Latest news with #AssociationofUkrainiansin
BBC News
10-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Malvern Sunday school helps Ukrainian children learn heritage
Children from a displaced community are learning about their culture and identity at a Sunday school with a difference in Ukrainian children, who were born in England, play football before they go to afternoon classes to learn about the country their families are Natalia Kuchmak, who fled the war in Ukraine, co-founded the Talented Ukrainian Children in Malvern last Sunday's match, she said: "It's good weather, it's a very good feeling, it's a very good sport. After three o clock, we'll start school in Ukrainian geography and history, with free lessons and Ukrainian food." She said the football kept children active and helped bring the community together to learn about their heritage. 'Important to learn' Vita Piddubna, a history teacher and parent, explained why it was important and said: "Our children have to know their motherland and the history of Ukraine."They have to know their language, their Ukrainian literature, famous poets, writers. "It is very important for us." One girl taking part, Karolina, 10, said: "We've got war in our country right now and we've moved to a different one. Now we have a different language."It can be quite frustrating and it's very important to just have a little part of yourself and learn all about the different things in Ukraine."One of the boys, Vova, 12, said it was "really good for communication", and another girl, Polina, 11, said she enjoyed speaking Ukrainian and doing work that was not in 50 children are learning literature, art, music, dance, geography and history at the Sunday school, which is part of the Malvern branch of the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
04-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Sheffield councillors head to Ukraine to show solidarity
Sheffield councillors are to visit western Ukraine later this month in a show of solidarity with the war-torn councillors Mark Rusling and Matt Dwyer will head to Lviv on 14-17 March, meeting local government officials, soldiers and a team working with the Association of Ukrainians in the visit follows Friday's tense White House meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD said: "Ukrainians are really, really worried that British people in general are losing interest in what's happening in Ukraine." Zelensky has returned to Kyiv after three frantic days that saw him ordered to leave the White House after the Oval Office had a warmer welcome in London on Saturday, meeting Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and the King, before receiving a strong show of support from European leaders at a summit on Sunday. LIVE: US pauses military aid to Ukraine Rusling said: "Much of the world has looked on with horror as President Trump has called into question support from the US and Europe for Ukraine, alongside blaming Ukraine for being invaded by Russia. "In Sheffield, this is particularly felt as we are twinned with two Ukrainian cities; Donetsk and Khmelnytskyi."Rusling said the delegation would be "passing on the support of the vast majority of people in Sheffield for the Ukrainian people".As an elected representative from Sheffield, Rusling said he would "very much like to publicise the challenges faced by Ukrainians" and that they would be "raising awareness" for the whole of Britain, but particularly trip is being organised by people now living in Britain who fled Kyiv at the start of the Ukrainian war. Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘When has Russia ever kept its promises?': Ukrainians furious over Trump's plan to end war
They have wrestled with grief, anxiety at starting a new life and survivors' guilt – and now Ukrainian exiles must balance feelings of shock and betrayal with an 'existential' defiance that their homeland must keep fighting for a just peace. 'Ukrainians do not have the luxury of falling into despair,' Olga Onuch said, when asked about the mood of expats watching the future of their war-torn country being decided from afar. Donald Trump's sidelining of Ukraine – and his claim the invaded country 'never should have started it' – has stunned Ukrainians living overseas. Onuch, a professor of Ukrainian politics at the University of Manchester, the first in the Anglosphere, believes any attempt to impose an unjust and 'unconstitutional' settlement will be fiercely resisted in Ukraine – with the support of members of the diaspora. 'It's an existential question of the survival of their homeland. This is not a simple thing that tomorrow someone agrees and then it's done,' she said. 'Ukrainians would not be willing to give up territory and they would potentially go against the government. 'And that's not simply in a future referendum, that is also in the streets. On top of that, this is a population that is traumatised and also equipped with arms. 'So the potential to destabilise the country further, and the region, is great if something was seen to be imposed upon them.' Maria Romanenko, 32, a journalist and activist, said she was 'feeling let down, anxious and scared' by Trump's statements but even more determined to keep arguing that Europe must step up its support. As welcoming as she has found the UK, the seriousness of the situation isn't always fully understood, as was summed up by the barista who told her they found Trump 'funny' moments after she had spent the afternoon with displaced Ukrainian families, thousands of whom have attended the walking tours she holds to help them integrate into life in Manchester. 'It would be funny if you ignore the fact thousands of people are losing lives, losing limbs,' she said. With such loss of life comes self-reproach. 'You can just always feel it, the people who have left, they feel this guilt … like they can never be as good as people who have stayed,' Romanenko added. 'So there's always that guilt. It doesn't really end anywhere. Every Ukrainian will tell you. And if they can't tell you that, that's because they were killed and they can no longer speak. Everybody feels like they're not doing enough.' Natalia Ravlyuk, a trustee at British-Ukrainian Aid, described feeling 'completely betrayed' by Trump's remarks and position on Ukraine. 'It's very frustrating to hear such nonsense – that we don't have a right to defend ourselves. It's a terror. It's a genocide. Any agreement signed with Russia is a piece of toilet paper. When has Russia ever kept its promises? Ukraine is the frontline for Europe.' Petro Rewko, the chair of Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain, said: 'Even though we know what he's like from previous experiences, we are still massively shocked how Trump has approached this and how he's just railroading a peace agreement through at any cost, no matter what. 'Ukraine is the victim here. We do want a peace, we all want a peace, but not at any cost.' The shock has also been felt across the Atlantic, said Onuch, who grew up in Canada. 'Large portions of the Ukrainian diaspora in the United States who are American citizens, maybe for generations, did support the Republican party and Trump because they were expecting a harder stance,' she said. 'If Putin is not stopped in Ukraine, he goes further and he destabilises the rest of the European continent,' she added. 'And that will come to the United Kingdom in one way or another.' In a fast unfolding situation, however, the UK's support has been a significant comfort to many Ukrainians. 'Others dallied and dithered slightly. Britain stood up; all parties and all politicians stood behind Ukraine and so did the people of the United Kingdom,' Rewko said. 'We were forever grateful for that and we're pleased to hear the positivity from the current prime minister and the government on their continued support and stance with Ukraine.'
