Themes by tag: Kyiv

Since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Franky and Сoen — two Dutch entrepreneurs — have been continuously providing humanitarian assistance across Ukraine. What began as a small initiative at the Polish border, where they distributed free French fries to refugees, has grown into a large-scale humanitarian effort spanning the country, including frontline areas.

Today, their work includes:

• distributing hundreds of thousands of hot meals;
• evacuating people and animals from frontline areas;
• delivering medical supplies, food, and humanitarian aid;
• providing financial support to vulnerable families;
• operating a shelter for internally displaced people in Dnipro (Holland House); a second Holland House is set to open in western Ukraine in the coming months, expanding support capacity for more than 100 additional people;
• organizing recovery trips for children affected by the war.

The volunteers are well known in the Netherlands not only for their work in Ukraine but also for how they communicate it. Through social media, documentaries, and national television, they bring the reality of the war directly into Dutch homes.

Franky and Сoen experienced the reality of war firsthand while dining at the Ria Pizza restaurant in Kramatorsk. On June 27, 2023, a russian missile strike hit the city center, killing 13 people and injuring 64 others, including the Dutch volunteers.

By prior arrangement, journalists can meet Franky and Сoen in Kyiv (April 15), Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and the Donbas region. Online interviews are also available.

• casualties
• food
• russian crimes
• volunteers
• Kyiv
• evacuation

A presentation of the book “Our Long Road to April” by Mykola Shteynberg will take place on April 22 in Kyiv.

Mykola Shteynberg rose through the ranks from reactor operator, shift supervisor, and workshop head at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant to become its chief engineer during the most difficult post-accident period. He also headed a commission within the governmental committee investigating the causes and circumstances of the April 26, 1986 accident at Unit 4 of the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant.

During the event, attendees will have the opportunity to speak with the author and learn more about the disaster.

Registration is required to attend.

• culture
• Kyiv

For the third consecutive year, spring songs, circle dances, chants, psalms, and choral music will be performed under Easter bells inside Saint Sophia Cathedral and in the courtyard of the Saint Sophia of Kyiv National Reserve.

The programme includes:

• blessing of Easter baskets;
• a folk art fair;
• a festive Easter bell performance at the 17th-century bell tower;
• performances by folk groups Roksolaniia, ShchukaRyba, Mykhailove Chudo, Stodyvnytsia, Shumia, and Yevshan-Zillia, as well as flute players Ivan Prudko and Yevhen Dmytrychenko;
• a children’s programme on spring traditions;
• traditional Easter egg games;
• charity workshops;
• performances showcasing kobzar and lirnyk traditions by Taras Kozub, Mykola Tovkailo, Zhdan Bezverbnyi, Dmytro Radchenko, Vitalii Kobzar, Eduard Drach, Taras Dorotskyi, Oles Sanin, Roman Lysenko, and Yurii Kocherzhynskyi;
• a shared meal for participants and guests;
• the Easter communal performance VOLODAR, featuring circle dances, traditional kryvi dances, and games from different regions of Ukraine;
• a traditional ritual of singing for married couples based on the customs of Rozkoshivka village in Vinnytsia region;
• a ceremonial singing procession around the cathedral;
• traditional dances with the group ShchukaRyba.

Journalists can request the full programme of the event.

Background: Easter at Saint Sophia of Kyiv revives traditional Easter customs in the historic and cultural heart of Kyiv. The event is jointly organised by the National Reserve Sophia of Kyiv and the Ivan Honchar National Center of Folk Culture, in partnership with the Vytoky project by Zagoriy Foundation.

• culture
• Kyiv

A meeting with representatives of the UAV Systems Battalion “Viy” of the 18th Sloviansk Brigade, 2nd Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine “Khartiia,” will take place on April 18 in Poltava and Kyiv.

During the event, battalion representatives will speak about the unit’s combat operations, training, and daily life, as well as outline the key skills civilians should start developing now to join the team.

Participants will learn:

• how the UAV Systems Battalion “Viy” was established,
• what types of drones the unit operates and the missions they perform,
• how training is conducted and how service members’ daily routines are organized,
• how to join the unit and what positions are currently open,
• which skills are essential to develop now for effective service in the military.

Registration is required to attend the event.

• military
• Kyiv
• Poltava

Dentist Ivanna Romanchuk joined the medical volunteer missions of FRIDA Ukraine in 2023. During deployments, she primarily provides surgical care. She says that people living near the front line often endure pain and discomfort for long periods because they have no access to dental care. As a result, even routine dental conditions frequently progress to stages where tooth extraction becomes the only option.

One of the most dramatic cases Ivanna encountered took place in the Kherson region during one of her first missions with FRIDA Ukraine. A week earlier, russian forces had destroyed the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant. Despite this, the long-planned visit by the medical team went ahead.

Artillery shelling continued, and the team was preparing to evacuate the location. But one more patient came to see Ivanna — an elderly man. While she was extracting his tooth, one of the roots slipped into the maxillary sinus. Performing an X-ray under those conditions was impossible. Ivanna decided to carry out a maxillary sinusotomy — a surgical procedure in which the sinus is opened and cleared — as she could not leave the patient without care.

“The siren is wailing — it all feels surreal. The drivers had already packed everything, we were being told to leave the hospital, and I managed to perform this procedure for the first time in my life. In private clinics, we don’t often do this,” Ivanna recalls.

A few weeks later, the medical team returned. The same elderly man was the first to greet them — he was doing well.

Ivanna continues to take part in the missions, describing her motivation simply: “I keep doing this because it’s what I do best — and it’s truly needed.”

