The Ukrainian Weekly, 2019
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Conclusion of THE YEAR IN REVIEW pages 6-15 THEPublished U by theKRAINIAN Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal W non-profit associationEEKLY Vol. LXXXVII No. 5 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2019 $2.00 Facebook vows to curb outside electoral ads Ukraine shines at World Economic Forum in Davos by Mark Raczkiewycz ahead of Ukraine vote KYIV – Ukraine has “turned the corner,” is back on investors’ radars and changing pub- by Christopher Miller lic perception beyond corruption and “war” RFE/RL about the country, Alexa Chopivsky, Ukraine KYIV – The social-media giant House Davos (UHD) executive director, told Facebook has announced that it will The Ukrainian Weekly regarding the side prohibit electoral ads bought outside venue’s performance at this year’s annual Ukraine from appearing there in the World Economic Forum in Switzerland. run-up to the country’s presidential Ms. Chopivsky noted that attendance election this spring. this year on January 21-25 reached an esti- mated 8,000 visitors – or 3,000 more than The move is part of the social net- in 2018 when UHD debuted – and which work’s global response to the outcry included the traditional Ukrainian over false or misleading stories dissem- Breakfast that Viktor Pinchuk, a magnate inated via its 2 billion users, and is cer- whose father-in-law is ex-President Leonid tain to be welcomed by officials in Kyiv. Kuchma, has funded for 15 years through a Ukraine has warned Facebook for charity foundation. Ukraine House Davos years about alleged Moscow-backed A separate cellphone application made Ukraine House Davos bucked the trend of a male-dominated presence at this year’s disinformation campaigns on its plat- available at Davos pinned the number of World Economic Forum with an all-female organizing committee (from left): Alexa form, including “fake news” to foment visitors at 9,000. Chopivsky, Jaroslawa Johnson, Svitlana Grytsenko, Olga Afanasyeva and Lenna distrust in its pro-Western government “Ukraine has staked its claim in the Koszarny. and to promote support of Moscow’s Davos event and is becoming recognized as mation technology, light manufacturing and true ‘business heroes’… adept at bypassing annexation of Crimea and backing of a leader… among the country and business food processing industries, the company’s the country’s past shortcomings, and able separatists in the country’s east. houses, a truly known leader in terms of Facebook made the announcement packed high-quality content and a high-lev- news release said on January 23. to use the country’s talent and resources to in a January 28 post outlining its el networking culture,” said Ms. Chopivsky. A new generation of entrepreneurs with build modern businesses.” efforts to protect elections this year in She added that our “brand is solidified… hardly any conscious memory of the Soviet Stepping in also was the European Bank India, Israel, Nigeria and Ukraine. It we had more space and more buzz on the Union is enticing foreign investors to park for Reconstruction and Development – said the measures would be intro- street this year.” their money in Ukraine, according to Lenna Ukraine’s biggest foreign investor – with a duced globally before the end of June. The deliverables included securing two Koszarny, Horizon Capital founding partner $150 million syndicated loan to finance Ukrainians will vote for a president foreign investment deals worth nearly and CEO. Ukraine’s largest wind power farm to be in the first of two possible rounds on $400 million. “Visitors to Ukraine House and investors located at a lake in the country’s southern March 31, with a field of more than two Private-equity fund manager Horizon are attracted by the ‘generational shift’ in Kherson Oblast. dozen candidates likely to challenge Capital launched a third investment fund for today’s Ukraine,” she said on the business The total project, worth $400 million, President Petro Poroshenko. $200 million. It was oversubscribed by networking platform LinkedIn. “They are includes Norwegian energy giant NBT and “Protecting the integrity of elections more than $50 million and will target “high- looking to invest in the post-independence the French company Total Eren, who jointly while making sure people can have a growth and export-driven companies in new generation of progressive young com- voice is a top priority for Facebook,” Ukraine” that include players in the infor- pany founders and entrepreneurs who are (Continued on page 17) Anika Geisel, from Facebook’s public- policy department focused on Europe, wrote of the new policy in a post on protecting European parliamentary elections that was also published on Chicagoans celebrate centennial of united independent Ukraine January 28. UCCA Illinois Searchable library CHICAGO – The Ukrainian American As part of the new measure, adver- community of the Chicago area on January tisers will need to be authorized to 20 celebrated the 100th