On December 18, 2021, a delegation of representatives of the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) and Ukrainian diaspora communities led by UWC President Paul Grod took part in a virtual meeting with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky.
The delegation consisted of UWC Vice Presidents, leaders of the European Congress of Ukrainians, and Ukrainian community leaders from Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Great Britain, Estonia, Spain, Italy, Canada, Lithuania, Germany, South Africa, Portugal, Romania, the United States, Turkey, and the Czech Republic.
President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the UWC and the united Ukrainian diaspora for their work and said: “I see you and all the communities in one big family called Ukraine.” The main topic of discussion was the issue of supporting Ukraine in the face of the growing threat of another Russian invasion. President Zelensky stressed the role of the UWC and the organized Ukrainian diaspora in advocating to the governments of their respective countries for stronger sanctions against Russia, military assistance for Ukraine, support of Ukraine’s accession to the EU and NATO, countering Nord Stream 2, the issue of Ukraine’s and Europe’s energy security, and countering Russian disinformation. The issues of support for the deoccupation of Crimea through the Crimean Platform and honouring historical memory were also discussed. The President emphasized the role of international communities in honouring true historical memory at the highest global level – in particular in commemorating the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor and the memory of the victims of Babyn Yar.
The leaders of the Ukrainian communities assured the President of further support for Ukraine and discussed coordinated cooperation with the governments of their countries. UWC President Paul Grod thanked President Zelensky for supporting the introduction of multiple citizenship legislation that will allow Ukrainians with a foreign passport to maintain or attain Ukrainian citizenship. Grod outlined the UWC’s principled position on the need to liberalize the current legislative and regulatory framework while ensuring effective security measures and ensuring one class of citizen thereby providing equal rights for all Ukrainian citizens to participate in state-building. The UWC President also noted the importance of involving UWC in shaping related Ukrainian legislation and all other issues relating to Ukrainians living outside Ukraine.
Additionally, the UWC President emphasized the proposal to introduce an International Ukrainian Day and proposed that this date be set for August 25 annually. Paul Grod invited President Zelensky to join the UWC’s 55th-anniversary celebrations in 2022, as well as the UWC Congress and World Forum of Ukrainians organized by UWC to be held in Kyiv from August 25-27, 2022.
“Our top priority today is the protection and sovereignty of Ukraine,” said UWC President Paul Grod. “To this end, we are strengthening the international coalition in support of Ukraine”
