'F*ck the EU' and more: Victoria Nuland’s 4 most memorable moments
Victoria Nuland, the former Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, had her last day at the US State Department on Wednesday. To celebrate, RT takes a look back at her most memorable moments.
‘F*ck the EU’
On February 4, 2014, a leaked phone call between Nuland, the assistant secretary of state, and US Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt revealed the US’s efforts to shape the Ukrainian crisis.
The two discussed who should lead the Ukrainian government, with Arseniy Yatsenyuk being suggested several times. Yatsenyuk became prime minister on February 27.
The most infamous line came when Nuland said, “F*ck the EU.”
RT’s ‘untruths’ & ‘tiny, tiny audience’
In January 2015, Nuland was asked during a speaking engagement at the Brookings Institute whether she thought RT should be shut down.
READ MORE: Nuland downplays RT’s threat to ‘truthful’ US media space
Although Nuland said it should not, she went on to discredit RT and its numbers.
“All you have to do is look at RT’s tiny, tiny audience in the United States to understand what happens when you broadcast untruths in a media space that is full of dynamic, truthful information,” she said.
Maidan cookies moment
During the Maidan protests in Ukraine, Nuland was spotted amongst the protesters, handing out cookies and buns to those who were calling for the ouster of then-President Viktor Yanukovych following his decision to pull out of an agreement with the EU.
In light of Nuland’s resignation from the State Department, many referenced her Maidan cookie moment.
Печенек больше не будет: Помощник госсекретаря США по делам Европы и Евразии Виктория Нуланд покидает Госдепартамент pic.twitter.com/d1fC1SnNe1
— Дмитрий Смирнов (@dimsmirnov175) January 26, 2017
@MaxBlumenthal@AP if I knew this was going to happen I would have gone to hand out cookies as they packed their offices
— Fabian Janowski (@FabianJanowski) January 26, 2017
Congress grills Nuland over ‘neo-Nazis’ at Kiev protest
Nuland was questioned by the House Foreign Affairs Committee in May 2014.
Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R-California) asked Nuland about violent protests in Ukraine, and whether neo-Nazis were present. As Nuland tried to deflect, saying there were all colors of Ukraine at the protests, she was cut off by Rohrabacher who said, “The answer is yes, then.”