The Ukrainian Weekly (https://www.ukrweekly.com/uwwp/)
KYIV – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on May 6 paid a one-day visit to Ukraine where he reiterated U.S. government support for the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s ongoing aggression.
KYIV – Ukraine’s government appointed Yuriy Vitrenko as the new CEO of state-owned giant Naftogaz on April 28, replacing Andriy Kobolyev, who had led the enterprise since 2014. The move, which occurred the day after the national oil and gas company reported a loss in 2020 of $684 million, was taken by Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers, which used a legal loophole to rid themselves of Mr. Kobolyev.
KYIV – After 506 days in jail, the last of the three suspects in the high-profile murder of journalist Pavel Sheremet was released on April 30 and placed under round-the-clock house arrest with an electronic monitoring device.
“We should not let Mr. Zelenskyy and his team off the hook, but let them twist [wriggle, squirm] there,” Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov recently told reporters (RIA Novosti, April 28). This is Mr. Lavrov’s own style of signaling to Ukraine that Russia holds the commanding position to set the agenda of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s ardently sought meeting with his Kremlin counterpart, President Vladimir Putin.
WASHINGTON – The Steering Committee of Ukrainian Americans for Biden and representatives of Ukrainian American organizations received a briefing on April 26 from Chris Smith, director for Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and the Caucasus at the National Security Council. The briefing, held via Zoom, was a comprehensive 75-minute overview of topics that included plans to battle Russian disinformation, sanctions against Russia, Nord Stream 2, Russia’s increasingly threatening activity in the Black Sea, human rights violations in occupied Ukrainian territory, visa and travel restrictions and a recent $50 million allocation to Ukraine for COVID relief.
WASHINGTON – With the announcement of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to Ukraine in early May, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) penned a letter to the secretary of state requesting that the United States reaffirm its commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence. The letter accentuated the strategic partnership which exists between the two countries, while also highlighting key issues of continued support for Ukraine as Kyiv fends off Russian aggression and malign influence.
WASHINGTON – In response to increased Russian aggression against Ukraine, Helsinki Commission Chairman Sen. Ben Cardin (Md.) and Commissioner Rep. Richard Hudson (N.C.) initiated an exceptional bilateral meeting with members of the Ukrainian Delegation to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) on April 30.
WASHINGTON – Members of Ukrainian diaspora communities in Australia, Canada, the United States, France and Germany held protests on April 30 in front of German embassies and consulates in order to voice their opposition on completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
The first week of May was an important one for Ukraine in the diplomatic sphere. It produced several significant results, paving the way forward not only for Kyiv, but for Eastern Europe as a whole.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken travelled to Kyiv on May 6, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It marked the first visit to Ukraine by a senior official in the administration of President Joe Biden, and Mr. Blinken reaffirmed the position that the United States believes Ukraine is a key ally in the fight against Russian aggression.
Sixty years ago, on May 14, 1961, some 20,000 people attended the blessing of the cornerstone for the Manor College building in Fox Chase, Pa.
Bishop Joseph Shmondiuk that afternoon blessed the cornerstone, in a ceremony attended by representatives of the Government of Pennsylvania, Ukrainian organizations, as well as pilgrims and members of religious orders. Founded by the Sisters of St. Basil the Great, the educational facilities included a high school for girls (Saint Basil Academy), the junior college, as well as residence for the students and a monastery for the Sisters.
Marta R. Skorupsky, a noted Ukrainian American editor, translator and journalist who contributed to the popularization of Ukrainianism in the English world, passed away on April 19, 2021. The following commentary was written by her husband, Bohdan Gerulak.
We need more. The recent apparent pullout of Russian troops from the border with Ukraine provides time and opportunity for reassessment. No one believes that hostilities between Russia and the rest of the world have ended, least of all Ukrainians. What has become more apparent is that fortunately the Western world is more sensitive and prepared to oppose Russian aggression, albeit to what extent remains unclear, in this case fortunately.
NEW YORK – Imagine watching your baby struggle with each passing day to breathe and swallow food. Imagine knowing that your baby’s last breath is not far away, all while knowing that children afflicted with the same terminal genetic disorder can access a treatment that halts the illness, allowing them to not only live, but develop normally. This is the situation in which Ukrainians Mariia and Vitaliy Svichynsky find themselves. Their baby, Dmytro, is running out of time to receive a cutting-edge, though extremely expensive, medication that can treat his condition. Dmytro Svichynsky, now five-months-old, was born with Type 1 Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), a variant of the disease that targets the body’s motor neuron cells, leaving them weaker by the day until they eventually stop working.
CLIFTON, N.J. – Nova UA Federal Credit Union, located on Allwood Road in Clifton, N.J., continues its mission to help “communities succeed and grow” as it disbursed $50,000 in grants to eight local non-profits on April 15.