Section: The Guardian (The United Kingdom)
Kiev’s new revolution: young Ukrainians spur cultural revival amid the conflict
If Ukraine’s Maidan revolution has largely not led to the transparent government its proponents envisioned, it has certainly democratised Ukrainian culture. The country’s capital, Kiev, is at the forefront of a powerful new wave of creativityOn a sultry Saturday evening in August, hundreds of young Kievans have descended on a vast...
East Ukraine: on the frontline of Europe’s forgotten war
After two years of fighting, every day continues to bring new casualties and many fear a new Russian-backed offensiveFrom the top of the nine-storey building in Avdiyivka, Sergei Veremeyenko and his men can see the separatist capital of Donetsk just a few miles away. Avdiyivka has been on the frontline between Russian-backed separatists and...
The revolution-inspired graffiti changing the face of Kiev – in pictures
Two years since the protests that overthrew the government, large murals have been appearing across Ukraine’s capital – some by renowned street artists, others by politically charged locals. RFE/RL takes a tour … …read more Source: The...
Ukraine marks 25 years of independence a riven nation despite the flags
As role of Ukranians in the Soviet Union’s demise is celebrated, tensions still simmer in the east of country after two years of warUkraine has marked 25 years of independence with a huge military parade through Kiev, and although two years of war with Russia-backed rebels in the east has united much of the country, the eastern territories...
Crimea’s champagne makers hope to recreate the Soviet glory days
Since the Russian annexation local vineyards have been capitalising on gaps in the market triggered by western sanctionsIt was once the “Coca-Cola of the Soviet Union”, a homegrown luxury promoted by Josef Stalin as a promise of the supposed abundance soon to come to the USSR. Now, more than 80 years since Stalin’s “invention” of Soviet...
25 years with the Soviet Union, 25 without. We want to hear your stories
We’re looking for people who have had the unique experience of living at least half their lives under the USSR By the summer of 1991 it was clear that the Soviet empire’s days were numbered. After widespread shortages of food and other supplies, rising nationalism and demands for independence across Central Asia, a coup against leader...
Ukraine’s medicine bill slashed by 25% after UK firm brought in to handle procurement
Crown Agents and two UN agencies are working to root out corrupt intermediaries but are facing politcal resistance to changeA British company hired to buy medicines for Ukraine’s health ministry has succeeded in cutting prices by up to a quarter, in a rare success for anti-corruption efforts.Last year, under pressure from activists...
Almost Holy review – child welfare activist in close-up
A compelling study of a controversial Ukrainian pastor whose forceful approach borders on vigilantismThis gripping documentary about Gennadiy Mokhnenko, aka Pastor Crocodile, a controversial child-welfare activist in Ukraine, has the propulsive power and arc of a drama. And in this burly man of God, with his thunderous laugh and larger than life...
Larry King got $225,000 to interview Viktor Yanukovych’s PM, says Ukraine politician
Fresh details emerge from ‘black ledger’ detailing alleged secret payments from former ruling Party of Regions to US, including to Trump strategist Paul ManafortThe TV host Larry King accepted $225,000 (£173,000) to interview Ukraine’s prime minister, according to a politician investigating a “black ledger” detailing alleged...
Ukrainians saw Paul Manafort’s political impact up close – and it wasn’t pretty | Serhiy Leshchenko
Donald Trump’s campaign chairman spent nearly a decade in Ukraine. His time here has raised many questions, not least in an ongoing corruption probePaul Manafort, Donald Trump’s campaign chairman, has only recently become familiar to Americans. But in Ukraine, Manafort has played a decisive role in politics for nearly a decade – one...
