KYIV – For Ukraine, the New Year has started with a roller-coaster effect, moving from seasonal festive joy to tragedy and mourning.
It began with an upbeat, unconventional New Year’s Eve address to the nation by the country’s new president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which was warmly received by many, but antagonized those in opposition to him.
And, following Christmas celebrations according to the old Julian calendar, it was followed by a very different presidential message to the Ukrainian people – a declaration of a Day of Mourning on January 9 for the victims of the Ukraine International Airlines plane that crashed for unexplained reasons on January 8 after takeoff from Tehran, killing all 176 people on board.