The Eagle and the Trident: U.S.―Ukraine Relations in Turbulent Times

While the book is in many ways informative, Ambassador Pifer fails to bring his own perceptions, thoughts and insights into the book and its subject matter. Instead, the book reads like you are reviewing his Daily Events Planner- the dates, meetings and persons in attendance are all accurately reflected, i.e., the who, what, when and where; but, what is missing is the "why"? There is also a disservice done to those on the Ukrainian side negotiating denuclearization. How many times does Mr. Pifer need to remind the reader that Ukraine wanted financial assistance in exchange for disarming its nuclear force? Unfortunately, there is little attention given to Ukraine's demand for security guarantees, as contained in the Budapest Memorandum of 1995. It may be far easier to dwell on money than on Ukraine's demand for guarantees of its sovereignty and security in light of the events of 2014. In the final analysis, Ukraine got little of the former and nothing of the latter.

Tipycal ambassador’s bookNothing to said about the utmost important role played by the EU