Latest news with #Anatolii
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Eleven Ukrainian children evacuated from occupation, including daughter of Azovstal defender freed after three years in captivity
Eleven children have been brought from Russian-occupied territories to areas under Ukrainian control, among them two orphans and children of Ukrainian service members. Source: Ukrainian charitable organisation Save Ukraine Anatolii, a teenage orphan, was among those evacuated from the temporarily occupied territories. He had suffered physical abuse at the hands of Russian soldiers after he found bullets in the forest. Anatolii was abducted in the middle of a school lesson, a bag was put over his head in the headteacher's office, his hands were tied and he was taken to a basement. A week before his 18th birthday, he received a summons for conscription into Russian forces. Another evacuee was Ostap, who had not seen his family for three years. His father serves in the Ukrainian Armed Forces and his older brother has spent 1,111 days in Russian captivity. Among those rescued was the daughter of a female Azov defender. The girl's mother, Marharyta, and older brother spent three years in Russian captivity. Back in 2022, Marharyta and her son had left the Azovstal steel plant together without knowing what had happened to each other until their release in April 2025. Quote from Save Ukraine: "During the prisoner exchange, Marharyta accidentally encountered her son on the bus. But she had one more dream – to see her little girl again, who had remained in occupation as a baby. Today, that dream has come true: the mother is finally reunited with her children and still can't believe it's not a dream." Read more: Separated by war: Ukrainian soldier reunited with daughter after release from Russian captivity Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
CBC
08-03-2025
- Business
- CBC
No Frills partnership a big boost to London Ukrainian business owners in exile
As it is for any Ukrainian living in exile due to the Russian invasion, these aren't easy days for Anatolii and Liudmyla Potomkin. The couple have three young children, including a newborn, and a bustling business called WOW Pierogies, which sells home-made perogies, cabbage rolls and crepes from their storefront on Hyde Park Road. "We wanted to bring some Ukrainian tradition into Canada," said Anatolii about this business. The roots of the business stretch back to the family's home city of Kyiv, where Liudmyla's grandmother taught her traditional recipes that have been passed down through multiple generations. "We had a wonderful café in Kyiv where we worked as a family," said Liudmyla. That all changed of course when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The Potomkins, who had one child at the time, were forced to flee. They left behind not only their business but also their extended families. "When the war broke out we lost everything in one day," said Liudmyla. "We decided to move to Canada, where we continue our family business." The business started with a storefront in Strathroy before moving to the Hyde Park Road location last year. The business is doing well but their their situation became further complicated when Donald Trump returned to the White House in January. Trump has appeared to be more supportive of Russian President Vladimir Putin than of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Trump and Vice-President JD Vance last week shouted down Ukrainian President Zelenskyy in front of news cameras in the Oval Office. This week Trump has threatened to cut of military support for Ukraine. This is all unfolding as U.S. tariff threats continue to roil the Canadian economy and undo years of friendship and business partnerships with the U.S. Anatolii Potomkin admits it's not an easy time, but said Ukrainians remain resilient. "It's bad news for Canada and for Ukraine," he said of the current political climate. "It's not necessary right now to have an economic war when we have war right now in Ukraine." Key deal with No Frills Amid all these challenges the Potomkins got some good business news this week when the owners of the No Frills grocery store at 599 Fanshawe Park Rd. agreed to carry products from Wow Pierogies in their store. Anatolii Potomkin said the No Frills shelf space is incredibly valuable and comes at a time when Canadian shoppers are increasingly looking for locally made products. "We are at farmer's markets but No Frills is a good next step for growing our business," said Anatolii. "It's such a big store with so much traffic." The No Frills location is owned Robert and Tracey Basso. The Potomkins came to the store with samples of their food and made a pitch for some shelf space. Robert Basso said it wasn't a difficult decision. "With all the things going on with the U.S., having a locally made product made the decision a little bit easier to do," he said. "No Frills encourages us to promote local vendors when we can." The Potomkins have made full use of London's extensive network of food suppliers. Flour for the perogies comes from the Arva Flour Mill. The pork and beef for the cabbage rolls is also bought locally. "We are supporting Canadian and local," said Anatolii. Liudmyla Potomkin said the No Frills partnership is another example of how the family has felt so welcomed in London. "In the context of the recent news we have seen about Ukraine, we have felt a lot of support from our people," she said. "People just came to our store to shake hands and say that they are with Ukraine. It is very sad what is happening on our land now, because our parents, friends and relatives are still there. But we try to do our best every day to ensure that our culture continues to live on."
