Everyone has their own idea of a “weekend,” a word that has become popular in Ukraine. For some, it means watching all kinds of TV programs, usually of rather poor quality. For others, it is reading a book or catching up on sleep. Some people like to meet their old friends in ancient Ostroh, of all places, a city that has been attracting like-minded people for centuries on end.
The Day’s editor in chief Larysa Ivshyna, the well-known sociopolitical figure Yevhen Marchuk, and businessman and politician Vitalii Haiduk with his wife Olena decided to have an “Ostroh- style weekend.”
Ostroh Academy students look forward to every visit from Ms. Ivshyna because this means a chance to discuss acute political and painful historical subjects. Hearing fresh ideas and drinking in “the extraordinary atmosphere of enlightenment” is what our editor hopes for, like her other guests, who find time in their tight schedules to accompany her to Ostroh.
As a result of the Saturday meeting, both sides satisfied their interests and recharged their store of overriding concern for Ukraine and true patriotism. The frank, open atmosphere surrounding their discussions encouraged them to raise a variety of topics: the difference between an oligarch, an employer, and an art patron; healthy expansionism and morbid dependence; the role and essence of benevolent works, etc.
As the minutes and hours passed, the businessman from Donetsk and the students of Ostroh were opening up new worlds to one another and breaking down deeply rooted stereotypes. Haiduk is a resident of Donetsk, who speaks fluent Ukrainian and publishes books about the Ukrainian Cossacks. A man of few words, he is deeply devoted to his wife and publicly acknowledges that he owes all of his achievements to her. He is a Ukrainian who is convinced that the east-west division of Ukraine is just a myth that needs to be shattered. This type of simple and frank conversation is uniting the country and engendering hopes for a fast recovery from many illnesses that are mostly of a psychological nature.
IS RUSSIA TO BE UKRAINE’S ETERNAL FATE?
“By far the most burning issue on both the theoretical and grassroots levels is the question of gas, including our gas relations with Russia and Ukraine’s energy security. Today there is a lot of talk about the fact that our state has enough gas resources to supply its own population. I would like you, as an expert in this field, to tell us to what extent this is true and whether it is possible to reject (in future) the idea that difficult relations with Russia are, to quote Yevhen Marchuk, the eternal fate of Ukraine?”
This question from Volodymyr Dehlis, who is studying Political Science, compelled not only the audience but also Mr. Haiduk to put on their thinking caps. Volodymyr received the following unambiguous answer. “It is not Russia but we ourselves who must be blamed for our gas problems. We will put an end to these never-ending disputes only when we begin to address these problems in earnest.”
As part of a huge empire with unlimited resources, Ukraine did not need to prospect for its own deposits. Indeed, why did we have to launch highly expensive projects when oil and gas in Siberia were lying right on the surface? This is how Ukrainians became “gas junkies.” After the collapse of the established system, the Ukrainian state had to face the problem of an energy shortage.
“Yes, Ukraine extracts some gas of its own, which accounts for as little as 25 percent of the total requirement. Incidentally, households consume a mere 20 percent of what the state requires. In other words, we could supply households without importing the product. But it is our infrastructure and industry that consume the remaining 80 percent. So now, instead of thinking about how to persuade Russia to reduce the gas price or step up supplies (although this is also very important), the government should do its best to reduce the energy consumption factor of Ukrainian businesses. And every Ukrainian should understand that how much gas the state consumes today depends on him. Take Latvia, for example. Yes, they lived through two cold winters. At one time ministers wore their coats in government buildings. But thanks to nationwide consolidation, the Latvians managed to cut energy consumption by 60 percent,” said Haiduk during his impromptu lecture.
“DO THE SKILLS OF TODAY’S UNIVERSITY GRADUATES MEET THE UKRAINIAN MARKET’S REQUIREMENTS?”
This question was addressed to Haiduk as an employer. In his opinion, no matter how painful it is to admit this, contemporary Ukrainian education is a long way from providing the labor market with highly skilled specialists in many sectors. “What good is an economist if s/he does not know the ABCs of the industrial process, even if s/he can solve the most complicated mathematical equation?”
Our education needs radical changes, now that we are going to join the Bologna Process soon. This means we will enter the European education market and will surely lose our way among the experienced Europeans, unless we reform our colleges and universities. In this case Haiduk was speaking not as an employer but as the chairman of the Supervisory Board of Donetsk National Technical University and as a father whose son and daughter also need to get a quality education.
