INSIDE: l Askold Krushelnycky on Kyiv in denial – page 3 l Ukraine ready to compete at Rio Olympics – page 5 l Educational Leadership Camp in Ellenville, N.Y. – page 14 THEPublished U by theKRAINIAN Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal W non-profit associationEEKLY Vol. LXXXIV No. 32 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, AUGUST 7, 2016 $2.00 U.S. diplomats accuse High-ranking Yanukovych associate is arrested Russia of undermining Among charges: sponsoring Ukraine peace plan terrorist organization by Robert Coalson and stoking separatism RFRE/RL Two top U.S. diplomats working to by Mark Raczkiewycz resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine KYIV – Ukraine’s authorities on July 30 have accused Russia of continuing to detained Oleksandr Yefremov, an associate supply separatist fighters with fuel of Viktor Yanukovych. He is the highest and weapons and creating a “deterio- ranking associate of the disgraced ex-presi- rating security situation” in the region dent to have been arrested to date. that is as bad as it was a year ago. Two days later, Kyiv’s Pechersk District Ambassador Daniel Baer, head of Court ruled that the former leader of the the U.S. mission to the Organization for Party of Regions parliamentary faction be Security and Cooperation in Europe held for 60 days He faces charges of spon- (OSCE), and U.S. Ambassador to soring a terrorist organization in the Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt made the state- Luhansk Oblast and stoking separatism. ments during a July 29 telephonic Sergey Nuzhenko/UNIAN The 61-year-old former Luhansk Oblast press briefing from Vienna. Oleksandr Yefremov, the highest ranking associate of Viktor Yanukovych to be arrest- governor also is accused of abuse of office The briefing came one day after the ed by Ukraine’s authorities, seen here in a photo from 2015. in seizing the large state-owned Luhansk- head of the OSCE Special Monitoring vuhillia coal mine. according to a July 31 report in The New One such interview was briefly pub- Mission (SMM) in Ukraine, Ertugrul Mr. Yefremov’s defense will appeal the York Times, called his arrest “political pres- lished on the GTRK LNR channel operated Apakan, and the OSCE’s special repre- court ruling about his pre-trial detention, sure and repression,” in a statement pub- by combined Russian-separatist elements sentative on Ukraine, Martin Sajdik, one of his lawyers, Oleksandr Lysak, told lished on the party’s website. on July 30 – the same day that Mr. Yefremov briefed the OSCE Permanent Council the online news outlet Ukrayinska Pravda. Contrary to his denials, Mr. Yefremov has was detained at Boryspil International on the situation. If found guilty, Mr. Yefremov, considered the admitted to “sponsoring” and “financing” Airport while attempting to board a Ambassador Baer said the United most influential person in the Luhansk the Kremlin-backed separatist movement Vienna-bound plane. States and other OSCE members were Oblast until early 2014, when Mr. Luhansk People’s Republic in numerous “I finance separatism… I talk about this, increasingly concerned by what they Yanukovych fled the country, faces up to 15 interviews he has given to television chan- and openly do this,” Mr. Yefremov told the see as a disconnect between Russia’s years in prison. nels that the group controls. Ukraine’s gov- interviewer at the 1:38 minute mark of the words and its actions regarding the Mr. Yefremov has denied the charges. ernment has branded the separatist group interview. In the same interview Mr. conflict. The Opposition Bloc, a parliamentary a terrorist organization along with the self- Yefremov didn’t deny having had Valery “We see continued resupply of faction to which many former Party of proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, a Bolotov, the first self-proclaimed leader of weapons and fighters; we see contin- Regions lawmakers belong and which group also supported by Russia, according the Luhansk separatists (until August ued provocations to keep the conflict Donald Trump’s presidential campaign to Kyiv and Western governments, includ- going; we see continued restrictions of adviser Paul Manafort helped create, ing the U.S. (Continued on page 18) the SMM and its monitors; we see con- tinued shoot-downs of SMM UAVs [drones] after they have seen Russian heavy weaponry in places where it shouldn’t be,” Mr. Baer said. “And so, the message that was deliv- Trump says he’d consider recognizing Crimea as part of Russia ered to the Russian Federation yester- PARSIPPANY, N.J. – Republican presiden- edly said they wanted the peninsula to join takes Crimea, he’s sort of — I mean...” day by many, many participating states tial candidate Donald J. Trump has out- Russia. Writing on Facebook, Ukraine’s Internal in the [OSCE] Permanent