Those “upstairs” aren’t concerned
“Detonators of violence”
3D contemplation
What provokes aggression in Ukraine’s society?
Page
2
Page
4
Kyiv.Fine Art Gallery offers a display of pictures created by Yurii Vakulenko, director of Kyiv’s Russian Art National Museum
Page
7
MARCH 22, 2012 ISSUE No. 18 (664)
This day in history
1654: Bohdan Khmelnytsky’s envoys arrive in Moscow to negotiate the status of the Zaporozhian Host as part of Muscovy. 1842: Date of birth of Mykola Lysenko, a prominent Ukrainian composer, pianist, music teacher, choir/orchestra conductor, public figure, ethnographer, Ukrainian national music trendsetter. 1919: Soviet rule is proclaimed in Zakarpattia [a.k.a. Carpathian Ruthenia], then part of Hungary. 1976: Europe’s best U-240 isochronous cyclotron facility starts operating at Kyiv’s Nuclear Study Institute under the aegis of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR. 1978: The first issue of the Ukrainian Helsinki Group’s Newsletter comes off the presses [contrary to Soviet Ukrainian authorities’ strong resistance]. 1995: The State Duma of the Russian Federation adopts a statement on its attitude to the Verkhovna Rada’s resolution on the Crimea, and passes a resolution in conjunction with the VR’s one.
WEEK LY DIG EST
Tel.: +38(044) 303-96-19, fax: +38(044) 303-94-20 е-mail: time@day.kiev.ua; http://www.day.kiev.ua
Photo by Mykhailo MARKIV
Ivan POCUCH: We believe Ukraine should be in the EU one day By Mykola SIRUK, The Day Resently published article “The slide of Ukraine” written by the foreign ministers of five EU member countries received great attention in the Ukrainian media. Have you seen from the Ukrainian side that the authorities have noticed their concern and are trying to do something to get out of the deadlock? This and other issues are raised in an interview with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Czech Republic to Ukraine Ivan POCUCH. “I do not know yet whether they understood it, but I think it could be clear. I hope it will not be considered as a hostile act on the part of these five countries. To the contrary, this is an expression of our interest and care about Ukraine. These five countries recently have proven to be very interested in the success of the European integration of Ukraine. But certainly, they could not remain silent on crucial issues that prevent Ukraine from progressing in its European integration. They try to call things by their right names, and approach Ukrainian public as well as the political representation. I hope the message will be clearly understood and not distorted. The message is – we all care about Ukraine, we never doubted that Ukrainians are Europeans who are committed to the values and principles that are the foundation of the European Union. But the Ukrainian political representation will have to think about what we have been consistently raising at the highest political level since trials with former government representatives had begun which, as the ministers say, bear all the marks of politically motivated and selective justice. As long as this is not redressed, it would be fair to say to theUkrainian public that the Association process and free-trade area will be put on hold. Certainly, this does not please us, but we are very worried and saddened by the situation as it evolved.” Oleh Voloshyn, the director of MFA information policy department said, that by this letter European foreign ministers had shown that “other geopolitical choice of Ukraine would be strategic failure first of all of Europe.” How can you comment this? “Ukraine certainly remains on the EU agenda, it is not going to disappear anywhere. But it is a matter of choice and work for all Ukrainians if their country progresses in European integration or not. Such a crucial issue is a matter of all the society, not only the political representation is involved; it should be a subject of an intense public debate. And that is why we, EU ambassadors, consider it necessary to get engaged in this public dialogue and explain what is at stake. The head of the EU delegation Ambassador Teixeira always speaks on the EU behalf by the nature of his position on any formal occasion. and I very much value his work and interest in your country. He is my good friend and we all stand behind him. I know that sometimes the Ukrainian authorities overreact to these things and regard them as an interference in domestic affairs. But Ukrainian government needs to be able to bear the weight of the international scrutiny, as the country declared the ambition to integrate into the European Union. Of course, we will continue to be assessing and also publicly expressing our assessments regarding the realization of this ambition. As I have said, the public dialogue in Ukraine is not as developed as it should be, it should have much more impact on the political decision making. I see certain detachment between the political level and the general public debate. The notion of diplomacy these days means that we are not simply communicating to the governmental institutions, we are communicating with all layers of the society. Our public engagement is not to shed negative light, but to speak openly and deliver our messages and ideas to the general public.”
Continued on page 3
Another attempt to settle the gas issue – to no avail Valerii KHOROSHKOVSKY: Ukraine will reorient to other markets in case its neighboring countries introduce some kind of restrictions Topic continued on page 5
Photo by Kostiantyn HRYSHYN, The Day
A most European Japanese in Kyiv
By Svitlana AGREST-KOROTKOVA n exhibit of paintings by the famous designer Kenzo Takada who left the podium opened in the Gallery of Modern Art “M17.” In the middle of the 20th century Kenzo radically changed the idea of fashion for Paris trendsetters by firmly fitting his clothes with constructive simplicity, fabrics that evoke nostalgia for flowery meadows, with exquisite thin shirts and, of course, with kimono sleeves in everyday life and holidays of the first ladies of the world. The brand “Kenzo” blows softly the light breath of fine perfume, decorates recognizable accessories, and its owner after 60 has chosen freedom for himself. “I started feeling that I began losing myself,” he said at the press conference on the opening of the exhibition. “Fully immersed in the work of a designer, I could not afford, like I do now, to discover the simplest things for myself. Now I even started taking flamenco lessons.” Nowadays, the artist travels a lot, he wants to try working on furniture design, he created a collection of vases, sometimes at leisure he designs clothes, but for the most time he is traveling and painting. The paintings by Kenzo Takada presented in Kyiv have already been on display in Paris and Moscow, and there is still a plan to take them to Japan. The works have been inspired by masks and costumes from the ancient Japanese Noh theater. They are bright, majestic, and, in my opinion, very European. It seems that if before the artist opened Japan to Europe and America, now he is experiencing an inner aspiration for the reverse action.
A