Blinken’s visit to Ukraine: surprises and signals (video)

On May 14, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Ukraine, he became the first high-ranking American official to visit Kyiv after Congress approved the Joe Biden administration’s allocation of $61 billion for Ukraine’s military needs.

What surprises did Blinken’s visit bring? Is it historical and iconic?

1. The US Secretary of State arrived in Ukraine for the first time with an unannounced visit. However, it is still unknown what exactly caused the unprecedented openness of the visit, because the Americans were preparing it until the last moment in the usual atmosphere of secrecy. They warned the Ukrainian mass media, which were invited to cover the visit, that the information should not be made public, it should be used only by reprinting the materials of the American media.

However, as soon as Blinken’s train arrived in Kyiv, the U.S. State Department leaked information about his visit to journalists, almost to the point of security issues that should not have been made public.

1. The US Secretary of State arrived in Ukraine for the first time with an overnight stay, although until now security protocols excluded such a possibility.
2. Blinken was the first among high-ranking American officials to arrive in 2022 precisely at the time of the worsening of the military situation, in particular, in the Kharkiv region.
3. Blinken became the first foreign high-ranking official who spoke in Kyiv not in a bomb shelter, but in an ordinary hall in front of a large audience of students.
4. Blinken held three rounds of political negotiations (with the President of Ukraine, the Prime Minister and representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs). He also held a meeting with activists fighting corruption (according to their position), dealing with judicial reform and confiscation of Russian assets.
5. The US Secretary of State showed the world that you can relax in Ukraine like an ordinary person by visiting a pizzeria and a Kyiv pub, that is, he gave a certain signal of faith in Ukraine.

What are the results of the visit?

1. Anthony Blinken became the first high-ranking American official who openly stated that the goal of the United States is the victory of Ukraine. For a representative of the Biden administration, this is a rather revolutionary statement. For more than two years, the American government has avoided any mention of the future victory of Ukraine, using the phrase that Ukraine “must not lose the war”, but it is not the same at all.
2. Blinken publicly refused the US ban on strikes by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Presumably, the US realized that the previous rhetoric was wrong, and the Secretary of State, in fact, reversed the decision on whether to hit Russian targets with American weapons.

“We do not encourage and do not provide the capability for strikes outside of Ukraine, but in the end Ukraine has to make a decision for itself how to conduct this war.” – stated the state secretary twice during the visit.

1. The US Secretary of State announced the provision of a new $2 billion aid package to Ukraine.
2. Blinken conspicuously refrained from commenting on personnel decisions of Zelenskyi’s team.
3. Blinken demonstrated that corruption, judicial reform and confiscation of Russian assets in Ukraine are priorities for the US, and requested relevant reports from officials.
4. The head of American diplomacy visited the facilities for the production of Ukrainian drones for the Armed Forces, which is of particular importance because the United States has decided to provide additional financial assistance for the production of weapons in Ukraine.
5. Blinken showed his concern for Ukrainian education, that is why he spoke before the students of Kyiv Polytechnic Institute and Mariupol University, who were evacuated to Kyiv. However, the speech, which lasted more than half an hour, did not contain any specifics about the reforms and the war in Ukraine, but again expressed concern about it and promised to accept our country into NATO.
6. Blinken demonstrated the importance of exporting Ukrainian grain by visiting a logistics complex in Vyshnevo, a suburb of Kyiv.
7. The US Secretary of State visited a company that manufactures prostheses for military amputees.

In addition, Blinken visited the memorial to fallen soldiers, the Maidan and other historical places. During his visits, Blinken promised to provide comprehensive assistance to Ukraine.

In the evening, the US Secretary of State visited a Kyiv pub, where he gave a speech and played the electric guitar and sang the song “Rockin’ in the Free World” from the album “Freedom”.

“I know this is a very, very difficult time, but you should know that the United States is with you… Most of the world is with you. Ukrainians fight not only for Ukraine, but also for the free world. And the free world is also with you.” Blinken said.

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This act was received ambiguously by the public: some people liked the evening performance, while others were outraged by it in Ukrainian social networks and American media. Blinken was accused of the inappropriateness of choosing the time and place for entertainment, reminded that right now Kharkiv is under fire, the Russian offensive continues in Kharkiv Oblast, and the most intense battles are taking place in many months.

At the same time, Blinken’s message that Ukraine has become safer remained unnoticed by the majority of Ukrainians, as did the symbolism of his choice of song. His opening speech, in which he expressed support for Ukraine and talked about a difficult period for it, in particular, for the Kharkiv region, was also overlooked. It is noteworthy that the State Department did not explain this controversial situation. As explained by the American media, Blinken’s main message was the phrase: “I brought a signal to Ukraine: you are not alone!”.

Despite certain positive aspects of Anthony Blinken’s visit to Ukraine, one gets a mixed impression. It is quite clear that he did not come to visit historical places and speak to students. Undoubtedly, his public statements were important, but the main purpose of the visit and certain agreements with the Ukrainian authorities remained behind closed doors. Based on Blinken’s official powers, he is responsible for the political dialogue with Ukraine and reforms, so the US is giving signals through this visit that are unpleasant and inconvenient for Kyiv. After the recent approval of the aid budget to Ukraine, the US should give it in exchange for effective reforms. It was probably them that were discussed at Blinken’s meetings with the President and Prime Minister of Ukraine. Among them, for example, the effective fight against corruption, the reboot of the Bureau of Economic Security, judicial reform, which are currently not adequately addressed.

The fact that the US continues to provide military aid to the Armed Forces and toughens its approach even in the presence of certain political disagreements with Kyiv is a positive signal. And even this is quite enough to conclude that Blinken’s visit to Ukraine was useful.

For reference:

According to information contained in open sources, the song “Rockin’ in the Free World” was born when Frank Sampedro – a colleague of Neil Young (the author of the song) from the band Crazy Horse said before one of the concerts:

“In order for it not to be there, we should not approach the Middle East. It’s better to just keep having fun in our free world.”

There are two opinions as to the context in which this phrase was said. According to the first, before that Frank was looking at a photo from the funeral of the Iranian spiritual leader – Ayatollah Khomeini, during which the American flag was publicly burned.

According to the second – in 1989, Neil Young learned that his concert in the Soviet Union would not take place, and his colleague commented on this as follows: “we’ll have to keep playing…in the free world.”

Anyway, the author of the song liked this phrase so much that he decided to write a song called “Rockin’ in the Free World”, which translates as “fun in the free world” or “keep the fun going in the free world”. In his composition, Neil Young criticizes the free world where there is cruelty, careless attitude to the environment, hopelessness, etc. For example, the song talks about a homeless drug-addicted woman who throws a child into a garbage can, about the fact that “our hand holds a machine gun better,” about littering the environment, etc.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is a big fan of Rock-n-roll.

On video: In 2023, Anthony Blinken played guitar and sang a Muddy Waters song from the 50s.