Themes by tag: Kyiv
When russia launched its full-scale invasion, Maryna Bohush’s husband’s brother joined the territorial defense. In May 2022, he was deployed to reinforce positions near Bakhmut and went missing. At the time, Maryna was on maternity leave, but she began attending every available event in hopes of learning what happened to her relative. In 2023, she founded the Women of the Territorial Defense Forces Association of Families of Territorial Defense Defenders, which now unites families from 25 territorial defense brigades of Ukraine’s Armed Forces.
During one of her search trips, Maryna met Iryna Taranova. Iryna’s son had enlisted in the first days of the war and disappeared in December 2022 near Bakhmut. The women decided to join efforts in their search, leading to the creation of the WOMEN’S FAMILY NGO. The group’s co-founder, opera singer Olena Hrebeniuk, also plays a key role by engaging artists in the organization’s events. Regional coordinators across Ukraine provide additional support to the team.
By prior arrangement, journalists may meet with Maryna Bohush and Iryna Taranova in Kyiv. Relatives of missing persons will also be available for interviews on August 29 during the nationwide event Silent Voices: When Absence Screams, dedicated to the International Day of the Disappeared.
Daria Ulman is the wife of soldier Kyrylo Ulman, who was killed in action on February 15, 2024. At the start of the full-scale invasion, Daria’s husband joined the ranks of the Volunteer Territorial Defense Unit in Dnipro, established by veterans of the 12th Azov Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine. In December 2022, he became part of the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade as a member of an anti-tank battalion. Kyrylo was killed by a sniper’s bullet.
Daria shares that her husband was passionate about military affairs. After his death, she regretted not having started training alongside Kyrylo. Over the past year, Daria has completed six courses and undergone two full-scale training programs. She later founded her own community, which focuses on military training for women, naming it Community Ulman in honor of her fallen beloved.
To date, 30 women have already participated in the training sessions, and the project has successfully donated 76,000 hryvnias to Kyrylo’s fellow soldiers.
Journalists will have the opportunity to cover the training sessions, which will take place in Kyiv on August 30–31.
Interviews with Daria Ulman can be arranged online or in person in Kyiv, by prior agreement.
For the first time in the history of Ukrainian football, the Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) is launching the Ukrainian Amputee Football Championship — a major event in adaptive sports. (Amputee football is a sport for individuals with limb amputations or congenital limb deficiencies).
The championship will run from September to December and will be held in Kyiv, Kyiv Oblast, Lviv, Cherkasy, and Ivano-Frankivsk. The first gathering round will take place from August 29 to 31 in Kyiv. The champion will represent Ukraine in the EAFF (European Amputee Football Federation) Champions League in 2026.
Participating teams from across Ukraine include MSC Dnipro (Cherkasy), Pokrova AMP (Lviv), Shakhtar Stalevi (Donetsk), Burevii (Kyiv oblast), Hrestonosci (Lutsk), Vinnytsia AMP (Vinnytsia), Nezlamni (Kharkiv), Tytany (Zhytomyr), FC Bartka (Ivano-Frankivsk), Vikinhy (Ternopil).
Background: The tournament is organized with the support of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and the Agency for Mass Sports of Ukraine.
One of the key strategic priorities of the Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) is the development of social projects that transform society and create opportunities for everyone. The project for the development of amputee football is one such initiative, as there are over 100,000 individuals with limb amputations in Ukraine.
The meeting between the leaders of the two nations in Alaska made it clear that, despite hopes for Western support, Ukraine must develop its own strategy to ensure the country’s resilience amid constant threats from Russia. At the same time, broad international support and steadily increasing pressure on the aggressor remain crucial for successfully implementing such a strategy.
In light of this evolving context and new challenges, the Crimea Platform Expert Network has initiated the Fourth International Forum. During the event, leading Ukrainian and international experts, alongside government representatives, will analyze the current situation and develop recommendations for Ukraine and its international partners.
Forum participants include representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, international analytical centers, non-governmental organizations, independent experts, human rights defenders, and representatives from the diplomatic corps.
The Media Center Ukraine is the information partner of the forum.
The event will take place on August 28. Registration for the event is required. The location will be confirmed upon accreditation approval.
Organizers: The Crimea Platform Expert Network, with the support of the Office of the Crimea Platform, the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People.
On August 29, Kyiv will host a nationwide event dedicated to the International Day of the Disappeared, “SILENT VOICES: When Absence Screams.” The program will feature the opening of the photo exhibition “Eyes That Wait.”
The gathering aims to create a space for remembrance, support, and dialogue. It will amplify the voices of mothers, wives, sisters, and children who endure the silence of waiting, while drawing the attention of the public, media, state institutions, and international organizations to the issue of enforced disappearances and the search for missing persons.
The agenda includes:
- Remarks by officials from government agencies, diplomatic missions, and international organizations;
- An artistic performance and live interventions reflecting the pain, strength, and hope of families;
- The opening of “Eyes That Wait,” a photo exhibition portraying the struggle, faith, and resilience of relatives of the missing.
Invited participants include families of missing and captured servicemen and civilians; representatives of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the Commissioner for Missing Persons in Special Circumstances, the Ombudsman’s Office, the Security Service of Ukraine, the National Information Bureau, and other government agencies; as well as members of the International Committee of the Red Cross, diplomatic missions, and partner organizations. Registration is required.
The event is organized by WOMEN’S FAMILY NGO, which brings together the associations Women of the Territorial Defense Forces and Women of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, with financial support from the International Committee of the Red Cross, in partnership with the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.
The International Day of the Disappeared is observed globally on August 30.
