WASHINGTON, DC – Representative Adam Schiff (CA-29) will depart tomorrow for an official Congressional delegation trip to Kiev and Lvov, Ukraine.
“The democratic drama being played out in Ukraine reflects a former Soviet republic exercising its newfound ability to freely choose its own destiny with a new leader,” Representative Schiff said. “I look forward to meeting with Ukrainian leaders during this critical transitional period that will chart Eastern Europe’s future for decades.”
Running in a new presidential election to replace Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma are current Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych and former Prime Minister Viktor Yushchenko. Yanukovych is seen as an establishment candidate with close political ties to Russia, while Yushchenko is described as the opposition candidate with more pro-Western and reform-oriented policies. The Ukrainian Supreme Court called for a new election after Yanukovych was proclaimed the winner over Yushchenko by a slight margin in a recent election largely decried by international observers as marred by fraud. In addition, Austrian doctors have recently concluded that Yushchenko was poisoned based on dioxin levels from blood and tissue samples with 1,000 times the normal level of the dangerous substance.
Led by Representative Dana Rohrabacher (CA-46), the official delegation also includes Representatives Roscoe Bartlett (MD-6), Maurice Hinchey (NY-22), Darrell Issa (CA-49) and Marcy Kaptur (OH-9). The itinerary is still being developed.
Representative Schiff is the co-founder of the Democratic Study Group on National Security and a member of both the House Judiciary and International Relations committees. He represents California’s 29th Congressional District, which includes the communities of Alhambra, Altadena, Burbank, East Pasadena, East San Gabriel, Glendale, Monterey Park, Pasadena, San Gabriel, South Pasadena and Temple City.
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