By prior arrangement, journalists can speak with Ivanna in Kyiv or online.

Background: FRIDA Ukraine’s medical volunteer missions involve regular deployments of teams of doctors to frontline and remote communities across Ukraine. Each mission includes more than 20 specialists from various fields, including neurology, surgery, gynecology, internal medicine, and dermatology. During these visits, local residents receive free consultations, examinations, and tests. The team has also recently introduced cancer screening services.

• doctors
• volunteers
• Kyiv

Participants: 

– Kateryna Levchenko, Government Commissioner for Gender Policy;

– Anna-Maria Chaykovska, Advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration;

– Oleksandra Tselishcheva, Researcher at Open Space Works Ukraine;

– Natalia Karbovska, Ukrainian Women’s Fund (to be confirmed)

– Representative of the British Embassy (to be confirmed)

Topics for discussion: 

– State gender policy over the past 8 years;

– The contribution of the Government Commissioner and the Office to the development of state gender policy;

– Results of the analysis of cooperation between the state, civil society, and international partners;

– Key challenges and constraints in policy implementation;

– Practical recommendations for further development and strengthening of institutional capacity.

On April 8, Media Center Ukraine is working without simultaneous translation, all events will be broadcast only in Ukrainian.

• Kyiv

Before the full-scale invasion, 29-year-old Mykola Petrovskyi lived with his father and grandmother in Kherson. Mykola is disabled — after a car accident, part of his left foot was amputated and he now wears a prosthesis.

When Kherson was occupied by russian forces, Mykola became a volunteer, helping people in the city. One day, russian security forces abducted him from his home.

In September 2023, the so-called “Supreme Court of Crimea” sentenced Mykola Petrovskyi to 16 years in a maximum-security penal colony, falsely accusing him of “espionage”.

Letters from Mykola reveal that he was tortured in captivity, beaten, denied proper medical care, which is crucial for a person with a disability, and starved. According to the Center for Civil Liberties, Mykola’s health condition has deteriorated.

Read his full story here.

Journalists can arrange interviews with Mykola’s mother (online) and with his lawyer and human rights experts in Kyiv (in person).

• casualties
• occupation
• prisoners
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Oleksii Botsula is originally from the village of Marianivka in Kyiv region. From 2015 to 2018, he fought in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, including at the Svitlodarsk salient. After completing his contract, he returned to civilian life.

Following the start of russia’s full-scale invasion, Oleksii joined one of the brigades and took part in battles in Kyiv region. He later served in various directions. In September 2023, he was wounded during a combat mission in Kharkiv region.

His rehabilitation and treatment lasted about a year. During this time, he applied for a grant from the Ukrainian Veterans Fund, and his project “Farmer Shepherd” (Ferma Pastukha) was selected as a winner. The project involves the reconstruction and modernization of a pig farm, including the renovation of facilities, process automation, and expansion of production capacity.

Currently, the farm houses around 200 pigs. Oleksii is developing the production of canned and smoked products, and provides part of his output free of charge to fellow soldiers on the front line.

Journalists can arrange interviews with Oleksii Botsula both online and offline in Kyiv region by prior arrangement.

• casualties
• culture
• military
• Kyiv

Media representatives are invited on April 6 to attend the official presentation of the national program “Journey to Yourself. Paths to Recovery,” implemented by the State Agency for Tourism Development of Ukraine with the support of the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine in cooperation with Brand Ukraine.

The program is aimed at supporting the emotional and psycho-physical recovery of Ukrainians through travel across the country, engagement with natural and cultural practices, and exploration of personal roots and heritage.

“Journey to Yourself. Paths to Recovery” includes the development of a digital tourism platform featuring a map of “places of power,” a national information campaign, training programs for tourism sector stakeholders, and the attraction of international technical assistance to support local businesses and communities.

The presentation will take place on the historic hills of Vytachiv, a site associated with the origins of the Trypillian culture.

Speakers:

• Alona Shkrum, First Deputy Minister for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine
• Nataliia Tabaka, Head of the State Agency for Tourism Development
• Mariia Lypiatska, Head of Brand Ukraine
• Oleksandr Sobko, owner of the “Vytach” bakery

Journalists can review the full program in advance. Accreditation is required. Transportation from Kyiv will be provided.

• culture
• psychological support
• Kyiv

On April 5, journalists are invited to attend the Ukrainian premiere of “SANCTUS VERITAS” performed by the National Academic Symphonic Band of Ukraine. The concert will be conducted by Honored Artist of Ukraine Olha Rukavishnikova and conductor Ivan Stetskyi, featuring works by European composers.

For Olha Rukavishnikova, this performance marks a return to civilian life after four years of service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. She joined Ukraine’s Defense Forces on February 24, 2022. Her primary weapon was an RPG-7 anti-tank grenade launcher, and she is also trained to operate a sniper rifle, automatic grenade launcher, machine gun, and mortar.

During one of the combat missions, she was thrown several meters by a blast wave, and a fragment fractured her cervical spine. As a result of the same injury, she lost her left eye.

Background: The first part of “SANCTUS VERITAS” will feature the dramatic biblical work Adam and Eve by Hugo Chinesta and the large-scale symphonic piece Noah’s Ark by Óscar Navarro. The second part will include the deeply emotional symphonic poem Abraham by Ferrer Ferran and Byzantine Mosaics by Franco Cesarini — a musical symbol of spiritual grandeur and the light associated with the birth of Christ.
Journalists can review the full program in advance. Accreditation is required.
Interviews with Olha Rukavishnikova are available upon request.

• casualties
• culture
• military
• women
• Kyiv