70 Years Since Babi Yar the Holocaust Still Has a Lesson to Teach

Posted by: U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine John F. Tefft

“Shoah by Bullets: Mass Shootings of Jews in Ukraine 1941-1944” Exhibit

On September 8th,I attended the opening of the exhibit “Shoah by Bullets: Mass shootings of Jews in Ukraine 1941–1944” at the Ukrainian House in central Kyiv. Although the Shoah by Bullets  exhibit has been shown in Paris, Brussels, New York and other cities, this is the first time it has appeared in Ukraine. Establishing the exhibit in Kyiv was truly an international effort. The Victor Pinchuk Foundation provided key support, in partnership with the Memorial de la Shoah, Yahad – In Unum and the Embassies of Israel, France, Germany and the United States. Other contributors included the Ukrainian Centre for Holocaust Studies, University of Southern California’s Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education, and the Center of Studies of History and Culture of Eastern-European Jews.

This year the international community will join Ukraine in commemorating the 70^th year since the massacre at Babi Yar. The opening of the Shoah by Bullets exhibit in Kyiv provides a rare space for Ukrainians to learn and reflect upon a difficult and searing moment in their nation’s history that received short shrift or was outright censored in the Soviet era. That Ukraine experienced staggering human losses during World War II is well documented, but the impact of the Holocaust, and particularly the mass murder of Jews and other victims by Nazi soldiers in Ukraine, is still a relatively new subject for history books and an uncomfortable moment in history for many. It is really only through events such as the Shoah by Bullets exhibit that public awareness and understanding of the Holocaust can be introduced to younger generations.

 

“Passing the Comfort:” Quilt Exhibit at the Museum of the Great Patriotic War

Posted by: U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine John F. Tefft

On Friday April 11, 2011, with partners from the Museum of the Great Patriotic War and the Ministry of Culture, and alongside representatives from the Dutch, British and German embassies in Kyiv, I participated in the opening ceremony for the exhibit “Passing on the Comfort”. Other project sponsors include the International Menno Simons Centre of the Netherlands and the Mennonite Central Committee of the United States.

This exhibit brings together three stories with a common thread – an international network of Ukrainian, American and Dutch individuals who provided relief and supplies during and after World War II. Original hand-made quilts are displayed alongside never-before-seen archive materials from the Museum of the Great Patriotic War including photographs, letters and other objects sharing the stories of individuals who took great risks to help others. 

 

Ukraine International Travel and Tourism Exhibition

Posted by: Konstantin Dubrovsky, Vice Consul of the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine

Recently, my colleagues and I were fortunate enough to be invited to participate in the 17^th annual Ukraine International Travel & Tourism (UITT) exhibition.  This is the largest travel industry event in Ukraine.  Representatives from all over the world come to the UITT exhibition to network, meet potential clients, and develop new international channels to increase the volume of tourism and investment in their respective countries.

This year the UITT exhibition was held in the International Exhibition Center from March 23 -25. The exhibition did not disappoint; representatives from more than 50 countries greeted visitors with their colorful booths, folk costumes, songs, and sometimes even samples of their national cuisine.