Meeting at the Embassy of Ukraine in Estonia

On 16 December, the Association’s board members and working team met the Ambassador of Ukraine to Estonia, Mr Maksym Kononenko!
The meeting took place at the residence of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Estonia and had a festive Christmas mood.

The Association’s representatives were able to talk about their work over the past year and plans for the coming one, share the problems that arise in communication with state bodies and other institutions, and ask the Ambassador how he could help resolve particular issues.

Mr Maksym Kononenko noted that the Embassy is fully open to dialogue with the Ukrainian community and will always remain a reliable partner.

Heads and representatives of organisations gathered around one table: Liubov Laur – deputy chair of the Association’s board and head of the creative association “Orpheus”; Kateryna Popkova – youth leader of the Ukrainian Youth Association in Estonia; Yevgeniy Novokhatniy – artistic director of the Ukrainian song and dance group “Volya”, and Anastasia Kozachok – chief choreographer of the ensemble, which operates under the Ukrainian Youth Association; Inna Hordiienko – head of Ukraina meedia Druzi MTÜ; Oleksandr Smirnov – head of the Ukrainian art studio “MRIJA”, and Aleksandra Rybnikova and Andrii Verkholiak – representatives of the studio; Tetiana Poniatenko – head of the Ukrainian society “Spogad” in Paide; Svitlana Smoliankina – deputy head of the Spilno_ee library; Aliona Duminika – head of the Ukrainian folk music ensemble “Dibrova”; Serhii Oliinyk – founder of Stand up from UA and head of
OÜ Gumor UA!

Volunteers and friends of the Association also attended the meeting with the Ambassador: Andrus Rumm – one of the founders of the NGO Vaba Ukraina; Kalev Naur – Estonian public figure; Olga Sabanska – board member of the Estonian community association in Ukraine; volunteers Aliona and Fedir Alokhin; Natalie Shevchenko – Association volunteer and mental health specialist; Denis Priimagi – a volunteer who translates from Estonian into Ukrainian at almost all Association events; and Veronika Kukurudza – a volunteer who films and photographs the Association’s events.

The conversation with the Ambassador covered various topics important to the heads and representatives of organisations in Estonia: how to keep uniting Ukrainians in Estonia and preserving their identity, how to support the volunteer movement, what to do so that aid to Ukraine does not stop, which projects are worth developing to help Ukrainians integrate into Estonian society, how to counter Russian propaganda and what exactly the Association’s Ukrainian organisations can do about it.

The relaxed atmosphere and the Ambassador’s sincerity touched everyone present, and at the end of the meeting several representatives and volunteers of the Association – Andrus Rumm, Kalev Naur, Andrii Verkholiak, Veronika Kukurudza, Inna Hordiienko and Deniis Priimagi – received certificates of honour from the Embassy for their special contribution to and support of civic activity.
For its part, the Association’s team invited Maksym Kononenko to the festive concert held right after the meeting at the Embassy, in the House of the Brotherhood of Blackheads!

We thank the Embassy of Ukraine in Estonia for the warm welcome, the awards and gifts, and in particular the Ambassador’s wife, Mrs Tetiana Kononenko, for her hospitality!

We hope for further meetings in an even wider circle, as not all members of the Association could attend due to personal circumstances. We believe that with the support of the Embassy of Ukraine in Estonia we will be able to carry out even more important projects and bring to life even more charitable initiatives that will bring us closer to our Victory!