New York bids farewell to Ukraine's consul general (01/09/00)

New York bids farewell to Ukraine's consul general

by Irene Jarosewich

NEW YORK - Remarking that his tenure at Ukraine's Consulate General in New York was one of the most gratifying of a diplomatic career that has spanned almost three decades, Consul General Yuriy Bohaievsky bid a warm farewell to his guests at a reception held on December 29, 1999.

Present at the Consulate General that evening were representatives of the diplomatic community, the Ukrainian American community as well as from business, government and private organizations involved with Ukraine.

"I tell you frankly, I will always remember 1999 ... along with my time in Canada, it was one of the best years of my career ... I promise you, all of my friends, I will keep memories of you in my heart," said Mr. Bohaievsky.

Mr. Bohaievsky officially ended his duties as cosul general in New York on January 2 and returned to Ukraine to await his next assignment.

The letter recalling Consul General Bohaievsky was issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine immediately after President Leonid Kuchma's visit to the United States on December 7-8, 1999.

During the month of December, Ukraine's Foreign Affairs Ministry recalled ambassadors and consular officers from several countries, including Italy, Canada, Turkmenistan, Kazakstan, Kyrgyzia and the United States.

The interim acting consul general in New York is Serhiy Alekseiyevych Pohoriltsev, 36, who assumed the duties of consul on December 29, replacing Bohdan Yaremenko, whose term ended in November 1999.

Mr. Pohorilstev joined Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1992; from 1993 to 1997 he served as chief of the visa section at the Embassy of Ukraine in Argentina; from 1997 until his arrival in New York, he served in the consular section of the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Kyiv.

The announcement of a new consul general for the New York Consulate General has not yet been made.

Mr. Bohaievsky's diplomatic career to date has spanned 27 years, 14 of them abroad, including a term in Canada and two tenures at the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the United Nations, once during the period of Soviet Ukraine, and again immediately prior to his tenure as consul general in New York.

He gave a brief interview to The Ukrainian Weekly shortly after being called back to Kyiv.

He remarked that he is gratified by the ever-increasing knowledge about, and respect for, Ukraine that he has encountered in the United States during the past few years.

Nonetheless, he felt it among his key responsibilities as consul general to continue to educate about Ukraine, to make the country accessible to more people, to alleviate the ignorance about Ukraine and Ukrainians, much of which, he conceded, was perpetuated as policy by the Soviet Union.

Mr. Bohaievsky remarked that if he had to give one piece of advice to Americans about Ukraine, it would be that they try to accept and understand Ukraine, not only through American expectations, but within the context of Ukraine's long, as well as immediate history; that it is the important to understand, and respect, the complexity of Ukraine's history; that the historic process that Ukraine is undergoing, by all standards, is a difficult process.

To Ukrainian Americans he offered the same advice, with an additional thought: to not give up hope; that, despite disappointments, Ukraine has made enormous strides and has much to be proud of in the past decade.

Mr. Bohaievsky noted that he was impressed with the dedication of Ukrainians here who have chosen to preserve and pass on their heritage. He expressed hope that this tradition will continue.

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