UKRAINE’S NEW AMBASSADOR TO WASHINGTON VISITS THE SHEVCHENKO SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY

February 4, 2006

NEW YORK – Dr. Oleh Shamshur, the new ambassador of Ukraine in the U.S., paid a visit to the headquarters of the Shevchenko Scientific Society (NTSh) on February 4. The Ambassador was accompanied by the Embassy’s Cultural Attache Natalia Holub and by Ukraine’s Acting Consul-General in New York Anatoly Olefirov.

Наталя Голуб, Роман Андрушків, Орест Попович, посол Олег Шамшур і Світляна Андрушків

The diplomatic entourage was welcomed by NTSh Executive Board members Dr. Larissa Zaleska Onyshkevych, president, Drs. Roman Andrushkiw and Orest Popovych, vice-presidents, and Olha Kuzmowycz, recording secretary, as well as library director Svitlana Andrushkiw, office manager Dr. Vasyl Lopukh, and Prof. Vasyl Makhno, program coordinator.

After a brief tour of the NTSh building, focusing primarily on the library, all assembled for a roundtable of informal exchanges of ideas and plans for mutual cooperation.

Світляна Андрушків, посол Олег Шамшур і Роман Андрушків Посол Олег Шамшур і голова НТШ-А Лариса Онишкевич

Dr. Onyshkevych presented a list of suggestions on how Ukraine’s diplomatic institutions could support a more visible and effective Ukrainian presence at American and international scholarly conferences on Slavistics.

Ambassador Shamshur was very forthcoming in his response, promising, among other things, to host a reception for those scholars in Ukrainian studies who will participate in the Convention of the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies in Washington in November 2006. Similarly, Consul Olefirov reiterated his earlier offer to NTSh of co-sponsoring scholarly and cultural events.

Dr. Andrushkiw informed the visitors about the ongoing NTSh efforts for many years now to bring about the Ukrainization of the Microsoft and Linus computer programming in Ukraine. He suggested steps by which the Ukrainian government could help in these endeavors.

Many other issues were raised, and the full texts of the NTSh suggestions and comments were presented to the Ambassador in writing. Ambassador Shamshur repeatedly expressed his readiness to cooperate with and assist the NTSh in every possible way with the objective of promoting Ukrainian scholarship and Ukraine’s image abroad. The entire meeting took place in a very friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Before their departure, the guests from the Embassy of Ukraine received as presents several of the books and Bulletins recently published by NTSh.

Під час розмови в НТШ-А