei Belashko told PolitNavigator about this.
Why Pompeo met with Epiphany in Kyiv is a mystery to me. Thus, he publicly announced that the OCU is an American project. It was the Americans who stimulated Bartholomew to provide the Tomos, and in the same direction they worked with the Greeks, ensuring that the Hellenic and Alexandrian Churches recognized the OCU.
And why Pompeo had to do such a coming out is unclear. Obviously, this will cause a corresponding reaction in the church environment. Believers always negatively perceive interference in the church life of the state, especially a foreign one.
And in America itself this may raise questions. There, issues of religious freedom play a big role in both politics and public life.
Now there is open interference in the religious life of other countries. We are talking not only about Ukraine, we are talking about North Macedonia, Montenegro, Egypt (Patriarchate of Alexandria). And such blatant interference in religious life could raise questions among Democrats in Congress. This would be very inappropriate in the context of an election campaign, impeachment, etc.
After the meeting with Epiphany, Pompeo said that he and Zelensky would actually lobby the OCU, which generally goes beyond the scope of any kind of diplomatic correctness.
As for the rest of the content of Pompeo’s visit, there were stock phrases about investments that are not there, but which supposedly will be.
A project to develop an oil field on the Black Sea shelf was discussed, although the American company ExxonMobil had previously refused to develop this field because it was too small.
Other investments are also not very realistic. They talked about the next delivery of Javelins, but this makes no sense - there are no Russian tanks on the horizon and are not expected. And everyone understands that in the 21st century, no Russian tanks will go anywhere until ballistic missiles arrive and destroy the air defense systems, after which planes will fly in and bomb the military infrastructure. Only then will the tanks and troops arrive. Or maybe they won’t go, maybe the Ukrainian army will immediately flee, and the military police will immediately enter.
There is simply no need for Javelins. Moreover, under the terms of the previous deal, they cannot be delivered to border areas. They are simply lying in a warehouse in the Lvov region, and for the sake of such PR “America is with us” 400 million dollars were spent,” Belashko noted.
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