anniversary of the purchase political ads, and the compa- unification of Ukrainian lands on January ny will give people additional informa- 22, 1919, when the Ukrainian National tion about advertisements related to Republic and the Western Ukrainian politics and issues. National Republic proclaimed one indepen- It will create a publicly searchable dent Ukrainian state. library of advertisements for up to The commemoration was organized by seven years that will include informa- the Ukrainian Congress Committee of tion on the range of each advertise- America Illinois Division (UCCA Illinois) ment’s budget, its reach and demo- and gathered almost 300 members of the graphics of those who viewed the community. advertisement, including age, gender Three members of Congress – Rep. Mike and location. Quigley, who recently became a co-chair of It is unclear when the new measure the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, Rep. will come into force in Ukraine, which Danny Davis, a long-time friend of the com- Iryna Yatsyshyn has been targeted by Russian disinfor- munity, and Rep. Sean Casten, recently Rep. Mike Quigley, a new co-chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, addresses the Ukrainian American community gathered on January 20 to celebrate the 100th (Continued on page 21) anniversary of the unification of Ukrainian lands into one independent state in 1919. (Continued on page 22) Looking on is the event’s emcee, Marta Farion. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2019 No. 5 ANALYSIS Desperately seeking a post-war Poroshenko announces re-election bid Ukraine. The incumbent’s popularity rating is low, but polls suggest he and former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who president in Ukraine has announced he will seek re-election in announced her presidential bid on January the March presidential election, and vowed 22, are the likely front-runners. (RFE/RL’s by Christopher Miller large sections of territory. to press for European Union and NATO Ukrainian Service, with reporting by RFE/RL Another candidate, Volodymyr Zelensky, who plays a fictional president in a TV com- membership. Speaking to thousands of sup- Reuters, Kommersant, UNIAN and Interfax) KYIV – Ukrainians say the biggest prob- edy series, recently offered voters some- porters on January 29, the confectionary PACE condemns Kerch attack lem facing their country ahead of a crucial thing along the lines of “we’ll meet in the magnate said that a “feeling of deep respon- presidential election in March is the same middle” when asked how he might resolve sibility before the country and... before past The Parliamentary Assembly of the one that ushered in the current head of the conflict. and future generations” led him to decide to Council of Europe (PACE) on January 24 state in the first place: war. “Putin has his position; I have my posi- run for a second five-year term in the March adopted a resolution, “The Escalation of It’s been almost four years since officials tion. We’ll decide something and then have 31 vote. The 53-year-old Mr. Poroshenko, Tensions Around the Sea of Azov and the from Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany a referendum,” is how Prof. Haran charac- one of Ukraine’s richest men, came to Kerch Strait and Threats to European agreed on a way to end a hot phase of the con- terizes the position of Mr. Zelensky, who is power in the aftermath of the pro-European Security,” in which it “condemns the use of flict between Ukraine’s central government running third behind Ms. Tymoshenko and Maidan protests that pushed Moscow- military force by the Russian Federation and Russia-backed separatists in the east. Mr. Poroshenko in early polling. “Zelensky friendly President Viktor Yanukovych out in against Ukrainian warships and their Fast forward to today, and that deal, demonstrated that he’s totally unprepared February 2014. He has vocally advocated crews.” PACE urges the Russian Federation known as the Minsk accords, has largely for such questions.” closer integration with the West and criti- to: “immediately release the Ukrainian ser- failed, much to the dismay of most of Growing desire for peace cized Russia following Moscow’s seizure of vicemen and ensure they are granted the Ukraine’s 44 million citizens. Ukraine’s Crimea region and amid a con- necessary medical, legal and/or consular Many of the two dozen people who have Sporadic fighting has killed more than tinuing war against Russia-backed militants assistance in accordance with relevant pro- declared their intention to run – 17 of them 10,000 people and displaced 2 million in the eastern region known as the Donbas. visions of international humanitarian law already registered ahead of the February 8 more from an area sliced through by a “I would like to ask voters for a mandate to such as the Geneva Conventions; ensure deadline – have talked about ending the 500-kilometer “line of contact” teeming freedom of passage in the Sea of Azov and war, albeit in extremely vague terms.