The Ukrainian Weekly, 2016
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INSIDE: New U.S. ambassador to Ukraine is sworn in – page 3 Community leaders comment on Ukraine at 25 – page 4 Opinion: Trump, Yanukovych and negative voting – page 8 THEPublished U by theKRAINIAN Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal W non-profit associationEEKLY Vol. LXXXIV No. 34 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2016 $2.00 Ukraine at 25: Leaders in Ukraine share their thoughts by Mark Raczkiewycz We need to reflect upon our history, the ceed, since our success could become a Daria Kaleniuk, executive director of way that our country became independent, model for transformation in the whole the Anti-Corruption Action Center: KYIV – On the occasion of the 25th anni- and respect the ideals of our ancestors that post-Soviet space. Why are there no changes after the versary of Ukraine’s re-establishment of they lived by – and fought for. Most impor- As a participant in the Orange and Euro- Revolution of Dignity? Why are politicians independence, The Ukrainian Weekly asked tantly today, we need to respect our brave Maidan revolutions, now I know that it was still lying and oligarchs still buying politi- some of the country’s decision makers and men and women who defend our country much easier to fight against the former cians? Why are prosecutors still selling opinion leaders, politicians and civil society from Russian invasion and liberate the regime of Viktor Yanukovych. It’s much lon- their cases and judges driving Bentleys and leaders, to share their thoughts about where occupied territories. ger and harder to transform a country and living in luxurious houses… And the people the country is headed. Ukraine is now standing at the intersec- society after 70 years of Communist pres- are still poor? Ukraine’s economy is still on shaky tion of two worlds and must choose wheth- sure than two decades of post-Soviet, klep- I often hear such assertions. ground as the International Monetary Fund er to remain in the past, with no respect for tocratic and oligarchic type governance. Yet Ukraine has never before been such has withheld funds because the country’s the rights and dignity of its citizens, or to The ongoing struggle among Ukraine’s an open society as it is today. There are so leadership has failed to implement certain become an independent state based on elites complicates the already difficult task many accessible state registries and avail- corruption-fighting measures. Ukraine’s sov- democratic values. of reform as Ukraine tries to gain full inde- able information about public finances that ereignty is also fragile as Russia continues to Enlightenment through medicine, educa- pendence from Russia in the energy, mili- Ukraine has turned into a Mecca for investi- wage war in Ukraine’s east for a third con- tion, and science will lead Ukraine to a tary, information, and economic sectors. gative journalists. secutive year. As a result, Ukraine’s territori- brighter and more prosperous future. We As a member of Parliament, together Never again will it be easy to hide stolen al area has shrunk by about 7 percent, near- are grateful to our partners around the with my colleagues from civil society, we assets. Many caught stealing suffer the con- ly 10,000 people have lost their lives and world who support Ukraine’s will to initiated and adopted important anti-cor- sequences, and many resign – for the first some 2.2 million have been displaced, of become a successful, democratic, and ruption legislation. We also embarked on time in 25 years. whom 1.8 million are internally displaced European country. de-communization, deregulation and judi- After two years in the making, we have persons (IDPs). ciary reform. The database of real estate an independent law enforcement agency in Following are their edited comments on Hanna Hopko, national deputy of the owners became open, the law on public the National Anti-Corruption Bureau that is the status of Ukraine at 25. Verkhovna Rada, head of the Rada’s broadcasting was adopted, and Russian cracking down on grand political corrup- Committee on Foreign Affairs: propaganda was prohibited in Ukraine. tion. Ulana Suprun, Ukraine’s acting minis- As one of the largest European countries This and the next few years will be a Civil society never before has had such ter of health: with more than 1,000 years of ancient his- defining moment in our existential fight to an influence on politics, policies and politi- Independence Day is a time for self- tory and culture, these 25 years of indepen- build a modern country with strong army, cians. Dozens of laws – not very much reflection and self-determination. It is a dence have been very challenging. rule of law, favorable investment climate, accepted by the political leadership – were time