The Ukrainian Weekly, 2018
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INSIDE: l UWC president visits diaspora communities – page 8 l St. Thomas Sunday weekend pilgrimage – page 11 l Community: Warren, Mich., and New York – page 14 THEPublished U by theKRAINIAN Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal W non-profit associationEEKLY Vol. LXXXVI No. 17 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, APRIL 29, 2018 $2.00 Ukraine gets ‘positive’ sign for autocephaly Ukraine on G-7 foreign ministers’ from Ecumenical Patriarchate agenda at Toronto meeting by Mark Raczkiewycz there was no Russian Orthodox Church back then. If the Constantinople church is KYIV – Ukraine’s historical Orthodox the mother church of Ukraine, then the mother church, the Ecumenical Ukrainian church is the mother church of Patriarchate of Constantinople, has started Russia. And the mother cannot ask for deliberation on whether to grant Ukraine independence from her daughter.” its own self-governing church known as Mr. Poroshenko added that the UOC-MP autocephaly. should also be included with the creation of In a communiqué e-mailed to The a unified Orthodox church in Ukraine. Ukrainian Weekly on April 22, the “This is the only way to rid itself at least Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople of some of the anger and sins committed by said “as its [Ukraine’s] true Mother the Russian military, Russian propagan- Church,” that it has “decided to closely com- dists, and sometimes, unfortunately, municate and coordinate with its sister Russian priests on the territory of Ukraine,” Orthodox Churches concerning this matter.” he said. A synod gathering of 12 Metropolitans is In turn, spokespersons for the UOC-MP scheduled in late May and will consider have dismissed Mr. Poroshenko’s efforts as church self-governance for Ukraine. shortsighted fancies, as a political stunt The note followed endorsements for ahead of next year’s parliamentary and church self-governance that the Turkish- presidential elections and as a ploy to dis- based patriarchate received from two of tract the public from more pressing prob- Ukrainian Canadian Congress the three Orthodox churches in Ukraine lems facing the nation. Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Minister Pavlo Klimkin (left) with G-7 foreign ministers and the Verkhovna Rada earlier this month. UOC-MP spokesperson Archbishop during their meeting in Toronto. Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland (sec- The Ukrainian branch of the Russian Klyment (Oleh Vecherya) said the push for ond from left) invited the Ukrainian minister to the meeting. Orthodox Church, Ukrainian Orthodox autocephaly “like all previous attempts are Mr. Klimkin, who with other foreign Church-Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) either attention distractors of urgent prob- by Christopher Guly Special to The Ukrainian Weekly ministers attended Sunday brunch at Ms. didn’t support the initiative that President lems that the Verkhovna Rada couldn’t Freeland’s Toronto home during his visit, Petro Poroshenko pushed through after an resolve to this day or part of a pre-election OTTAWA – While the Group of Seven told The Canadian Press (CP) that “Ukraine all-day meeting with Patriarch campaign stunt.” (G-7) foreign ministers presented a united is perceived by many and also by Russia as Bartholomew during a visit to Turkey on He predicted Kyiv’s attempt at church front against Russia in their recent two-day a sort of test range for testing Russian non- April 9. self-governance will fail. “At present, to meetings at the University of Toronto (U of conventional warfare – hybrid war,” which Mr. Poroshenko described autocephaly expect that [Patriarch] Bartholomew of T), they could have gone even further in he said was part of a broader attack as righting the past and the country’s “spir- Constantinople will change the position he condemning the “threat to democracy” “against the democratic transatlantic com- itual” independence from Moscow during has held over the last 25 years [of Ukraine’s posed by the country, according to the munity.” an April 24 television appearance on ICTV independence] is naïve at the very least,” founder and director of the G-7 Research “Fighting along with Ukraine would give channel, referring to when Moscow the archbishop said. Group at the Munk School of Global Affairs an immense asset to the whole democratic annexed Kyiv’s Metropolia in 1686. Another UOC-MP spokesperson, at the university. community in the sense of understanding “We are simply returning to historical Archpriest Mykola Danylevych, said that John Kirton, a U of T political science Russian efforts to destabilize the western justice,” he said, stating that Ukraine this talks to unite Ukraine’s Orthodox Churches professor who teaches courses on interna- world,” he said in an interview with CP year will celebrate 1030 years since the should start with the Moscow Patriarchate tional relations and Canadian foreign poli- reporter Mike Blanchfield. Kyivan-Rus feudal state adopted and not with its “separatist parts,” referring cy, praised Canadian Foreign Affairs The 61-point communiqué from this Christianity. “I would like to