Cicilline Meets with Barrington Man in Ukraine

U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (D-RI), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee who recently visited Ukraine as part of a bipartisan congressional delegation, met with Michael Druckman, a Barrington resident, in Kyiv.  

Druckman is currently working as the Ukraine Resident Country Director for the International Republican Institute, an American non-governmental organization that addresses democratic governance issues abroad and is working to ensure the upcoming presidential elections in Ukraine are free and fair.

“Rhode Island is full of talented and hardworking individuals who go on to do great things all over the world, often at tremendous risk to themselves, and it was great to meet Michael and learn about his efforts to promote democracy in Ukraine,” said Cicilline. “I thank Michael for his dedication to strengthening democracy and improving the lives of people in Ukraine.”

“At this critical time in Ukraine’s history it is important for the international community to understand that despite Russian propaganda and support of destabilizing activities in Eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian people intend to head to the polls on May 25th and show through the ballot box their desire for a strong and united Ukraine within Europe.  Congressman Cicilline’s important and timely visit to Kyiv helps to strengthen this message from the Ukrainian people back to Washington,” Druckman said.

During his trip in Ukraine, Cicilline met with Vice President Biden, other U.S. officials and senior Ukrainian officials, including acting President Oleksandr Turchynov and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, to assess the effect of ongoing U.S. efforts to support Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression and following the illegal annexation of Crimea.  In addition to the meetings with acting President Oleksandr Turchynov and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, the bipartisan delegation met with Russian-speaking and ethnically-Russian national legislators, other Ukrainian officials, and a broad range of major presidential candidates from across the political spectrum.