U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg Delivers Remarks During Independence Day of Ukraine Celebration

Washington, DC -- Today, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg delivered remarks during a celebration of Ukraine’s Independence Day, which occurred August 24th. The celebration took place at Ukraine House, Washington, D.C.  

The full transcript of Secretary Buttigieg’s remarks: 

Thank you, Ambassador [Oksana] Markarova, for embodying the friendship between our countries. And let me join the Ambassador in expressing our appreciation for the medical professionals here, the first responders who came swiftly. And I know all of us are joined in wishing the Congressman [Joe Wilson] a swift and full recovery. 

I am honored to be among Administration colleagues, friends and those who are of like-mind and not of like-mind on most things, and yet absolutely united in being here at the side of our Ukrainian friends — to be with leaders from the diplomatic corps, from across the Administration from Congress and the business sector, and most of all our friends from Ukraine on this day.  

As the Ambassador said, an independence day is an occasion that is marked with special resonance in any democratic country, and sometimes I worry in our own celebrations of our own U.S. Independence Day that we treat our independence and its arrival, all that happened in 1776 and on the journey toward our country becoming the country we live in today as a historical event, a distant historical event—when the truth is that freedom and independence are never secure, must always be safeguarded and defended by each generation. Sometimes at a great cost. 

The people of Ukraine did not ask to be the living reminders of this fact in our time, and yet they have been reminded of this reality in the cruelest of terms. And just as importantly, have responded in the most inspiring of ways.  

Soon after Ukraine marked 30 years as a free and independent nation, the Russian Federation launched its brutal and unprovoked full-scale invasion, seeking to take away that freedom and independence that they had already been assaulting for so many years.  

And yet, as we gather here, even as Ukraine remains under attack, Ukraine remains free.  

Ukraine remains independent. 

And the United States remains unwavering in our commitment to Ukraine's freedom and independence. President Biden and Vice President Harris have built a global coalition that is providing vital economic, humanitarian, and military support.  

And for our part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, we have worked since the early days to help Ukraine address the war's impact on its ports and rail infrastructure, on supply chains, on transportation connectivity, and to plan for recovery, reconstruction, and rebuilding once war ends. 

Last year, I had the honor of visiting Ukraine to see the impact of the war on their infrastructure, to meet with President Zelensky, with the Prime Minister, with my counterparts and with other Ukrainian leaders to reinforce our partnership. What I saw was extraordinary the strength and resilience of the people of Ukraine and the aspirations to build a better future. 

So, the United States will continue to stand with Ukraine, not just until Ukraine secures a just peace, but until Ukraine has rebuilt and long after that—as a friend and as a partner. 

So, to all of our friends from Ukraine who are here, we thank you. We know you did not ask to be in this position or to become a global symbol of the struggle to protect democracy. You actively work to avoid this circumstance, but given no choice but to defend yourselves, you have done so in ways that have rallied so many around the world to your cause. 

Part of why the world picked up its head and noticed your bravery—is you have called us to recognize that you are defending not just your freedom, but all of ours against the threat that would only continue to grow across nations and continents if it were allowed to.  

That is why your cause is our cause, your freedom is our freedom, and our faith is shared. 

And that is why we will continue to join in common cause across partisan lines at home and across international boundaries abroad—to rally in support of our Ukrainian friends.  

We are united in this and let us remain united in our defense of freedom and independence, and in our support of Ukraine.  

Slava Ukraini!