Month: October 23, 2020 2:46 am

Dear Editor:

When I read Myron Kuropas’s column supporting the re-election of Donald Trump (October 18), I thought, for a moment, that I had accidentally stumbled upon an issue from 1968. Donald Trump has demonstrated over and over again in the course of four years that he is morally and intellectually unfit to hold public office. If the best argument for re-electing Mr. Trump is fear of “radical socialism,” then we have truly crossed into some sort of weird fantasy land. Mr. Trump is running against Joe Biden, not Vladimir Ilyich Lenin.

Dear Editor:

In response to the recent vandalism of the Holodomor memorial in Kyiv, Nicholas Kocherha, president of the Ukrainian Genocide Famine Foundation – USA Inc., sent a letter to the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in which he stated that “the foundation …considers the act to be an insult which is unacceptable in a democratic state. The sculpture stands as a reminder to the Ukrainian people, and the whole world of our history, and the price of freedom that cost the lives of tens of millions of Ukrainians… for over a century the Ukrainian diaspora has been doing everything possible to establish worldwide recognition of Ukraine; and with the joint efforts of Ukrainians across the globe, many countries now acknowledge the Genocide of Ukrainians in 1932-1933, during which over 10 million Ukrainians were exterminated… the bronze sculpture must be restored and installed in its dedicated place.”

Part I

I did not see it coming. Few people did. As someone who has followed developments in Belarus since shortly after Alyaksandr Lukashenka became president in 1994, I am surprised and incredibly heartened by the size and persistence of massive peaceful protests following the rigged August 9 presidential elections in which Mr. Lukashenka claims to have won his sixth term. The vote fraud was so flagrant and shameless that most Belarusians believe that it was the opposition candidate, Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who won. The weekly mass protests – often exceeding 100,000 participants – are now well into their third month. This would be remarkable anywhere. It is especially amazing for Belarus.

JENKINTOWN, Pa. – The Provincial Council of the Sisters of Saint Bail the Great on October 8 announced the closure of Saint Basil Academy in Jenkintown, Pa., at the end of the 2020-2021 school year after nearly 90 years of service to the community. The all-girls’ high school was founded by the sisters in 1931. The sisters noted that the decision was painful, difficult and heartbreaking.

In a statement posted on Facebook, the Sisters of Saint Basil explained: “As we close this final chapter in our school’s history, we will continue providing quality education for our students until our last day, and we will work closely with families and faculty to help them find alternative choices for their futures.”

NEW YORK – After 46 years of calling Manhattan its home, the Ukrainian Sports Club of New York (known by its Ukrainian acronym YCK) has announced its move to a new home in Brooklyn. The announcement was officially made on September 13 by the club’s president, Willie Zinkewitsch, and the club’s doors were closed.

The club purchased the building at 122 Second Ave. in late 1974, after the club sold its field in Flushing, Queens. When the building was first purchased, it was primarily commercial, fully rented, except for the ground and second floors. Commercial and residential tenants occupied the third, fourth and fifth floors. After the purchase was finalized, the club renovated the ground floor as well as the second floor with the guidance of George Rycar, the architect of record and the clerk of works in 1975.

Editor’s note: The press release below was sent by a coalition of ethnic community leaders (among them Ukrainians) and former U.S. diplomats.

WASHINGTON – A group of American ethnic leaders from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), together with former U.S. ambassadors to NATO and 14 CEE nations; Gen. Wesley Clark, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander; and Ambassador Mark Brzezinski, former U.S. ambassador to Sweden; on October 12 announced a campaign warning voters in battleground states of the danger that re-election of President Donald Trump poses to freedom in so many countries of their heritage.

Ukraine pulled off a shocking upset by defeating Spain 1-0 in a home match at a raucous Olympic Stadium in Kyiv on October 13. Ukrainian fans totally savored a first-ever victory over the 2010 World Cup champions in the UEFA Nations League contest.

Andriy Shevchenko’s side took the lead against the run of play in the 76th minute when Viktor Tsygankov surprised Spain’s David de Gea by firing home a shot from outside the area after receiving an outstanding reverse pass from Andriy Yarmolenko. Tsygankov entered the match in the second half. It was Ukraine’s first goal against Spain in 17 years.

KYIV – The plenary session of the 22nd Ukraine-EU Summit took place in Brussels on October 6 with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine, European Council President Charles Michel and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell participating.

It was the first in-person summit with a European Union partner country since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. The two sides focused on implementation of the Association Agreement, the continuation of reforms in Ukraine and security issues. As a result of the summit, the partnership between the EU and Ukraine will be deepened in various sectors.

PARSIPPANY, N.J. – For the first time in the 126-year history of this fraternal organization, the Ukrainian National Association’s highest governing body between quadrennial conventions did not meet in person, convening instead by videoconference and teleconference due to continuing restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic.

The UNA General Assembly, which encompasses executive officers, auditors and advisors, met virtually on Monday and Tuesday, October 5-6, with members signing in from their respective locations across the United States as well as Canada.

General Assembly members plus the editor-in-chief of the UNA’s official publications, Svoboda and The Ukrainian Weekly, submitted written reports in advance of the meeting.

Britain and Ukraine have signed a bilateral agreement to support Kyiv’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s “malign influence,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office says.

The U.K.-Ukraine Political, Free Trade and Strategic Partnership Agreement was signed on October 8, the second day of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelens­kyy’s visit to Britain.

The deal “lays the foundation for an intensified bilateral relationship in areas including trade, defense and political cooperation,” Prime Minister Johnson’s office said in statement.

The Russian Armed Forces’ largest military exercise of the year, Kavkaz 2020, was held on September 21-23, in the southwestern part of the country (TASS, September 20). Although, officially, the Kavkaz maneuvers were presented as having nothing to do with Ukraine, some non-Russian experts warned that these massive drills could serve as a rehearsal for occupation of more Ukrainian territory or even as cover for a large-scale strike. Of particular concern was Ukraine’s Kherson region, which the Kremlin would need to control to unilaterally restore the water supply to drought-stricken occupied Crimea (see Eurasia Daily Monitor, May 21, June 2, 29, August 12; Defence.ua, April 8).

Cognizant of the need to demonstrate that Ukraine can credibly counter this possible aggression, Kyiv scheduled its own large-scale military exercise, Joint Endeavor 2020, with the active part beginning on September 22. According to Gen. Oleksiy Taran, the head of the Doctrines and Training Department of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF), the strategic command staff drills involved more than 12,000 military personnel and some 700 vehicles (Interfax, September 15).

Ukraine reports 5,590 new coronavirus cases

Ukraine has registered 5,590 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases to 276,177, it was reported on October 14. According to the interactive map of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, 107 deaths and 2,137 recoveries have been recorded in the country over the past 24 hours. In total, 5,229 patients have died and 118,699 have recovered in Ukraine since the pandemic began. The highest number of new coronavirus cases has been reported in the Kharkiv region (637), Kyiv city (422), Lviv region (345), Dnipropetrovsk region (342) and Odesa region (302). (Ukrinform)