emphasize that to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyiv Minister Chrystia Freeland, a Ukrainian year’s meeting in Toronto includes two sec- Patriarchate (UOC-KP), Canadian who previously worked as a jour- tions – under the heading “rules-based which is not canonically nalist in both Kyiv and Moscow, for putting international order” – on Ukraine, which recognized. her ancestral homeland “front and centre” reiterated the support from Canada, Excluding Moscow, Kyiv and “Russia as Global Threat Number One” France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United has the backing of the on the agenda for the April 22-23 G-7 min- Kingdom and the United States, along with American branch of the isterial huddle. the European Union, for “Ukrainian sover- Ukrainian Orthodox Church. “Chrystia Freeland, as host, invited the eignty, independence and territorial integ- The Permanent Ukrainian foreign minister [Pavlo Klimkin] rity within its internationally recognized Conference of Ukrainian to adjoin the ministers at the beginning of borders. This includes our non-recognition Orthodox Bishops Beyond their meeting to give a firsthand account of of Russia’s violation of Ukraine’s sovereign- the Borders of Ukraine, the situation in Ukraine and its broader ty and territorial integrity.” which includes the implications,” said Prof. Kirton. The G-7 ministers decried “the degraded Ukrainian Orthodox Church “He emphasized that the threat Ukraine human rights situation” in the Crimean of the U.S.A. and the was facing may have been the most acute peninsula, “and the violations and abuses form from Russia that is affecting so many Ukrainian Orthodox Church committed against its population by Russia other countries in so many different ways – of Canada, “has written a in Crimea,” and “fully support the efforts from the direct annexation of territory strong letter of support for within the Normandy format and of the through to fake-news interference in the the actions being taken by Organization for Security and Cooperation electoral process.” His All-Holiness and the in Europe (OSCE) for a solution to the con- By comparison, Prof. Kirton said that the Holy Synod of flict in eastern Ukraine.” (The Normandy 2017 G-7 foreign ministers’ meeting, held wikipedia Constantinople regarding format, also known as the Normandy con- UOC-KP Patriarchal Cathedral of St. Volodymyr in in Lucca, Italy, focused on terrorism and Kyiv. (Continued on page 18) counterterrorism. (Continued on page 15) 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, APRIL 29, 2018 No. 17 ANALYSIS Russian navy preparing to bottle up G-7 united against Russia’s ‘malign’ acts Putin as playing a major role in disrupting global affairs. She said G-7 members had A senior U.S. official has told reporters “reaffirmed our unity in support of Ukraine Ukrainian shipping in Sea of Azov that foreign affairs ministers from the and a rules-based international order Group of Seven (G-7) industrialized nations national law of the sea,” and, consequently, where state sovereignty and territorial by Paul Goble remain determined to oppose Russia’s “they are in no way distinguishable from integrity are respected by all.” The G-7 con- Eurasia Daily Monitor efforts to “destabilize” nations around the the Somali pirates” against whom the sists of the United States, Britain, Canada, world. “There was a G-7 unity on opposing From Moscow’s point of view, its loss of international community has united. Germany, France, Italy, and Japan. (RFE/RL, control over much of the Black Sea littoral Unless Kyiv backs down, releases the Russia’s malign behavior,” said the State with reporting by The Toronto Star, and ports as a result of the disintegration Russian ship and commits to never do Department official, who spoke on condi- Reuters, AFP and AP) of the Soviet Union is a serious problem – something like this again, Mr. Nenashev tion of anonymity on April 22, the first day Bolton tells Russia conditions for better ties one that Russian moves, first in Abkhazia asserted, “I think military measures will be of the G-7 foreign ministers’ two-day meet- ing in Toronto. Nevertheless, the official and then in Crimea, were intended to help taken,” given that Russia has international The new U.S. national security adviser said there remains an openness to talk to solve. Indeed, even before the Crimean law and practice on its side (RIA Novosti, has told Russia’s U.S. ambassador that Russia over various important issues while annexation in 2014, Russian commenta- April 4). Moscow must address U.S. concerns on tors talked about depriving Ukraine of its Senior Russian officials have echoed this still holding Moscow accountable for its election meddling, the “reckless” nerve- access to the sea by creating a new line. Georgy Muradov, Mr. Putin’s presiden- destabilizing efforts around the globe. agent attack in Britain, and the situations in “Novorossiya” state that would extend to tial representative in Crimea, alleged that Reuters earlier quoted sources as saying Ukraine and Syria before relations can sub- the borders of Moldova and possibly even the detention of the Nord is illegal and that the meeting’s final statement would main- stantially improve.