“IT’S WHAT’S IN YOU THAT IS IMPORTANT”
Many students’ questions touched upon Haiduk’s charitable activities. It was clear that students do not know much about him as a benefactor. “We are not ‘fat cats,’” Haiduk said. “I have to have a real attachment to something that I am going to fund. For example, once I visited Ostroh Academy, it sank deep into my heart.”
Haiduk presented a number of projects that he worked on with his partners, such as the publication of the Ukrainian Cossack State (with more than 1,000 pages), The Encyclopedia of the Trypillian Civilization in two volumes, and an album of modern art. Obviously, patriotism shows in his sincere patronage rather than in splashy ventures calculated for effect.
“IMBUE YOURSELVES WITH THE SPIRIT OF UKRAINIAN EXPANSIONISM!”
This is a piece of advice from a person who clearly sees Ukraine’s place in the world — not between Russia and Europe but on the same level with the most powerful states. “We must care about everything!” says Yevhen Marchuk, because only this way, not by retrograde acts, can we ensure the security of our state. “Security means peace in the language of civilians.” This unconditional formula devised by Marchuk should become the slogan of our state’s foreign and domestic policies, and these words should form the basis of a constructive dialogue between the populace and the uniformed services. This will eliminate debates on NATO and any other organizations. The main thing is peace for every Ukrainian citizen. And peace, as you know, is security.”
Ukrainian expansionism is not only the presence of peacekeeping units in the world’s hot spots or defending our interests in international organizations. Haiduk emphasized the importance of Ukraine’s presence in the world’s markets. Asked by Daria Shvaia if it is profitable for our businesses to invest abroad, Haiduk gave a detailed response. “It is not just about placing Ukrainian capital abroad; it is about bolstering Ukrainian interests in Poland, Hungary, and elsewhere.”
This economic expansionism should be carefully and rationally calculated by professionals. If China, another industrial giant with the same kinds of possibilities as Ukraine, is present in Asia’s markets, is it worthwhile making our mark there, especially if we are next to the European Union, the world’s most solvent market? Haiduk convinced the students that only economic rationale plus national patriotism can bring about sound Ukrainian expansionism.
Petro KRALIUK, Ph.D., pro-rector of scholarly work, National University of Ostroh Academy:
“Before I met Vitalii Haiduk, I was able to familiarize myself with the life story of this unconventional person. A certain stereotype was formed on the basis of this information, a stereotype of an energetic technocrat (in the finest sense of the word) who knows what he wants and how to achieve the designated goal. But after meeting him, I had a much more positive impression. I saw an individual who is not only well-versed in professional matters but also has an extremely sound background. He spoke freely and competently on the problems of public administration, foreign relations, and education. But what struck me the most is the fact that Haiduk has an excellent grasp of literature and he is also interested in various arts. He seems to be able to freely compete with knowledgeable literary and art specialists. I was also struck by the modesty and easy manner of this wealthy person, as well as the fact that he esteems his wife and attributes his successes to her.
“I was pleased to meet Yevhen Marchuk again at our Ostroh. Although he spoke for just a few minutes, he said a number of essential things about Ukrainian expansionism, which we are not accustomed to hearing: we should not stay behind in our ‘hamlet,’ in our ‘faraway little house,’ but must step into the wide expanses of the globalized world and speak about ourselves in a loud voice. Only then will we be respected.
“Naturally, we would like to spend more time communicating with such people as Larysa Ivshyna, who brought us her new book My Universities. Unfortunately, we were too pressed for time to do this.
“But even this brief encounter left a host of pleasant impressions. The main impression is this: if we have people with this kind of thinking, energy and zeal, Ukraine definitely has a future.”
Volodymyr DEHLIS, second-year student majoring in Political Science:
“Encountering something new and unknown is always a reason for reflections, searches, and rethinking old and well-known things. And although Larysa Ivshyna is very well known at Ostroh Academy, she is always full of new ideas and visions. So every meeting is like we are meeting for the first time. Today, the novelty of her visit is connected to her friends: meeting them makes one not only reflect but wonder.
