Toggle navigation menu.
Helsinki Default Banner

Ukraine Human Rights & Democracy Focus of Helsinki Commission Hearing

Washington – The United States Helsinki Commission held a hearing today examining the status of human rights and democracy in Ukraine and the role of the United States in assisting Ukraine’s development as an independent, market-oriented democracy in the face of the current political crisis.

“Pervasive, high level corruption, the controversial conduct by authorities in the Gongadze investigation and ongoing human rights problems are raising legitimate questions about Ukraine’s commitment to democracy, human rights and the rule of law,” said Helsinki Commission Chairman Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO). “I am especially troubled by the level of corruption in Ukraine, which has had such a debilitating impact on the people and which discourages valuable foreign investment, something that Ukraine badly needs to assist in its economic recovery. Left to fester, corruption will undermine Ukraine’s fledgling democracy and independence.”

“Ukraine’s promise for a better future has not yet been met,” said Helsinki Commission Co-Chairman Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ). “We know this all too well from the tape scandal, alleging the involvement of top officials in malfeasance. We know this from the Ukrainian authorities’ sometimes heavy-handed responses to the independent media and opposition. More recently, this promise for a better future was thwarted by forces reluctant to engage in the kinds of reforms that will truly break the ties with a gloomy, communist past. It was these forces who voted – ironically, on the fifteenth anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster – to dismiss popular reform-minded Prime Minister Yushchenko.”

“Given the importance of our relationship with Ukraine – and let there be no doubt that it is a very important relationship – the Commission has become increasingly concerned about the direction in which Ukraine appears to be heading,” Chairman Campbell added.

“Despite the forces hostile to reform, it is clear that the United States must not abandon Ukraine,” said Co-Chairman Smith. “Whether through political support or through concrete assistance to strengthen democracy, it is incumbent upon us to work with the Ukrainian people so that the promise for a better future for which so many sacrifices were made will – at long last – become a reality.”

“Almost a decade after achieving its centuries-old dream of independence, Ukraine is at a crossroads with respect to its democratic development as well as with its geopolitical orientation,” concluded Chairman Campbell. “Is Ukraine acting in a manner consistent with its declared desire to integrate with Europe or is it moving away from a pro-European orientation? And what are the consequences for Ukraine if it moves away from the West?”

Opening statements by Commissioners and witnesses are available on the Helsinki Commission web site.

Media contact

Category
Country
Issue
Date
Filter Topics Open Close
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Ranking Member Cohen Celebrates ...

Aug 01, 2024

WASHINGTON—Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s 56-nation Parliamentary Assembly’s Special Representative on Political Prisoners, today welcomed news that three journalists and Paul Whelan, wrongly […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission House Leadership Marks Fourth An...

Jun 06, 2024

WASHINGTON—Today, Chairman Rep. Joe Wilson (SC-02) and Ranking Member Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-09) marked the fourth annual Counter-Kleptocracy Month. The U.S. Helsinki Commission has marked Counter-Kleptocracy month since June 2021 […]

screen-reader-text
Articles

Helsinki Commission Advances Human Rights, Demands f...

Oct 19, 2023

By Shannon Simrell, Senior Policy Advisor Between October 2-13, 11 Helsinki Commission staff joined approximately 1,400 representatives of OSCE participating States (pS) and civil society representatives in Warsaw, Poland in […]

screen-reader-text
Hearings

Vladimir Kara-Murza: Putin’s Personal Prisoner

Sep 20, 2023

Stream here: HEARING: Vladimir Kara-Murza: Putin’s Personal Prisoner – YouTube Vladimir Kara-Murza, a father, husband, and a freedom fighter, has been in detention for over five hundred days and is currently […]

screen-reader-text
Hearings

Russia’s Alpine Assets: Money Laundering and S...

Jul 18, 2023

Switzerland has for years been a primary destination for Russian money laundering and, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a weak link in Western sanctions enforcement. This Helsinki Commission hearing […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Hearing: Supporting a Democratic and Secure Moldova

Jul 06, 2023

Wednesday, July 12, 2023 2:00 pm Cannon House Office Building, Room 210 Live stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jm-R6rfQbCo In recent years, Moldova has enacted numerous reforms under current Moldovan President Maia Sandu to […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Leadership Celebrate Pardon of N...

Jun 23, 2023

Washington—Today, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, Representative Joe Wilson (SC-02) and Ranking Member Steve […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Chairman Wilson and RM Cohen Mark Third Annual Count...

Jun 16, 2023

WASHINGTON—Today, Helsinki Commission Chairman Joe Wilson and Ranking Member Steve Cohen, Co-Chairmen of the Counter-Kleptocracy Caucus, marked the third annual Counter-Kleptocracy Month. “Foreign corruption and kleptocracy is the main reason […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

HELSINKI COMMISSION SENDS APPEAL TO GEORGIAN PRESIDE...

Apr 28, 2023

WASHINGTON— The leadership of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, Chairman Representative Joe Wilson (SC-02), Co-Chairman Senator Ben Cardin (MD), and […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commissioners Announce Re-introduction of C...

Jan 25, 2023

On Tuesday, Helsinki Commissioners Rep. Steve Cohen, Rep. Joe Wilson, and Senator Ben Cardin re-introduced the Combatting Global Corruption Act in both the House and Senate, along with Rep. Bill Keating, Rep. Maria […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Congressmen Cohen and Wilson Introduce Resolution Re...

Oct 28, 2022

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), Co-Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, and the Commission’s Ranking Member, Congressman Joe Wilson […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Slams Shutdown of Novaya Gazeta

Sep 08, 2022

WASHINGTON—Helsinki Commission Chairman Sen. Ben Cardin (MD), Co-Chairman Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-09), Ranking Member Sen. Roger Wicker (MS), and Ranking Member Rep. Joe Wilson (SC-02) today condemned the shutdown of […]

screen-reader-text