Canada second to recognize Ukraine; establishing ties should go smoothly (12/08/91)

Canada second to recognize Ukraine; establishing ties should go smoothly

by Christopher Guly

OTTAWA - Canada has become the second country after Poland to officially recognize Ukraine's independence. In making the announcement the day following the historic December 1 referendum, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney stopped short of immediately establishing diplomatic ties with the breakaway Soviet republic.

Mark Entwistle, spokesperson for the prime minister's office confirmed that Supreme Council Leonid Kravchuk had sent a letter to Mr. Mulroney prior to the election, outlining his commitment to democracy. "We expect the process to go quite smoothly," he said.

Canada sent three members of its Parliament and Alberta's chief electoral officer as monitors to observe the Ukrainian vote.

However, Andrij Hluchowecky, of the Ukrainian Information Bureau in Ottawa, said that President Kravchuk should be trusted. "When we visited Canada few months ago, he impressed the Ukrainian community here with his ideas about change. Unless he's lying through his teeth, that shouldn't change."

Dr. Dmytro Cipywnyk, president of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, explained that Mr. Kravchuk "has no other way out. The people voted overwhelmingly,'' he said. "He can't be an autocrat.''

Dr. Cipywnyk added that the "doubting Thomases" who lament Ukraine's destruction of a reforming Soviet Union, do much to undermine its future as a sovereign state. In a recent editorial, the Ottawa Citizen, for one, "cheer(ed) for the Ukrainian people, but wonder(ed) what they have wrought."

Liberal External Affairs critic Lloyd Axworthy explained, "Recognition implies diplomatic recognition, and I think Mr. Mulroney should get on with it," he says. "It took them a couple of years to get a consulate up and running in Kiev. It's all there, ready to become an embassy."

The opposition member of Parliament for Winnipeg-South Center also disputes Canada's concerns over potential instability between Ukraine and Russia.

"The eastern part of Ukraine and the Crimea voted as high as 50 percent in favor of independence. That should say something about ethnic minorities."

"Members of Parliament were recently given assurances by the Russian Foreign Ministry that they are not particularly worried about Ukrainian sovereignty," he added.

The Rev. Andriy Chirovsky, director of the Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute for Eastern Christian Studies at Ottawa's St. Paul University, isn't as concerned over Canada's apparent foot-dragging.

''Canada is not going to be bullied by George Bush on this. We share some striking similarities with Ukraine. Both of us are next door to a large and aggressive neighbor...and we have to find ways to co-exist with that neighbor," noted the Ukrainian Catholic priest.

New Democratic Party External Affairs critic Svend Robinson wants Canada to move quickly on economic and technical assistance to Ukraine. The first priority, he says, is to deal with the aftereffects of Chornobyl by sending Canadian scientists and researchers to determine the long-term aid required.

Canadian political scientists and economists are already predicting a tough road ahead for the newly created state of 52 million. Aurel Braun, processor of international relations and political science at the University of Toronto, was recently quoted in the Ottawa Citizen, saying that without "political legitimacy first," Ukraine will not be able to effectively deal with its economy.

But before the Ukrainian Canadian population of nearly 1 million deals with new problems facing their homeland, they celebrate. Major rallies were held in Ottawa and across Canada, to mark December 1 as what many feel will become Ukraine's official independence day.

However, some do contemplate change. Dr. Cipywnyk expects the UCC to spend the next few months discussing its own future. He also looks forward to being briefed by Canadian External Affairs officials upon their return from Ukraine.