Today Ukraine has got its official website UKRAINE.UA. With this modern digital platform, we want to tell a creative and inspiring story about Ukraine for the foreign visitors. Here everyone can get their first impression of the country and make a decision to come here to study, invest or travel.  

Ukraine has a unique history, rich culture and diverse landscape. It will definitely exceed your expectations. It is a creative, dynamic and innovative country. A country of freedom and dignity. A place where a thousand-year history and ambitious visions of the future meet. 

UKRAINE.UA visitors will enjoy its lightly written and witty texts, as well as lots of beautiful and high-quality images of Ukraine, showing its diverse nature, old castles, mountains, vibrant cities and more. Millions of people over the globe will now be able to get acquainted and fall in love with Ukraine at first sight. 

Be the first one to discover Ukraine! The COVID-19 pandemic times will be over one day. This will be the day to visit Ukraine and enjoy all it has to give. For now, get an online taste of it at our new online portal, UKRAINE.UA. 

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The International Book Arsenal Festival presents the Ukrainian Literature: Rights Now! Program which is aimed at presenting possibilities of the Ukrainian book market to foreign publishers and to encourage them to translate Ukrainian literature in their countries.

‘Ukrainian Literature: Rights Now!’ is a part of the professional program of the International Book Arsenal Festival that aims to introduce Ukrainian literature, book market, writers, and grant opportunities to foreign audience.

The project is funded by the EU as part of the EU4Business initiative and implemented by EBRD.

Due to the imposition of quarantine and the postponement of the 10th Book Arsenal, the professional program of the festival goes online. Its relevance is enhanced by the launch of 3 grant programs to support translations of Ukrainian literature into foreign languages.

The geography and time frames of such a project are also expanding, as Ukrainian publishers have the opportunity to be introduced to partners who would not attend the festival physically.

The components of the Ukrainian Literature: Rights Now! Program:

• series of video lectures in English on Ukrainian literature (contemporary, classic, children’s, non-fiction), on the development of the book market and on grant programs for foreign publishers and literary agents;
• educational program for Ukrainian publishers on sale of rights online;
• series of materials with advice for Ukrainian publishers on how to access various foreign markets;
• online B2B meetings between Ukrainian and foreign publishers on purchase of rights for Ukrainian books.

If you’ll decide to take part in online B2B meetings with Ukrainian publishers on June 18-19, 2020, please fill in this short application form  till May 19, 2020. In case of any questions, please feel free to contact us: [email protected]

“Due to the pandemic, the world has changed dramatically and the approaches in the publishing business have changed, as we acquire new skills and new ways of communication. We are transforming from the usual formats of book exhibitions and festivals, where the first acquaintances usually took place and the copyrights were bought, to the online format and look for the ways to understand and engage in dialogue via screens. But despite the formats, literature has been and still is a way of understanding between cultures and societies, it is an opportunity to hear each other. So, by supporting translations of Ukrainian literature into other languages, we increase the chances for Ukraine to be heard and understood all over the world”, said the curator of the program, Oksana Hmeliovska.

“Due to the Ukraine’s export strategy, book publishing is one of the leading creative industries identified at the governmental level as one of the priority areas for export development. According to statistics, the Ukrainian publishing industry is holding on the small and medium-sized businesses, and therefore needs special support. Over the last few years, the EBRD, with the financial support of the EU under the EU4Business initiative, has been implementing a comprehensive program aiming to support small and medium-sized enterprises in Ukraine. One of its components is the Ukrainian Literature: Rights Now! Program which is focused on supporting of Ukrainian publishers in their quest to access the world market because that has become a more difficult task during the quarantine. The activities we organize within the program are intended to help the Ukrainian book find its place on the shelves of foreign readers by establishing direct B2B contacts between Ukrainian and foreign publishers”, commented Yulia Krevska, representative of EBRD.

According to the Book Arsenal poll, Ukrainian publishers distinguish the most attractive markets as follows (in descending order of interest): Poland, Germany, the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Lithuania, Czech Republic, China, Austria, Belarus, Italy, Scandinavian and Arab countries.

The International Book Arsenal Festival has been annually held within the walls of the Mystetskyi Arsenal’s historic building since 2011. This is a grand intellectual event of Ukraine, where book, literary, art scenes develop and interact, where important issues of human existence, as well as society and culture are raised and comprehended, encouraging a proactive position of participants and visitors.

The mission of the Book Arsenal is to create interactions where the combination of aesthetic experience and intellectual inclusion in the context of the book enhances the capacity of human and society.

