Oksana Markarova is hitting the town like her country depends on it.
billions of dollars and loads of artillery to the Ukrainian military as the nation erupted into violence and chaos. Meanwhile, in the most peaceful and prosperous enclaves of Washington itself, the capital’s ruling class sent Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova a steady supply ofIn war, everyone has a role to play. Markarova’s job often means holding the line at galas and garden parties rather than battlefields. And she’s been reporting for duty all over town.
Seeing and being seen is taken very seriously in Washington, where scoring a lot of invites can be a nourishing source of validation for the egos of the political class.— to use the local parlance — actually comes closer to being a matter of life and death. She is the face of her country in this all-important foreign capital at a time when Ukraine cannot afford to be anything but highly visible to influential Americans.
She’ll talk to as many people as she can, sometimes give a speech, but rarely stays long. She keeps her phone out at dinners, a faux pas for which she has a good excuse: Ukraine remains under martial law, so she needs to be available 24/7. “When you are breaking bread with somebody, it’s a slightly different way to get to know people and build confidence and trust,” Yovanovitch says. “I’ll tell you personally, as an introvert: It’s hard — but important — work.”Markarova is good at it, according to people who talked to The Washington Post about her social skills: whip-smart, charming, a good listener and powerful storyteller.
“It gives the parties a high-minded quality,” Leibovich says. “It allows them to have a cause bigger than their shrimp trays.” “Is there such a thing as a war rock star?” Haddad says. “I don’t know. I don’t think there really is. But if there was, she would be the person.”
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