BBC News
20-02-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Ukraine war: 'We live peacefully in Scotland, we'd like to stay'
Anatolii and Lidiia Kyrylov spent most of their lives in Mariupol, in south-east the ages of 69 and 73, they expected to spend the rest of their lives all changed when Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022 and the trading port came under siege."The bombings were horrible," Lidiia told BBC Scotland News."We had no water. We were collecting the snow, melting it, and drinking it one sip at a time. We were trying to save it."Her husband - who said he had not believed the initial rumours of an impending invasion - recalls the situation after attacks began."Our food was one small potato a day," he said."Our home was all shaking. The planes were flying and dropping bombs. There were tanks. It was a horror." Like more than 12 million of their countrymen, the couple fled to left Mariupol on foot as there was no transport."People were walking with pets, buggies, bags," Anatolii said."We passed 19 Russian checkpoints. Men, including myself, had to undress the upper body. They were looking for tattoos and for bruises from carrying the machine gun."They did not find anything, they let us go. It was very scary, they were screaming at us, were trying to intimidate us. It was mostly elderly people and children with us." 'We have no place in Ukraine' When they reached the safety of a Ukrainian checkpoint, Anatolii said he was emotional, with "so much happiness, so much tears, you cannot imagine", and they fell to their they both got visas, they travelled to the UK, and their sponsor brought them to their new home in Scotland's north-east."We started to explore Aberdeen," Lidiia said."We liked it, liked everything, nature, good people. We were very happy. We like the care for people. "In Ukraine we have no place to return to." There lies the dilemma facing displaced than 28,000 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Scotland since the Russian invasion three years the coming months, many of those will be applying for a new UK government extension scheme to allow them to remain in the UK for another 18 there are concerns around what will happen when that period UK government says it recognises the importance of providing certainty and security, while ensuring "temporary sanctuary" is in line with the Ukrainian government's ultimate wish for the future return of while international talks aimed at ending the brutal conflict dominate current headlines, some have no homes to return to and may want to continue the lives they have built here. Anatolii said his and his wife's future was uncertain."These 18 months will pass like one moment, very quickly," he explained. "I am very worried about what will happen after the extension is over."And I want for my family - all Ukrainians in Scotland - to have certainty in the future.''We have nowhere to go, Mariupol is occupied. We have no home. But here in Scotland is our second home."We are confident we want to stay here, we are safe here, we are confident that here we can live peacefully, we want to stay." Olha Karpets, 34, had to leave Kremenets, Ternopil, in western Ukraine, with her children, including wheelchair-using daughter Inna,16, who has cerebral are happy in Aberdeen, but Olha is also still anxious about that the future might hold for them."We are obviously worried," she said. "We are settling very well here."For Inna it is definitely better to stay here. Inna has her own room, we go for walks, everyday things. It is hard for me to imagine what she will do back at home." 'Not forgetting where I am from' Olha explained: "We would like to visit our family back home, but for Inna currently there are no appropriate conditions."It is impossible to compare life here and in Ukraine. We have no ramps in shops or transport."She added: "I am not forgetting where I am from, but we want to stay here if there is a chance."We like Aberdeen, we do not plan to move anywhere, I like everything here, I like the grey granite, I like the sea."We want to stay here forever." Hannah Beaton-Hawryluk is from the Association of Ukrainians in Great said a main concern with an 18-month extension was for students."If it isn't extended again are they able to finish their courses?," she said."The other one is for employers because they don't understand it. Some employers are reluctant to give contracts unfortunately."She added: "Things are changing because the UK government has worked very closely with the Ukrainian government and rightly so, Ukraine needs Ukrainians to go back to rebuild, to stabilise."Quite a big proportion of Ukrainians want to go back but the uncertainty is definitely there and where you've got uncertainty you've got anxiety." 'Provide certainty and security' The Scottish government said that since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, 28,137 people with a Scottish sponsor had arrived in the current exact number remaining is not known, as the location of displaced people with visas is not tracked after arrival other than when they engage with of about £300m has been provided to support Ukrainian resettlement since 2022, and a further £40m was expected to be invested in 2024/25, followed by more than £18m for 2025/26. The new Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme (UPE) opened to applications on 4 UK government said in a statement: "Since Vladimir Putin's full-scale illegal invasion of Ukraine, we have always recognised the importance of providing certainty and security for its citizens, and continue to do so."The Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme provides that certainty, allowing those with permission to remain in the UK under one of the existing Ukraine schemes to apply for a further 18 months."The statement added: "We continue to keep our Ukraine schemes under review, and ensure that our offer of temporary sanctuary is in line with the Ukrainian government's strong desire for the future return of its citizens." Research and translation assistance for this feature was provided by Robert Gordon University (RGU) journalism student Marta Leshyk.
