Latest news with #TarasKremin
Russia Today
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Ukrainian official sends police after Russian-language singer
Ukraine's language ombudsman has called for a police probe into singer Verka Serduchka's recent Kiev concert, where several songs were performed in Russian. Language commissioner Taras Kremin cited possible violations of state law and a 2023 Kiev ban on public performances in Russian; some artists say the measures restrict cultural freedom. The concert included several Russian-language songs performed by Verka Serduchka, a drag act created by Ukrainian artist Andrey Danilko, who gained recognition after placing second at Eurovision 2007. 'There are signs of a serious violation,' Kremin said Saturday, calling on police to investigate. 'It's not just about the law, but about national dignity. And there will be consequences.' Ukrainian law mandates the use of the state language at cultural events, though exceptions are allowed for other languages if deemed artistically justified. Enforcement has been uneven, with some artists facing legal pressure for using Russian. Serduchka's shows have been scrutinized before. After a May 2024 concert featuring Russian songs, Kremin said no laws were broken but hoped such incidents would encourage the broader use of Ukrainian. Danilko has defended his use of Russian, calling it 'a tool for communication' and arguing it's hard to exclude in a bilingual society. In a 2024 interview with the Latvian broadcaster LTV, he said Ukraine's leadership aims to 'destroy the Russian language.' Ukraine's 'Ukrainization' campaign is aimed at promoting Ukrainian in schools, media, and public life. Critics say it pressures artists and institutions to abandon Russian, which is still widely spoken across much of the country. In March, Kremin said many Ukrainians remain unsure which language they consider primary, noting a decline in Ukrainian use, especially in schools, and urged the Education Ministry to act. A significant portion of the population, particularly in eastern regions, speaks or understands both languages. The language debate has long divided Ukraine, contributing to tensions that led to the 2014 Western-backed Euromaidan coup. Since then, the government has curtailed Russian language rights and accelerated efforts to sever cultural ties with Moscow, especially after hostilities escalated in February 2022. Russia has consistently criticized Ukraine's language policies, asserting that they infringe upon the rights of the Russian-speaking population.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Language ombudsman: Ukrainian language revives despite linguicide in occupied territories
Taras Kremin, the Commissioner for Protection of the State Language, has rejected statements by Steve Witkoff, US Special Representative for the Middle East, that Russia could retain control over five oblasts of Ukraine because of their Russian-speaking population. Source: Taras Kremin on Radio Liberty Quote from Taras Kremin: "I would like to warn you that talk about language, especially by our allies, is not in line with our international agreements and the agreements we actually have." Details: Kremin recalled that Donald Trump signed a decree on 1 March, after the start of his second presidential term, granting English the status of the only official language. Russia insists on recognising its control over five Ukrainian oblasts, including those territories that are not occupied. "Who better than him [Trump - ed.] knows how important it is to maintain the national unity and integrity of his country, even though it has developed in different ways and in some aspects are even very similar to my hometown of Mykolaiv, in fact, there are many such comparisons. But I would like to emphasise that what Russian propaganda insists on, I believe, is unacceptable, neither for ordinary US citizens nor for the civilised world," Kremin added. Earlier, Witkoff, who had previously met with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, said in an interview with Tucker Carlson and The Wall Street Journal that residents speak Russian in Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts, parts of which are occupied by Russia, as well as in occupied Crimea. Therefore, Russia's control over these territories of Ukraine can be established. Kremin stressed that the situation in terms of language in Ukraine has changed dramatically due to the war and that Russia is again pursuing a policy of russification in the occupied territories. Quote from Taras Kremin: "Over the 11 years of war in Ukraine, the language picture has been significantly transformed. Today, the vast majority of Ukrainian citizens, regardless of the oblast, whether in the south, east, or west of Ukraine, prefer the Ukrainian language in official spheres of public life and in private communication. However, since 2014, numerous cases of linguistic violence, humiliation of people and destruction of national identity have been recorded, and we continue to record this under the temporary [Russian - ed.] occupation." Background: A survey conducted by the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation in cooperation with the Razumkov Centre sociological service in January found that 78% of respondents said Ukrainian was their native language, compared to 60% ten years ago. The share of those who said Russian was their mother tongue was 6%, while ten years ago it was much higher - 15%. The survey was conducted between 29 November and 14 December 2024 among 1,518 respondents living in the Ukrainian-controlled territories where no hostilities are taking place. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Russia Today
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Ukrainians still not sure about their state language
A Ukrainian language czar has sounded the alarm over its position in the country, despite the government's aggressive Ukrainization campaign. Since the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Ukraine has largely been a bilingual nation, with most citizens able to speak or understand both Russian and Ukrainian, particularly in the eastern half of the country. People are still unsure which language they consider to be the 'main one' for them, Kiev's Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language Taras Kremin has stated, adding that its use has been in decline, particularly in schools. 'The Ukrainian language has actually become less common among both children and teachers,' the language commissioner told Espreso TV on Thursday, urging the Education Ministry to take swift measures to tackle the issue. According to Kremen, local authorities in various parts of the country are also in no rush to comply with government restrictions on the use of language. 'Dozens of our local council members still have not learned three elementary words in Ukrainian,' the official said, adding that the local authorities 'react quite poorly' to the 'Ukrainization' process. Read more Kiev intensifying 'Ukrainization' campaign – ombudsman In 2019, the Ukrainian parliament passed a law requiring Ukrainian to be used exclusively in nearly all aspects of public life, including education, entertainment, politics, business, and the service industry, obliging all Ukrainian citizens to know the language. The move severely limited the use of Russian, effectively banning it in such fields as education and media. In 2024, Kiev maintained that Ukrainian children still did not have a good enough command of their state language as they were still using Russian in their daily lives. According to Kremen himself, a third of children in some Ukrainian regions preferred to speak Russian. In October, the language czar hailed what he called a transition from a 'gentle' Ukrainization campaign to a 'fervent' one. Kiev was to impose 'strict control over compliance with the language law in all spheres of public life on the territory of Ukraine,' he said at that time. On Thursday, the official admitted that Ukrainians 'still doubt which language is the main one for us, which is the state language' decades after gaining independence. After the 2014 Western-backed coup in Kiev, Ukraine's new authorities abolished Russian as an official regional language and started suppressing it, prompting a backlash from Russian-speaking residents in now former Ukrainian territories, which was one of the reasons they rejected the post-coup government.