“The visit to Ostroh of ‘a Ukrainian businessman from Donetsk,’ an ex-defense minister from the era of ‘dark independence,’ and the real editor in chief of a ‘Ukrainian Ukraine’ is an unusual combination challenging the stereotypical images of Ukrainians’ deficient self-awareness. There was a lot to rethink: personalities, ideas, and moods.
“Mr. Marchuk’s words at the beginning of the forum, that ‘there are different oligarchs in Ukraine,’ at first just evoked a polite smile. Later, they raised no objections. Here is the first broken stereotype: the Ukrainian oligarch can speak Ukrainian very well and, what is more, he can think in Ukrainian categories. The president of the Industrial Group, now free of political commitments, is one of a handful of individuals who have soberly assessed the Ukrainian reality: it is not Russia or America but Ukraine that ‘placed itself within these limits,’ and only social consolidation can help us go outside them.
“Not ‘they’ but ‘we,’ not ‘you’ but ‘I’ — this, in my opinion, is not just an emphasis on collective responsibility that dictates a democratic way of progress but also the understanding that this can be carried out. While the need to spend ‘two winters in the cold’ in order to ride out the gas crisis may be regarded as a movement toward illness, perhaps the unity of the nation to solve national problems is the only way for its development and health. ‘Russia can set any kind of conditions,’ Mr. Haiduk said, but we can also refuse. ‘We can’ is obviously what we lacked in the times when ‘this country stubbornly refused to live better’ (Ms. Ivsyna’s words). Do we still lack this?
“Mr. Marchuk’s wish for us to ‘learn Ukrainian expansionism’ was by far the most cogent statement. But I think that the essence of this wish is not expansion as such but the necessity to defend and understand the essence of our national interests. Bitter as it is, the conclusion is self-evident: we must learn to be independent, and then Russia will stop being the eternal enemy of Ukraine (which ‘the disgruntled creators of Ukrainian statehood’ like to play with so much) and Ukraine will be a respected and desirable partner. Mr. Haiduk also noted very wisely that you cannot become a good economist unless you know the elementary instruments of production. Likewise, citizens will not have a good state unless they become aware of its requirements and interests as well as their own freedom — a freedom that cannot be bought just because it looks nice but one that must be constantly used!
“I would like to thank Ms. Ivshyna for the opportunity to take part in this dialogue, which I personally regard as a way to seek a new vision of many problems.”
Daria SHVAIA, third-year student majoring in Culture Studies:
“This meeting confirmed again that it is very useful to communicate with highly-educated and erudite people who simply care about their country’s destiny. For we share the same moral values and spiritual goals that, one way or another, deal with Ukraine’s historical destiny (the past, future, and present) and the cultural situation.
“Ms. Ivshyna has often expressed her views on these issues to the students of Ostroh Academy — the topics of previous discussions, a series of books (‘a supplement to the passport of a Ukrainian citizen’), and the latest gift from Ms. Ivshyna to the university — a film about the newspaper Den/The Day.
“Frankly speaking, Yevhen Marchuk rather surprised me with his finely tuned convictions. I found his idea of having to educate expansionism particularly interesting. Really, isn’t it high time we stopped being poor and modest?
“Yes, there should be some tempestuousness in our character. I’ve been trying to convince myself of this for a long time, but Mr. Haiduk did it better. The story of the way his career took off is simply unbelievable. And, when he had achieved enough to assert himself in life, he quit politics but, thank God, did not lose his memory. He still remembers that our state needs help from its own citizens. So he has been providing assistance in all possible ways — by developing the economy (and Ukraine’s international ties) and promoting the revival and preservation of Ukrainian national culture. In my view, this may be called the feat of a patriot.
“The forum was full of interesting ideas and positive impressions. I think that I am not the only one who will lie awake reflecting over everything that I heard here.”
Mykola HUSAK, M.A. student majoring in Political Science:
“It is very gratifying to see that political and public figures continue to visit Ostroh Academy. This shows growing interest in our university and its students. Meetings with such people enable students to say what they think and acquire interesting information.
“I am pleased that the guests spoke about Ukrainian problems, the national idea, and ways to ride out the crisis.
“The central idea that most impressed me was Yevhen Marchuk’s statement that ‘Ukrainian interests should be everywhere where they can be effectively used for the benefit of the Ukrainian state.’ I also absolutely agree with Vitalii Haiduk that the ‘language question’ and the ‘problem’ of Ukraine’s division are artificial creations.”
