Ukraine

Car with Zelenskyy’s top aide riddled with bullets in assassination attempt
President’s longtime friend survives amid string of assassinations and attempts on other high-level figures since start of east Ukraine war

By |

KYIV – At about 10 a.m. on September 22, one or more shooter fired a volley of at least 18 bullets from the woods at a black, four-door Audi sedan along the road between the villages of Lisnyky and Khodosivka in Kyiv Oblast. Inside the vehicle was the president’s top aide, Serhiy Shefir, and a driver. The unidentified driver was shot three times and hospitalized in critical condition while Mr. Shefir survived unscathed. “The purpose of this crime was not to scare, but to kill,” Interior Affairs Minister Denys Monastyrsky said at a joint briefing the same day with Mr. Shefir. “Greeting me with shots from the forest at my friend’s car is a weakness.

Ukraine

Zelenskyy pleads with U.N. to do more to end Russia’s war against Ukraine

By |

KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered an impassioned speech at the 76th United Nations General Assembly in which he called on the world’s most prominent diplomatic convocation to do more to help end Russia’s war against his eastern European country.

Given on September 22 while back home assassins attempted to kill one of his top confidantes the same day, Mr. Zelenskyy told the assembly that it needs to live up to its mandate of maintaining peace and order throughout the world.

News

President Zelenskyy meets with Ukrainian community in New York

By |

NEW YORK – President Volodymyr Zelens­kyy met with dozens of leaders representing various Ukrainian community organizations at the Ukrainian Institute of America (UIA) on September 21 during his working visit to the United States. His primary reason for the visit to the U.S. was to participate in the opening of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Following the singing of the Ukrainian national anthem, Mr. Zelenskyy began his address by highlighting the active role of the Ukrainian community in the U.S. and its close working relationship with Ukraine.

Ukraine

Thousands take part in 10th annual gay pride parade in Kyiv
In a shift from previous years, this year’s participants did not face violence

By |

KYIV – Some 7,000 supporters of LGBT rights marched peacefully on September 19 in Ukraine’s capital in what was this city’s 10th gay pride parade. Organizers of the march said that, as opposed to previous pride parades that did incur violence, this year’s march was peaceful with only a handful of minor provocations.

This was also the first time that organizers of the march expressed demands on the Ukrainian government. Those demands, published in a manifesto signed by 15 non-governmental organizations, asked the Ukrainian government to adopt a bill to combat discrimination and create a procedure for holding people who commit crimes motivated by homophobia, transphobia and other forms of intolerance legally liable.

Sports

Detailing Andriy Shevchenko’s departure from the Ukrainian national soccer team

By |

Andriy Shevchenko’s September 3 press conference sent tremors across Ukraine’s football landscape. The coach rocked and shocked the public when he revealed his reasons for departing the coaching duties of the country’s national team.

Ukraine’s national soccer team performed well at the Euro 2020 soccer championship, benefiting from some good luck, but, nonetheless, exhibiting positive results. Indeed, the quarterfinal showing by the young Ukrainian squad, still in a development stage, turned out to be quite successful.

Editorials

A forceful response

By |

This has been an unusually busy and eventful week for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.  Having visited the United States a few weeks earlier, he began his week by flying back to the United States to address the 76th United Nations General Assembly on September 22, where he pleaded with world leaders to do more to help end Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Turning the pages back...

Sept. 29, 2016

By |

Five years ago, on September 29, 2016, Ukraine marked the 75th anniversary of the World War II-era mass execution of 33,771 Jews at the Babyn Yar ravine on the outskirts of Kyiv. World leaders attended the official commemoration, hosted by President Petro Poroshenko, which included Israeli President Reuven Rivlin, who was on a working visit to Ukraine but had to return to Israel on September 28 after the death of Israeli statesman Shimon Peres.

Letters to the Editor

In memory of George Sawchak

By |

Dear Editor:

On August 21, the sad news of the passing of George Sawchak stunned the Ukrainian as well as the American communities. I speak for all of his friends, coworkers and all those who had the privilege to know him when I say that this was a man of honor, integrity, commitment and compassion.

Editorials

A note of thanks to our readers

By |

The staff of The Ukrainian Weekly expresses sincere thanks to all of our readers and social media supporters for their positive reactions to our 30th anniversary issue published on August 22. Space limitations did not allow us to publish all of the information we would have liked, and more coverage of the events leading up to the declaration of Ukraine’s independence on August 24, 1991, can be found in our newspaper’s digital archive.