Section: The Guardian (The United Kingdom)
Ukraine adopts law enforcing use of Ukrainian in public life
Critics fear disenfranchisement of Russian speakers but advocates say move bolsters national identity Ukraine’s parliament has adopted a new law that will require the use of Ukrainian language in most aspects of public life, a decision that supporters say will strengthen national identity but that critics contend could disenfranchise the...
Russia eases passport process for Ukrainians in breakaway regions
Decree issued by Moscow causes anger in Kyiv and will be challenge for new presidentVladimir Putin has signed a law that will allow Ukrainians living in the breakaway regions of south-east Ukraine to receive Russian passports more easily.The provocative decision caused anger in Kyiv, where the offer of Russian passports will be taken as an...
Comedy is a tool, a trick – Ukraine will soon see, running a country is no joke | Jack Bernhardt
Volodymyr Zelenskiy is not interested in building a vision for the future, but on denigrating everything that came beforeAs a comedy writer, I tell myself lies to make myself feel better about my life decisions. “That two-star review reads more like a four!” “If I lived in the 1960s I’d definitely have been in Monty Python!” “My wife...
As the bookseller said to the archbishop | Brief letters
Extinction Rebellion | Bookstore surprises | Rabbits | Comedians in power | BrexitYour coverage of the Extinction Rebellion protest has been exemplary. In line with their demand to “tell the truth”, perhaps headlines about climate change affecting us right now could take a less celebratory tone (Temperature records tumble as UK basks in Easter...
Zelenskiy’s victory in Ukraine was extraordinary. But now he faces a real test | Katya Gorchinskaya
The new president’s promise to take on the establishment will lead to questions over the oligarch who backed himOn Sunday night, Volodymyr Zelenskiy jumped up and down on stage as exit poll results flashed on a giant screen behind him. He now knew he would be Ukraine’s next president. Zelenskiy kissed his wife, high-fived his team,...
Volodymyr Zelenskiy: after the landslide, things get serious for Servant of the People
As many challenges await as for fictional Ukrainian president he played, but with no certainty of a happy endingAfter a campaign of stunts, japes and viral videos, things now get serious for Volodymyr Zelenskiy.The 41-year-old actor and comedian won an overwhelming victory in Ukraine’s presidential election on Sunday. By Monday lunchtime,...
Zelenskiy wins second round of Ukraine’s presidential election – exit poll
Poll result suggests comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy has won with 73% of the vote Ukrainian comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy has won the second round of a presidential election against the incumbent, Petro Poroshenko, by a landslide, a national exit poll showed. The poll on Sunday said Zelenskiy had won 73% of the vote and that Poroshenko had won just...
Ukraine elections: comedian leads polls as final round of voting begins
Little enthusiasm on display for either candidate in final round of presidential contestVoting is under way in the final round of Ukraine’s presidential election, where pre-vote polling suggests the most likely winner will be Volodymyr Zelenskiy, an actor and comedian with no political experience except for playing the president in a TV...
Putting the east in Easter: Ukrainian decorated eggs – in pictures
Pysanka is the Ukrainian tradition of egg decoration at Easter. Pysanky are created using a batik method: the eggs are covered in wax and then dyed. In 1968, Erast Binyashevsky published The Ukrainian Pysanka, the first book to detail the practice, documenting regional styles in watercolour illustrations. “Binyashevsky was important because his...
Ukraine election set to deliver damning verdict on traditional politics
Likely election of comedian Zelenskiy will be the result of an anti-establishment vote“There’s a 90% chance he’ll be a disaster, but I’m going to vote for him anyway,” said Alyona Sych, a 36-year-old nurse, strolling through Kyiv in the spring sunshine and explaining why she plans to vote for an untested actor and comedian in...
