Ukrainian involvement in the Iraq War

Prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Ukraine had already previously established its involvement in the Middle East by participating in the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) programme. Kostyantyn Gryshchenko, a Ukrainian diplomat, served as one of sixteen commissioners to UNMOVIC,[1] and the Ukrainian delegation to the United Nations expressed support for an agreement between UNMOVIC, the government of Iraq, and the International Energy Agency.[2]

On 18 March 2003, two days before the invasion of Iraq, Kuchma signed Presidential Decree 227, sending the 19th Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Protection Battalion to Kuwait, citing the risk of weapons of mass destruction being used against the civilian population.[3] The 19th NBC Protection Battalion would later participate in the occupation of Iraq.

Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma sought to use the Iraq War to shore up western support for his government

In addition to Ukraine's existing involvement in Iraq, Ukrainian involvement in the Iraq War began in part due to the political concerns of President Leonid Kuchma.[4] By 2004, Kuchma's popularity had reached a low point; the Cassette Scandal had domestically led to the Ukraine Without Kuchma protests, while internationally the Cassette Scandal worsened views of Kuchma in lieu of controversies regarding his killings of political opponents (namely Georgiy Gongadze)[5] and his sale of the Kolchuga passive sensor to Iraq, led by Saddam Hussein. Though Ukraine's government denied the allegations,[6] the Federal Bureau of Investigation stated that the recordings in the Cassette Scandal were authentic.[4]

Ukraine's international isolation under Kuchma pushed him to seek involvement in the Iraq War. Yevhen Marchuk, then Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, claimed responsibility for Ukraine's involvement in the war, saying that Kuchma was at first opposed to sending troops.[7] While Ukrainian involvement in the Iraq War helped calm Ukraine–United States relations, one western diplomat said to the Washington Post in 2003 that "cooperation on Iraq is not a panacea for everything in the relationship."[4]

Soldiers of the 19th NBC Protection Battalion practicing decontamination measures at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait (3 August 2003)

In mid-May 2003, the National Security and Defense Council recommended Ukrainian troops be sent to Iraq as a peacekeeping force. Kuchma also expressed his agreement with such a measure, specifically stating his wish to send Ukrainian troops to Iraq under the guidance of Polish-led forces already in the country. Carlos Pascual, the United States' ambassador to Ukraine, also expressed his support for Ukrainian involvement in the Iraq War, saying that the United States would be willing to partially pay the expenses brought on by transporting Ukrainian soldiers to Iraq.[8]

On 5 June 2003, the Verkhovna Rada (parliament of Ukraine) approved a law proposed by Kuchma to send Ukrainian troops to Iraq, with 273 votes out of 450 in favour. Troops arrived from the capital of Kyiv and from the southern port city of Mykolaiv. The first Ukrainian troops to participate in the occupation of Iraq departed from Boryspil International Airport to Kuwait on 7 August 2003, after a speech by Marchuk which celebrated Ukrainian commitment to the Charter of the United Nations.[9] The Ukrainian contingent was assigned to Wasit Governorate, part of the Polish-led Multinational Division Central-South. Their base of operations was the city of Kut. The 19th NBC Protection Battalion crossed the Kuwaiti border on 11 August 2003, followed by the 5th Mechanized Brigade on 1 September 2003. The 6th Mechanized Brigade, 7th Mechanized Brigade, and 81st Tactical Group would eventually join them, bringing the total number of Ukrainian soldiers stationed in Iraq to 1,660.[10]

Though Ukraine's involvement in the war was internationally a victory for Kuchma's public image, it was deeply unpopular in Ukraine from the outset; a poll by Dzerkalo Tyzhnia and cited by The Guardian stated that 90% of Ukrainians were opposed to the war and only 4.6% in favour. 57% of Ukrainians in the same poll viewed George W. Bush as a threat to world peace, compared to 38% of Ukrainians who viewed Saddam Hussein in the same way.[11]

An attempted attack against Ukrainian peacekeepers in the city of Al-Suwaira occurred in early September 2003, with a remote-controlled improvised explosive device being used to attack a Ukrainian patrol car. Nobody was injured in the explosion, though the vehicle was slightly damaged. Ukrainian peacekeepers also cooperated with Iraqi police to detain a bank robber, additionally turning over two weapons (an AK-47 and a pistol) to Iraqi police.

Ukrainian soldiers taking cover during the 2004 Battle of Kut

The Ukrainian contingent in Iraq was drawn into its first major battle in early April 2004, when they faced off against the Mahdi army of Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in the city of Kut. In the resulting clashes, Ukrainian soldiers lost one soldier, Ruslan Androshchuk, to an anti-tank grenade launcher while fighting near Kut's bridge across the Tigris river.[12] Facing resistance from the Mahdi army, Ukrainian forces withdrew from the city on 7 April 2004.[13]

Following the Battle of Kut, Ukrainian opposition to the Iraq War increased. The Verkhovna Rada voted in favour of a resolution calling on Kuchma to withdraw from Iraq on 3 December 2004, with 257 votes in favour and none against. Viktor Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych, the two major candidates in the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election, both expressed their support for a withdrawal of Ukrainian forces. Proposals to withdraw Ukrainian troops were criticised by Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksandr Kuzmuk, as well as the Iraqi Interim Government, who both argued for Ukrainian troops to remain to secure the 2005 Iraqi governorate elections.[14]

Another incident took place on 9 January 2005, with eight Ukrainian sappers and one Kazakh sapper being killed by an IED explosion. An additional six Ukrainians and four Kazakhs were injured by the explosion.[15]

After the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election and the subsequent Orange Revolution, Viktor Yushchenko became President of Ukraine. On 1 March 2005, Yushchenko announced a withdrawal of Ukrainian troops by 15 October 2005, though Defence Minister Anatoliy Hrytsenko later clarified that some troops could remain in Iraq until two months after the withdrawal. Following a meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice praised Ukraine–United States relations following the withdrawal announcement.[16]

Ukraine ended up maintaining peacekeeping forces in Iraq after 2005, but drastically reduced to 40 peacekeepers by 2006. They also moved from Kut to Al Diwaniyah, where they participated in a training programme for specialised sections of the Iraqi Army and police. The remaining Ukrainian contingent continued to participate in this role until 9 December 2006, when they completely withdrew.[17]