Anhelina Shostak, a native of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast, now destroyed and under russian occupation, has devoted more than a decade to volunteer work, beginning with sewing Ukrainian flags. Her efforts started in 2014, when russia first launched its assault on eastern Ukraine. She delivered humanitarian aid to Ukrainian troops in the region and always included flags she had sewn herself.
On April 11, 2015, in Kyiv’s Independence Square, Shostak achieved her first record: a 27.2-meter friendship bracelet woven from blue and yellow ribbons, the longest of its kind. A year later, on June 18, 2016, she entered the Ukrainian Book of Records again with the largest embroidered flag, measuring 4.5 by 3 meters. Her third record came in August 2018, when she and fellow volunteers sewed a 20-by-6-meter flag. It was recognized as the largest flag lifted by balloons in the Joint Forces Operation area, funded by residents of the occupied territories.
When the full-scale war erupted, Shostak and her husband fled Bakhmut. Yet she continues her work, sewing Ukrainian flags to this day, including banners draped over the coffins of fallen soldiers.
Shostak can be reached in Kyiv, either online or in person, by prior appointment.
Peaceful events are planned in 28 cities across Ukraine to raise awareness of the defenders of Azovstal and other soldiers still in enemy captivity.
On August 23, events will be held in Arbuzynka, Okhtyrka, Pavlysh, Chernihiv, Irpin, Vinnytsia, and Shpola.
On August 24, events are planned in Kyiv, Krolevets, Korop, Pivdennoukrainsk, Mykolaiv, Uman, Ovruch, Obukhiv, Korosten, Slavuta, Cherkasy, Lozova, Kropyvnytskyi, Uzhhorod, Berdychiv, Rivne, Odesa, Shostka, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi, and Poltava.
The events are organized by families of prisoners of war from the Mariupol garrison. Recently released Ukrainian captives also often join these actions.
Since childhood, Sofiia had looked after her cousins and played with her neighbors’ young daughter. She often imagined welcoming a child deprived of parental care into her family one day. In 2020, when she turned 20, Sofiia applied to become a mentor for a child from an orphanage because she knew she wasn’t ready for adoption at such a young age.
After a year, she completed her training and received approval from the social services center on February 21, 2022. However, the full-scale war began shortly thereafter, putting her mentorship dreams on hold.
Two years later, she received a call offering her the chance to meet 12-year-old Alina from the Donetsk oblast. Alina has younger brothers who live with her in the orphanage, but there are no adults who maintain contact with her.
Today, Sofiia helps Alina socialize. Their meetings include practical lessons, such as shopping, budgeting, cooking, and using computer programs, as well as emotional support and help with schoolwork.
Journalists can arrange to speak with Sofiia Yudina online or in person in Kyiv or Odesa by prior agreement. Sofiia can also provide joint photos with Alina for publication. Please note that journalists will not be able to speak directly with Alina.
On August 26, HALO Ukraine will host the opening of the Women in Demining photo exhibition staged in Kyiv.
The project highlights Ukrainian women working across different roles in mine clearance, underscoring the importance of bringing women into fields traditionally dominated by men while offering a closer look at their career paths.
The opening ceremony will feature the women portrayed in the exhibition.
Among them is 25-year-old Tetiana Mordach, Ukraine’s first and only female diver trained in explosive ordnance disposal. Before the full-scale war, she worked as a rescue diver. When russia launched its invasion, she joined the State Emergency Service as a diver. Her work involves one of the most difficult and dangerous tasks: clearing mines and locating and neutralizing explosives. Mordach dreams of one day exploring the seabed of Crimea’s Black Sea after Ukraine’s victory.
Diana Obzhelian, 21, studied Chinese at Kyiv University and planned to become a translator. The war upended her path: she switched to part-time studies and became a deminer with HALO Ukraine. After spending a year clearing mines in the north, she now trains communities on how to stay safe from landmines and other explosive devices.
Valeriia Osyka, 23, works as a deminer in the Kharkiv region. Not long ago, her daily routine was very different, when she served as a fire and industrial safety engineer at a university in Kharkiv. Today, she says her favorite moments come when she sees nature reclaiming once-dangerous fields: “When wheat grows green again on cleared land.”
Journalists can review the full program and must register for accreditation by 2 p.m. on August 25.
Global Affairs Canada and Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture support the project. Partners include Demine Ukraine, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, the State Special Transport Service, the National Police of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Deminers Association, MAG, FSD, UDA, NPA, and UNOPS.
HALO Ukraine is part of The HALO Trust, the world’s largest non-governmental, nonprofit humanitarian mine clearance organization. For 37 years, The HALO Trust has been clearing landmines and unexploded ordnance across 30 countries.
Konstantin Kartavtsev has been on the front lines defending Ukraine since June 2022. Over that time, he has suffered multiple injuries and concussions. On April 16, 2023, while pulling fellow soldiers out of danger, he lost a leg. After months of rehabilitation, Kartavtsev returned to duty in December as a sergeant in the 95th Separate Air Assault Brigade.
Despite his injuries, Kartavtsev found a new passion. In August 2023, still adjusting to a temporary prosthetic, he took up golf. He joined United by Golf, an adaptive sports club that helps service members, veterans, their families, and people with disabilities through the game. Since its launch, the initiative has brought more than 800 veterans into rehabilitation programs, with 55 vets training regularly.
Kartavtsev quickly excelled. Last year, he competed in the International Championship for Golfers with Disabilities in Germany, finishing among the top 10 players in the final standings. Golf has since become his favorite pastime.
On August 19 this year, during a meeting in Washington, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented Donald Trump with a golf putter on Kartavtsev’s behalf. The U.S. president accepted the gift and later recorded a video message thanking the Ukrainian soldier.
By prior arrangement, journalists may meet Kartavtsev in Kyiv.