Council is raged Ukrainian Americans, and others, The host of ABC’s “This Week,” George Affairs Minister Arsen Avakov called Mr. that it is time to match your words with his recent comments indicating that Stephanopoulos, asked Mr. Trump: “Why Trump’s remarks “shameful,” adding that “a with action,” he noted. he would consider recognizing Russia’s did you soften the GOP platform on marginal who supports Putin’s dictatorship Ambassador Pyatt stressed the annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula. Ukraine?” Mr. Trump’s response: “[Vladimir cannot be a guarantor of democratic free- same point, saying that Russia’s con- “I’m going to take a look at it,” Mr. Trump Putin’s] not going into Ukraine, okay? Just doms in the U.S. and the world.” tinued material support of separatist said in an interview broadcast on July 31 so you understand. He’s not going to go Former Prime Minister Arseniy fighters in eastern Ukraine was “driv- on the ABC-TV news program “This Week.” into Ukraine, all right? You can mark it Yatsenyuk called Trump’s comments “a ing the conflict.” He added fuel to the fire when he added: down and you can put it down, you can challenge to the values of the free world.” “Rather than terminating this con- “But you know, the people of Crimea, from take it anywhere you want.” He added, “It can hardly be called igno- flict, Russia’s actions are having the what I’ve heard, would rather be with Mr. Stephanopoulos countered with, rance. This is a breach of moral and civi- effect of escalating it once again,” Mr. Russia than where they were. And you have “Well, he’s already there, isn’t he?” lized principles.” Pyatt said. to look at that, also.” Mr. Trump then replied: “Okay, well, he’s (For more reaction to Donald J. Trump’s The ambassadors also accused Russia’s annexation of Crimea in March there in a certain way, but I’m not there yet latest pronouncements, see materials on Russia of failing to implement the 2014 is not recognized by the United States [apparently a reference to the U.S. presi- pages 6, 7 and 8.) Minsk agreement that was signed in or the West, which have imposed sanctions dency]. You have [President Barack] Obama Mr. Trump has denied having any kind of September 2014 and which, along on Moscow. Mr. Trump has said he would there. And frankly, that whole part of the relationship with Mr. Putin, saying he’d nei- with a second agreement signed in consider lifting those sanctions. Nor do the world is a mess under Obama, with all the ther met the Russian president nor spoken U.S. or Western countries recognize the ille- strength that you’re talking about and all of on the phone with him. It has been widely (Continued on page 18) gal referendum organized in occupied the power of NATO and all of this, in the Crimea by Russia, whereby voters purport- meantime, he’s going where — he takes — (Continued on page 13) 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, AUGUST 7, 2016 No. 32 ANALYSIS Moscow’s Donbas ‘curators’ seek to quell U.N. cites highest civilian casualties Russia?” Ms. Savchenko asked on August 2. “Death, ruins, plundering by Russian com- GENEVA – The United Nations says the batants, and the rise of its own [local] panic among soldiers in separatist Donetsk number of civilian casualties in fighting in unscrupulous oligarchs.” (RFE/RL) eastern Ukraine is back to last year’s highs. The “curator” system has its roots in the By Paul Goble Fighting between government forces and Official resigns, citing attacks on journalists Eurasia Daily Monitor early Soviet period, when Moscow routinely Russia-backed separatists has killed more dispatched special plenipotentiary repre- than 9,400 people since April 2014. The KYIV – Ukraine’s Vice-Minister of One of the darkest parts of the murky sentatives to various places to sort out U.N. Human Rights Office, which is based in Information Policy Tetyana Popova history of Moscow’s “hybrid” war in problems, promote Moscow’s policies, and Geneva, said on August 3 that it document- announced her resignation, citing what she Ukraine is the role of Russian “curators” – impose control over local and regional offi- ed 69 civilian casualties in June, including described as attacks on journalists and free- the Russian advisors who direct the activi- cials. Vladimir Putin’s establishment of the 12 dead. This is nearly double the figure for dom of speech. “I am resigning. I don’t agree ties of the military and civilian structures in presidential plenipotentiaries over the fed- May and the highest figure since August with attacks on journalists and attacks on the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk peo- eral districts a decade ago is one heir of that 2015. The figure rose further to 73 civilian freedom of speech by political organiza- ples’ republics (DPR, LPR) on the basis of tradition.