Remarks by
Lieutenant-General Sergiy Ivanovich Onischenko
First Deputy Commander-in-Chief, Air Force of Ukraine
Douglas Englund, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense
for Chemical Demilitarization and Threat Reduction
John E. Herbst, United States Ambassador to Ukraine
Tu-22 Elimination Ceremony
Poltava, Ukraine
January 27, 2006
GENERAL ONISCHENKO: Your Excellency, Mr. Ambassador, esteemed guests, dear friends, comrades in arms, all of us today have witnessed an historic, epoch-making event here at the Air Force Base in Poltava. By elimination of the last Tu-22 bomber we confirmed once again the consistency of the policy pursued by our country, whose aim is peace all over the world. The Strategic Weapons Elimination Program, which was the framework in which these strategic bombers, including the bomber Tu-22, have been eliminated, has been implemented in full compliance with the legal and legislative framework of our country, and conformed with the decisions taken by the leadership of our country. Ukraine has once again proved our consistency on the way to achieving peace over the world.
I repeat what I mentioned before and I will never tire of repeating it again. I believe that every person here understands only too well that the struggle for world peace certainly is not over; that this is our contribution through elimination of these kinds of weaponry. This is another very important step taken by our country without which the further development of our country is impossible.
I would like at this point in time to express my sincere gratitude to our American counterparts who were instrumental in rendering the necessary assistance in order to implement together this very important program. And I believe that today’s step, aimed at the elimination of strategic weapons, is another important step, which ensures our further cooperation across the spectrum of tasks we will face in the near future.
Taking this opportunity I would like to very much thank all the veterans who are present here today. And to those people who displayed a great deal of courage and heroism while operating and flying those very nice, beautiful, pieces of human manpower, who very honestly and painstakingly fulfilled their duties and obligations, allow me to wish you a lot of happiness and strong health in further development of our democratic state. Thank you.
AMBASSADOR HERBST: Mr. General, Mr. Englund, assembled guests, I have some bad news and some good news for you. The bad news is that my staff prepared a 30-minute speech. The good news is that I am not going to read it. It is a great honor to be here today to witness this event: the destruction of the Tu-22, an absolutely beautiful plane. This bomber is being destroyed under a program according to which the United States is helping countries of the former Soviet Union to destroy its strategic weapons. Like the General, I salute the courage and the skill of the Ukrainian soldiers, who flew these planes, and I salute as well the political wisdom of the president and the Rada of Ukraine in agreeing many years ago to join in the program destroying these weapons. This is an extraordinary contribution to the security of Ukraine and to global security. Thank you all.
DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY ENGLUND: Ladies and gentlemen, members of the armed forces, Ambassador Herbst, General Bytsyuk, Admiral Tenyukh, today is a very important day. It marks an important milestone on the path that the United States and Ukraine have taken on the way to ridding the world of weapons of mass destruction. I would like to say that the first time I was in Poltava was almost 30 years ago. At that time I was a young major serving in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow as an assistant military attache. This plane was new and the world in those days was sharply divided between East and West. And I have to say that, even though I came to see that plane 30 years ago, this is the first time I have seen one.
It’s a sad thing to watch the destruction of a beautiful airplane like the Tupolev-22. During the last few years I have seen many weapons, both Soviet and American, destroyed during the course of treaty implementation, and very often in the eyes of soldiers and airmen on both sides I have seen tears. But not once have I heard that the destruction of these weapons is not a positive step. So 30 years later this beautiful airplane has become old, the young major has become a lot wiser, and the world has changed, the Iron Curtain has fallen and the United States and Ukraine have become partners, even friends.
So I would like to take just a moment to salute some of the people who made today possible: from the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, General-Lieutenant Bytsyuk, Rear Admiral Tenyukh, General-Major Sivushenko; from the Air Force of Ukraine, General-Lieutenant Fursa, General-Lieutenant Onischenko; from the United States Threat Reduction Agency, Lieutenant-Colonels Mike Zoller and Chip Karn, former head of this project who came down from Moscow, Don Parman, Bill Smith, Chief of the DTRO Office in Kyiv; the Raytheon Technical Services Company, which has been the manager of this project; and all of the Ukrainian sub-contractors and employees who have made this project possible. And last I would simply mention today’s master of ceremonies and an old friend, Jack Sajevic. I salute all of you for a job well done. Thank you.
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