Stars And Stripes Again On Flagpole At U.S. Embassy In Kyiv, Ukraine. Should Have Not Taken This Much Time…

United States Department of State
Washington DC
18 May 2022
Raising the Flag at U.S. Embassy Kyiv
Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

“Three months ago, we lowered our flag over the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine, just days before Russian forces streamed across Ukraine’s border to carry out President Putin’s unprovoked, unjustified war of choice. When we suspended operations at the embassy, we made the point clear: while we would relocate U.S. embassy personnel for their safety and security, this would in no way prevent our engagement with, and support for, the Ukrainian people, government, and civil society as well as our allies and partners. We underscored our commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, pledged to continue our assistance, and started working toward the day we could return to Kyiv.

Now, that day has come. Today we are officially resuming operations at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv. The Ukrainian people, with our security assistance, have defended their homeland in the face of Russia’s unconscionable invasion, and, as a result, the Stars and Stripes are flying over the Embassy once again. We stand proudly with, and continue to support, the government and people of Ukraine as they defend their country from the Kremlin’s brutal war of aggression.

As we take this momentous step, we have put forward additional measures to increase the safety of our colleagues who are returning to Kyiv and have enhanced our security measures and protocols.

We are committed to confronting the challenges ahead. The war rages on. Russia’s forces inflict death and destruction on Ukrainian soil every day. Millions of Ukrainians are displaced from their homes and mourn the loss of their loved ones. With strength of purpose, we reaffirm our commitment to the people and government of Ukraine, and we look forward to carrying out our mission from the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv.”

On 23 April 2022, Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine, reported during a video address that twenty-one (21) embassies are re-opening in Kyiv and some embassies which remained operational (Apostolic Nunciature of the Holy See (the Vatican), Estonia, Georgia, Poland among others) are welcoming back ambassadors. Ambassadors to Ukraine from Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Estonia, European Union, France, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, and United Kingdom have returned or are returning to their respective embassies. Prior to 24 February 2022, Kyiv hosted approximately fifty-eight (58) embassies.