In a move to fill a void in the U.S.-Ukraine relationship, President Joe Biden nominated Bridget Brink as the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, a position that has been empty for more than a year.
The Ukraine government was told of the news as Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The nomination of Brink to the ambassador role will end a delay that career diplomats have said would be baffling even if it was in more peaceful times. In 2019, then President Donald Trump unceremoniously removed Marie Yovanovitch from the ambassador position. Yovanovitch was dumped by Trump as he pressured Ukrainian president Volodym yr Zelensky to investigate Biden and his son Hunter’s business dealings in the country.
Shortly after, William Taylor Jr., a retired diplomat, stepped into the role in a temporary manner until early 2020. Since then, the post has remained empty, despite warnings last year that Russia may invade Ukraine.
Brink has 25 years of experience in the field and has been a Foreign Service officer for 25 years. Trump appointed Brink to be the ambassador to Slovakia in 2019 and has served in two other former Soviet republics as well, Uzbekistan and Georgia. She has also served overseas postings in Cypress.
The U.S. mission in Ukraine has been managed by the chargé d’affaires, Kristina Kvien.
Brink will go through confirmation hearings in the Senate. It is expected that both sides of the political aisle will support her appointment, especially because many Republican senators have backed Biden’s efforts in Ukraine.
If she is confirmed, Brink will take on the ambassador position at a pivotal time in U.S.-Ukraine relations. The news of appointing Brink comes as Blinken announced that U.S. diplomats will return to Ukraine this week.
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