· May, 2006

Stories about Ukraine from May, 2006

Ukraine: GUAM Founds ODED

  29 May 2006

Vilhelm Konnander writes about a new organization whose founding members are Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova (GUAM): the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development (ODED), to be based in Kyiv, Ukraine. GUAM-ODED is intended as an alternative to the Commonwealth of Independent States

Ukraine: Books on Ukraine

  26 May 2006

Dan McMinn of Orange Ukraine has started a Ukrainian book section of his blog: “[…] a list of good (or at least popular) reading material about Ukraine or involving Ukraine. The section includes a number of useful links and things for each book, and categorizes the books a number of...

Ukraine, Russia: Financial Aid for Mothers

  25 May 2006

As Vladimir Putin promises to increase financial aid to Russia's new mothers in order to change the demographic situation for the better, Scott W. Clark of Foreign Notes points out that in Ukraine, the significantly increased payments have not led to a baby boom.

Ukraine: President's Son Misbehaving Again

  24 May 2006

Andriy Yushchenko, president Yushchenko's son, seems to be making trouble again: this time, he, allegedly, almost caused a car crash, verbally abused a high-ranking law enforcement official and didn't prevent his bodyguard from shooting the man in the leg with a rubber bullet. LEvko of Foreign Notes reports on this...

Ukraine: Village Life Videos

  24 May 2006

Ukrainian-American blogger Stefan of Dykun now has a vlog, but he'll be cross-posting Ukraine-related entries to his blog. The first two videos – both shot in Sept. 2005 – have to do with West Ukrainian farming and village life: an old woman feeding fowl in Ternopil region and villagers gathering...

Muscovites in Kyiv: Pizza Delivery Fiasco

  23 May 2006

On weekends, Kyiv teems with tourists from Moscow. Train tickets for overnight Friday and Sunday rides between the two capitals have to be ordered well in advance. The number of Muscovites settling in Kyiv permanently to do business is growing, too. To make the new migrants’ lives easier, a special...

Image from Ukraine: “Waterbottle Football”

  21 May 2006

By Dan McMinn of Orange Ukraine These resourceful football fans in Ukraine's Carpathian Mountains are using a 2-liter bottle as a ball. Dan's report on his trip to the Carpathians is here, more photos are here. Dan's other Ukrainian travel reports – including the one from Chernobyl – are here.

Russia: Blogger Dies on Mount Elbrus

  19 May 2006

Aleksandr Antonov (aka LJ user caesar_rb) 1979-2006 Aleksandr Antonov's last LJ post was a very happy one: he was going on a two-week vacation to conquer Mount Elbrus. Here's what he wrote on April 30 (RUS), as LJ user caesar_rb: I'm going to Elbrus! So, my dear comrades, I'm leaving...

Ukraine: New Mayor Against Teachers

  19 May 2006

Scott W. Clark of Foreign Notes writes about Kyiv's new mayor's alarming first steps: “We know someone who is a teacher in the Kiev district. She tells us that Chernovetsky [new mayor] has taken away the bonus that Omelchenko [ex-mayor] gave them for some reason. She says he's anti-teacher but...

Ukraine: Obstacles in the Foreign Adoption Process

  18 May 2006

Cristin of the Ukraine Adoption blog reports that many American families willing to adopt Ukrainian children are losing patience after many months of waiting for the Ukrainian government agency to start issuing paperwork needed to finalize the adoptions. To fight red tape, Cristin suggests writing letters to the president of...

Ukraine: Vote for Tina Karol

  18 May 2006

Oleksandr of Messages From Canada calls to his non-Ukrainian readers to vote for Tina Karol, a Ukrainian contester in today's semifinal of the Eurovision Song Contest in Athens.

Ukraine: New Government Likely to Emerge Soon

  18 May 2006

Vilhelm Konnander thinks Ukraine is about to get its government, at long last: “Seven weeks after the March parliamentary elections, Timoshenko again declares that she stands as victor and new Prime Minister.”

Banned White-Red-White Flag of Belarus Travels Abroad

  17 May 2006

This flag used to be the official state flag of Belarus from 1991 to 1995. Following the controversial referendum of May 14, 1995, president Aleksandr Lukashenko banned it and reintroduced a variation of the Soviet-time Belarusian flag. During their visit to Kyiv, Ukraine, in early May, Belarusian LJ users lysaye-dzyaucho...

Belarus: Political Refugees; Disinformation on Asylum Seekers

  16 May 2006

Leo Finkel of Maidan International writes about a press conference given by Belarusian political refugees in Kyiv; according to him, the number of Belarusian political asylum seekers will grow in the coming months. TOL's Belarus Blog reports on the false information spread by certain Russian news agencies: according to them,...

Ukraine: Kyiv's New Mayor

  16 May 2006

Scott W. Clark of Foreign Notes writes about Kyiv's new mayor: “Sometimes the mayor makes a lot of sense and sometimes he sounds crack-brained.”