The Ukrainian Weekly (https://www.ukrweekly.com/uwwp/author/anton_holovin/page/3/)
In Germany, the center-left Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) narrowly beat the conservative Christian Democratic Party (CDU) in the federal election held on September 26.
Yes, the latter has lost after 16 years leading the government, and Germany’s long-serving chancellor, Angela Merkel, whose party’s support had been declining for some time, is leaving the helm.
On September 17-19, elections to Russia’s State Duma (lower house of parliament) were unlawfully staged in the Russian-occupied territories in Ukraine’s east (Donetsk and Luhansk) as well as in annexed Crimea. Elections to the Russian Duma were also held unlawfully in Transnistria, Abkhazia and South Ossetia – territories seized from Moldova and Georgia, respectively. The voting demonstrated Moscow’s systematic use of illegal “passportization” of citizens of other countries in territories forcibly seized from those countries. Russia uses mass-passportization as a form of annexing populations without necessarily declaring the annexation of the territory to Russia (see accompanying article in Eurasia Daily Monitor, September 23).
Hungary summons Ukrainian envoy
Hungarian Foreign Affairs Minister Péter Szíjjártó has summoned Ukraine’s ambassador over what he said was Kyiv’s attempts to block Budapest’s new long-term gas supply deal with Russia, which was signed on September 27. In a September 28 post on Facebook, Mr. Szíjjártó denounced Ukraine’s criticism of the new 15-year natural-gas supply deal with Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom as a “serious violation of Hungary’s sovereignty.” Executives of Hungarian energy group MVM signed the gas deal with Gazprom CEO Aleksei Miller on September 27 at the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Budapest.
The following statement was released by the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America on September 28.
The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA), the representative organization of the nearly two million Americans of Ukrainian descent, recalls with deep sorrow one of the darkest chapters in the history of genocide – the Massacres at Babyn Yar. At the end of September 80 years ago, during the Nazi occupation of Kyiv, the gruesome slaughter of tens of thousands of innocent men, women and children began at Babyn Yar (which means “old women’s ravine” in Ukrainian). Although this was but one site among many of the Shoah that terrorized all Europe’s Jews, it is a site of particular tragedy for Ukraine.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) announced on September 23 that the Senate’s fiscal year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) extends the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and increases funding from $250 million to $300 million per year, including at least $75 million specifically for lethal assistance. These funds are used to help train, equip and provide support for the Ukrainian government in their effort to defend their territory and autonomy against ongoing Russian aggression.
The following is a guest editorial by Alexandra Holyk, editor of Student, a publication of the Ukrainian Canadian Students’ Union (SUSK), third-year journalism student at Ryerson University in Toronto, and online editor at The Eyeopener, Ryerson University’s independent student newspaper.
As Ukrainians around the world mark the 80th anniversary of the tragedy of Babyn Yar, the Ukrainian diaspora community in Canada also honors the victims of yet another tragedy.
Seventy years ago, on October 6, 1951, The Ukrainian Weekly marked the 18th anniversary of its founding. It was at the Ukrainian National Association convention in 1933 in Detroit where it was decided that the UNA must publish for the growing younger generation a weekly publication in the English language as a supplement in the Ukrainian-language newspaper Svoboda.
There are two competing projects for a memorial at Babyn Yar, the site of a mass murder of Jews and others during the Nazi occupation. One of these projects, the Russian, is heavily funded by Kremlin allies and seeks to use the memorial to blame Ukrainian anti-Semitism for this crime against humanity.
The other, less well-funded and lacking even the enthusiastic backing of the current Ukrainian president, is being developed by a group of Ukrainians, Jewish and otherwise. Its purpose is not some information war with Russia, but rather a respectful memorial to the victims of this tragedy.
Dear Editor:
In the September 19 edition of The Ukrainian Weekly, Askold Lozynskyj wrote the following: “President Trump was a military buffoon, often embarrassing the Pentagon and he was considered totally incompetent by the generals there. President Biden is a little more astute with no military background.” I suppose he chose to ignore Joe Biden’s recent inept surrender in Afghanistan that also resulted in the deaths of 13 U.S. soldiers.
Dear Editor:
I did not know that Ukrainian athletes would be in the Paralympics. As I watched them perform, I was moved to tears and a high national pride. To all of them, and their coaches, trainers and supporters, I can attest that worldwide Ukrainians (and many non-Ukrainians) are truly proud of you. Now, let’s move on to the Winter Games!