Former United States ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch spoke about her experience as an ambassador March 6 at the IU Auditorium as part of a foreign policy conference at the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies.
“I believe that we need to reconnect to our principles that involve generosity, spirit and understanding that we are stronger together,” Yovanovitch said.
Yovanovitch testified in President Donald Trump’s impeachment hearing that she felt threatened by comments Trump made toward her during his July 25 phone call with the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
President Michael McRobbie awarded Yovanovitch the Richard G. Lugar Award for distinguished work as an ambassador. The award honors the late Indiana senator who is one of the namesakes of the Hamilton Lugar School.
Yovanovitch’s remarks and the Richard G. Lugar Award presentation was the final event of the America’s Role in the World conference March 5-6. The conference was open to the public to learn about foreign policy from multiple panel discussions with diplomats, scholars and journalists. Speakers included diplomatic correspondent at the New York Times Lara Jakes, president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace William Burns and Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind.
Yovanovitch served as an ambassador to Ukraine, the Republic of Armenia and the Kyrgyz Republic between 2005 and 2019. She was also the principal deputy assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs from 2012 to 2013. In this position, she was responsible for policy on European and global security issues. Yovanovitch graduated from the Hamilton Lugar School summer language workshop in 1979, according to an IU press release.
Hamilton Lugar School Dean Lee Feinstein asked Yovanovitch what it was like to be in the spotlight during Trump’s impeachment hearings. Yovanovitch said she used her experience working in the U.S. government to conduct herself appropriately and tell the truth.
“It is important to tell the truth and then hand it over to political leaders who take their own actions,” Yovanovitch said.
Feinstein also asked Yovanovitch questions about her career and thoughts about the State Department.
Yovanovitch said the State Department needs to be stronger and more resilient. She said the State Department needs to do a better job communicating with the public and limiting influences from outside the U.S.
She also predicted issues such as weapons of mass destruction, poverty and the environment will continue to be present in foreign policy.
Yovanovitch said she wanted students to think about what they need to accomplish in the future. She said she hoped students would go into a career of public service and contribute to helping the world.
IU junior Jacqueline Beck said she thought Yovanovitch was well-spoken. She said she was most affected by what Yovanovitch said about the challenges she faced.
“I remembered her during the impeachment trials and was really impressed with how she handled it,” Beck said.
Yovanovitch also said there needs to be more togetherness between the members of the State Department.
“We are in this together, and we need to find the solution together,” Yovanovitch said. “We can never forget that our foreign policy needs to be American foreign policy.”
