Ukraine in the Senate: the censure idea of early February 2020

What role was Ukraine playing in American politics on 8 February 2020? In the days leading up to that date, the country's name was still at the centre of the impeachment trial of Donald Trump in the US Senate.

On 3 February 2020, Democratic Senator Joe Manchin asked his colleagues to consider censuring Trump as an alternative to impeachment. The proposal concerned the president's efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate domestic political rivals. Manchin was considered friendly with the White House, which gave the suggestion added weight among senators weighing how to respond.

The same day, other international news also drew attention in the region. In Idlib Governorate in Syria, Syrian Army shelling killed Turkish military personnel, and Turkish forces retaliated. A pro-opposition war monitor said the retaliation killed 13 Syrian soldiers, a claim Syria denied. Turkish President Erdoğan said the shelling killed five Turkish soldiers and three civilian personnel, with nine others injured, and said the Russians needed to stand aside. The Russian Ministry of Defence said Turkey had moved troops inside the de-escalation zone without notifying the Russian side.

For Ukraine, the significance of that week lay in how its name figured in a debate about American presidential conduct, as senators considered what form of response, if any, was appropriate.