The Ukrainian Weekly, 2017

INSIDE: l Marking the centennial of the Crimean Tatar Kurultai – page 2 l Holodomor remembered in Ottawa and Edmonton – page 8 l UTS presents 2017 Ukrainian of the Year Award – page 9 THEPublished U by theKRAINIAN Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal W non-profit associationEEKLY Vol. LXXXV No. 51 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2017 $2.00 Defense budget authorizes Poroshenko faces worst political crisis of his administration provision of lethal weapons by Mark Raczkiewycz to Ukraine, expands support KYIV – Not since the Euro-Maidan revo- Interfax-Ukraine lution have Kyiv’s streets seen such unrest as what occurred last weekend and turned WASHINGTON – The defense budget out to be President Petro Poroshenko’s for 2018, signed by U.S. President worst domestic political crisis to date. Donald Trump, provides $350 million to Several thousand protesters led by promote security in Ukraine and autho- opposition lawmakers marched to Kyiv’s rizes the country to provide lethal Independence Square on December 10, weapons, the Ukrainian Embassy in the calling for the billionaire president’s United States has said. impeachment, the release of ex-Georgian “President of the United States leader turned Ukrainian politician Mikheil Donald Trump has signed the law on Saakashvili and progress to uproot high- the U.S. budget for 2018 for national level corruption. defense, which provides permission to The rally at once questioned Mr. allocate $350 million to provide assis- Poroshenko’s credentials of being reformist tance in the security sphere of Ukraine. and pro-democratic, and cast his adminis- The law authorizes the provision of tration in the negative light of “using the old defensive weapons to our state and sig- tried and tested levers of power,” said nificantly expands the parameters of Timothy Ash, a London-based senior Inna Sokolovska/UNIAN Ukraine’s support with the United emerging markets strategist for BlueBay A scene from the anti-government demonstration in Kyiv on December 9 – the largest States in the field of security and Asset Management. since the Euro-Maidan – that called on the Poroshenko administration to speed up defense,” the Embassy of Ukraine said Two intertwined incidents led to the cul- anti-graft efforts. mination of the anti-government demon- on its Facebook page. Sapping independent Meanwhile, the Security Service of Ukraine The National Defense Authorization stration. One was the alleged concerted anti-graft institutions and the Prosecutor General’s Office had a Act for Fiscal Year 2018 contains provi- effort by authorities to further create log- week earlier, on November 30, jointly disrupt- While the respective heads of the inde- sions allowing the use of U.S. defense jams preventing the establishment of a ed a NABU sting operation, the anti-graft pendent Special Anti-Corruption budget funds for the rehabilitation of long-promised anti-corruption court as agency alleges. That day, seven NABU agents Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) and the wounded Ukrainian military personnel they attempted to weaken graft-fighting had their cover blown when authorities National Anti-Corruption Bureau of in medical institutions of the United institutions. The other is the detainment of detained them during an operation to give a States, education and training of Mr. Saakashvili, ex-president of Georgia and Ukraine (NABU), Nazar Kholodnytsky and $30,000 bribe to a State Migration Service Ukrainian medical specialists in this field, ex-governor of Odesa – a former university Artem Sytnyk, were visiting Washington on official who purportedly was soliciting it. as well as strengthening the capabilities pal of the Ukrainian president. Mr. December 4-6, two pro-presidential parlia- Then, a national deputy who was vocif- of the air and naval forces of Ukraine. Poroshenko had hired Mr. Saaskashvili in mentary factions introduced legislation erous on graft, former journalist Yegor 2015 but had a falling out with him in that would allow the Verkhovna Rada to (Continued on page 8) November 2016. remove them from office. (Continued on page 7) Chicago and New York events raise more than $500,000 for UCU by Matthew Matuszak expand programs and faculty, increase scholarships and student enrollment, including an outreach effort to enroll UCEF students from throughout Ukraine, including a young CHICAGO – Recent events in Chicago and New York City woman, a Crimean Tatar, who was highlighted in the film. together raised more than half a million dollars for The Rev. Stepan Sus, an UCU graduate who is now a Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU). Both the spiritual and chaplain for the Ukrainian military, spoke of the challenges the secular were emphasized at the events: Bishop Borys of his ministry. Also, four current students of the Lviv Gudziak, president of UCU, shared the New York program Business School (LvBS) at UCU, who were visiting the U.S. with Michigan-born Dr. Ulana Suprun, acting minister of to learn “how business works,” as one of them expressed it, health of Ukraine, while Chicago’s audience greeted Bishop