Ukraine along with other nations across the globe will commemorate the victory over Nazism –the most dangerous threat that the mankind ever faced in its modern history. We praise the immense contribution of all Allies to the victory over Nazism. The Ukrainian people paid extremely high price as 8 million of Ukrainians lost their lives in the years of the Second World War. 720 Ukrainian towns and 28 000 villages were ruined, hundreds of thousands of industrial and agricultural facilities, schools and hospitals were totally destroyed.

                        Ukraine along with the rest of the civilized world will commemorate the events of WWII under the motto “Never again”. It is a matter of concern, that the Kremlin propaganda incites militarist sentiments of Russians, claiming that they “can repeat it once again”. Russia has tried to explore the issue of Victory over Nazism for the purposes of legitimizing its current aggression. We should not let Russia to seize our common history. Russia has acted against Ukraine in Nazi-style manner, thus losing the moral right to associate itself with the heroes, who defeated Nazism.

                        It is a real blasphemy to memory of WWII victims that Russia attempts to justify its current aggression by references to the Victory over Nazism (St. George ribbon/Guards ribbon as an identification mark of Russia-led illegal armed formations;  “Immortal regiment” as an occasion to demonstrate the pictures of killed Russian terrorists and symbolic of Russian illegal armed formations). In its approaches to the WWII history, Russia has returned to the Stalin times, disavowing even those assessments and acknowledgements, made in late 80^th and 90^th. For instance, the Russian state propagandists has again justified the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact and put into question Soviet responsibility for execution of Polish officers in Katyn.

                        Ukraine calls on the leaders to carefully consider the risks and challenges, related to the Kremlin’s invitation to Moscow V-Day events. The planned by the Kremlin grand celebration of the 75th anniversary of victory over the Nazi Germany and its attempt to attract as many foreign state leaders as possible to participate in the Victory Parade in Moscow (due to pandemic it was postponed till 3 September 2020) is also a political manipulation. The participation of the foreign representatives in the “Victory Parade” in 2020 is envisaged by the Kremlin as a litmus paper of the West’s readiness to appease the occupation of Crimea and Donbas, to return to “business as usual” and to lift sanctions. Those, who will opt for visiting Moscow, must ask themselves, whether they will be ready to greet occupants of Crimea and Donbas among the troops, marching across the Red Square? Whether they will be ready to cheerfully observe the weaponry of the same types that has been used for killing people in Donbas, BUK missile for instance?  The ways of commemoration of the Victory Day in Russia serve for the purposes of militarization of the society. Shielding itself with the anti-fascist rhetoric, Russia is leading in fact an aggressive neo-fascist policy in Europe.

                        Today Ukraine is the only country in Europe that, baring the arms, opposes the armed aggression of Kremlin neo-fascist and neo-Stalinist regime. Ukraine protects not only its own sovereignty and territorial integrity, but all the democratic Europe and its civilizational values.

On July 29, 2020, Ukraine will celebrate 155 years since the birth of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky of the UGCC at the state level.

The draft resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine "On the celebration of anniversaries in 2020" was adopted at a meeting of the Parliament on January 14.

At the initiative of MP Pavlo Bakunets (122 district of Yavoriv and Zhovkiv), a graduate of the Ukrainian Catholic University, the list of anniversaries to be celebrated at the state level in 2020 also includes honoring the 155th anniversary of the birth of the UGCC Metropolitan, who led the Church in 1901-1944.

"I consider Andrey Sheptytsky a true mentor of the community and a dedicated public figure. He is an example of a leader and a Man with a capital letter, my spiritual mentor. It was a matter of honor for me to initiate and support the celebration of this memorable date. Yavoriv District Council and concerned citizens filed to me an appeal for the celebration of the Metropolitans anniversary. I am proud that the 155 birthday anniversary of Metropolitan Andrey will be celebrated at the state level," said Pavlo Bakunets.

It should be noted that Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky (head of the UGCC in 1901-1944) was born on July 29, 1865, in the village of Prylbychi, Yavoriv region. During his ministry, he significantly rebuilt the Greek Catholic Church both in Ukraine and abroad. Being one of the wealthiest people in Halychyna, he generously sponsored Ukrainian cultural and educational societies and provided scholarships to young artists. In 1905, he founded the national Museum in Lviv and purchased a large number of exhibits for it. He supported Ukrainian economic activity, promoted the opening of cooperatives. As a Metropolitan from Halychyna, he was a member of the Viennese Parliament and the Galician Sejm. He experienced the oppression on the part of the Bolsheviks. He died on November 1, 1944, due to a serious illness.