to remember who we are and for what Ukrainians currently are making new transparency, and finally win over Russian we are fighting. history in Europe. We are obliged to suc- economic and military aggression. (Continued on page 12) Vernyayev golden in parallel bars, Cheban in canoe sprint by Ihor N. Stelmach and Matthew Dubas Gymanst Oleh Vernyayev won his second Olympic medal in Rio, with a decisive victory – and Ukraine’s first gold medal – in the parallel bars. The Ukrainian bested American silver medalist Danell Leyva by a score of 16.041-15.900 on August 16. Leyva nailed his final routine, putting him tem- porarily in first place until Vernyayev put up an incredible 16.041 points with his routine to earn the top spot. Earlier, Vernyayev had almost dethroned the man he refers to as the “king of gymnastics,” coming ever so close to denying Japan’s Kohei Uchimura a second straight Olympic gold medal in men’s all-around gymnastics. Although Uchimura’s high bar routine sealed the victory, the final results on August 10 showed him beating the young Ukrainian by only 0.099 points. This was the narrowest margin of victory for the 27-year-old Japanese gymnast since his domination of the all-around event began in 2009, when he won the first of his record six consecutive world titles. The thought of edging out his Japanese rival crossed Vernyayev’s mind as he awaited for his score after conclud- ing the high bar routine; a small hop in Uchimura’s dismount from the final routine may have cost him a gold medal. NOC-Ukr.org (Continued on page 22) Olympic champions: canoeist Yuriy Cheban and gymnast Oleh Vernyayev. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2016 No. 34 WINDOW ON EURASIA Moscow wants Bosnia-style outcome Kyiv probes evidence about Manafort Messrs. Manafort and Gates funneled at least $2.2 million through the center to U.S. NEW YORK – Handwritten ledgers found lobbying firms to “advocate positions gen- for Ukraine, says senior analyst in Kyiv seem to link Paul Manafort, who is erally in line with those of Yanukovych’s currently the chairman of U.S. mogul Donald by Paul Goble sian west and center would be balanced by government.” The work included lobbying a pro-Russian enclave in the Donbas.” J. Trump’s presidential campaign, to more the U.S. Congress to reject a resolution con- Despite its declarations about taking Indeed, the Kyiv analyst says, “the politi- than $12 million in undisclosed cash pay- demning the jailing of Mr. Yanukovych’s revenge against Kyiv for supposedly send- cal component of the 2015 Minsk agree- ments during his tenure as an adviser to the main political rival, former Prime Minister ing “diversionists” into Crimea, Moscow is ments very much recalls the Dayton format government of former Ukrainian President Yulia Tymoshenko. That resolution was unlikely to launch a major war, but instead of resolving the conflict in Bosnia in 1995.” Viktor Yanukovych. The New York Times adopted in November 2013. Mr. Gates told hopes to use the threat of such a conflict to The major difference is that there were reported on August 14 that the ledgers are AP that the two men connected the force Ukraine to agree to a resolution of the NATO and then European forces in the for- being investigated by Ukraine’s National European Center with the lobbying firms conflict that would result in a Bosnia-style mer Yugoslavia, while there are no such Anti-Corruption Bureau as possible evi- and occasionally consulted with those outcome, according to Anatoly Oktisyuk. forces in Ukraine. Kyiv has sought so far dence of widespread corruption inside the firms. He said the actions were lawful and But the senior analyst at Kyiv’s unsuccessfully to change that. Yanukovych government. The ledgers men- did not violate the U.S. Foreign Agents International Center for Research about the “With the help of the Minsk agree- tion Mr. Manafort’s name 22 times and Registration Act. Podesta Group employee Future says that Moscow’s interest in such ments,” Mr. Oktisyuk continues, “the seem to document payments totaling $12.7 John Ward Anderson told the AP, “I was a solution inevitably challenges Kyiv to Kremlin plans to create in Ukraine a pro- million between 2007 and 2012. Mr. never given any reason to believe [Gates] select one of four very different strategies Russian enclave of the DPR and LPR” (the Yanukovych fled the country in February was a Party of Regions consultant.” He (apostrophe.com.ua/article/poli- Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics”) 2014 amid massive public demonstrations. noted, “My assumption was that he was tics/2016-08-12/posledstviya-kryimskoy- with its own special local administration The Kyiv documents also seem to tie Mr. working for the [European Center], as were diversii-ukrainu-jdut-chetyire-stsenariya- and policies oriented toward Moscow.