shared their experiences at UCU that help them bring both Benedict Aleksichuk and noted international business con- professionalism and ethics to the entrepreneurial activities sultant Adrian Slywotzky. in which they are already engaged. Chicago’s October 29 luncheon was held at the Ritz-Carlton Entertainment was in abundance at the event, as well. Hotel. Bishop Benedict, a graduate of the UCU Lviv Business The highlight was the P&P Quintet (of the Garrison Church School and a former UCU senator (member of the board), gave of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Lviv), which sang for the blessing and then spoke to the gathered supporters. guests in the vestibule as they arrived at the event and then Local friends of UCU also had an opportunity to meet gave a mini-concert at the end of the afternoon. The other graduates and students and to see and hear about Chicago Bandura Ensemble Char-Zillia, which has an UCU graduate as a member, performed, as did violinist Krystyna their accomplishments, starting with a brief video presen- Dobrowolsky Lopez, daughter and granddaughter of dedi- tation, “Aspire to Greatness.” The film showed the results of cated donors to UCU’s funding arm in North America, the the recently completed, seven-year Comprehensive Roman Verhnyak Ukrainian Catholic Education Foundation (UCEF). Campaign, “A New Generation for a New Ukraine.” The UCU President Bishop Borys Gudziak and Acting Keynote speaker Mr. Slywotzky, partner emeritus of lead- fund-raising effort gathered donations from 15,000 con- Minister of Health of Ukraine Dr. Ulana Suprun were ing global management consulting firm Oliver Wyman, tributors worldwide for a total of $67.1 million, which the main speakers at the November 5 fund-raiser for the were used to build a new campus with four buildings, Ukrainian Catholic University held in New York. (Continued on page 5) 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2017 No. 51 ANALYSIS Kyiv concerned Council of Europe Mogherini on Ukraine’s territorial integrity the program that ends in January 2018, Ukraine received two tranches totaling 1.2 The European Union’s foreign policy billion euros ($1.4 billion) out of 1.8 billion might cave to Russian ‘blackmail’ chief reiterated the EU’s “unwavering” sup- euros ($2.1 billion) of the financial assis- port for Ukraine’s territorial integrity as the serious downside to Russia’s absence from tance. Mr. Mingarelli said earlier that the by Christopher Miller bloc considered moves to extend economic requirements Ukraine failed to meet RFE/RL the Council of Europe, PACE and, by exten- sanctions on Russia for its aggression in sion, the ECHR. Russia-related cases included the abolition of a moratorium on Ukraine. Federica Mogherini, speaking in the export of round timber, the fulfillment KYIV – Ukrainian officials and politicians account for some one-third of the Brussels on December 8 after meeting with have reacted with alarm to reports that the Strasbourg-based court’s caseload. of conditions in the field of energy, fighting Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr corruption and requirements in the field of Council of Europe is considering lifting Tanya Lokshina of Human Rights Watch Groysman, condemned Russia’s continued trade as well as in social payments for sanctions imposed against Russia over its in Moscow told the FT that the court “has militarization of the Crimea region, which immigrants. (RFE/RL, based on reporting military intervention in Crimea out of fears been the most successful international pro- Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014. by Interfax and Kyiv Post) that Moscow might otherwise leave the tection mechanism” for Russians’ rights, She also assailed Russia for the deteriora- body. adding that it was the “court of last resort tion of human rights in the region and Saakashvili released from detention “We are extremely concerned,” Dmytro in a situation when they cannot find justice restated the EU’s “call for the immediate A Ukrainian court has released from Kuleba, Ukraine’s ambassador to the in domestic courts.” release of all Ukrainian citizens illegally detention opposition figure Mikheil detained in illegally annexed Crimea and in Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Russia has tried to claw back its vote for Saakashvili, who is accused by prosecutors Russia.” The EU, along with the United Europe (PACE), told RFE/RL from months, and in June it canceled its pay- of assisting a criminal organization. States, has imposed economic sanctions on Strasbourg on November 27. “The issue ments to the Council of Europe in retalia- Ukrainian prosecutors had sought to place Moscow for its actions in Ukraine, where it now goes far beyond interests of Ukraine. tion for its delegation there being stripped Mr. Saakashvili under house arrest, but a also backs separatists fighting Kyiv’s forces It’s in the interests of the entire region to of voting rights, Reuters reported at the judge on December 11 turned down the in the eastern part of the country in a con- defend the Council of Europe from Russian time.

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