Author: Veronica Khokhlova

Here is how Steve Bandera of Kyiv Scoop explains a mock deal that he has offered to the newly-elected Ukrainian president: “The point is to show the absurdity of the [Stepan Bandera] debate: almost everybody from Moscow to Warsaw to Edmonton has an opinion on Bandera (who was killed more than 50 years ago) yet no one seems to care about the real issues that plague Ukraine today.”

Thoughts on March 8 and feminism in Russia and Ukraine – at Poemless, Global Comment, and Sean's Russia Blog.

European Union Law reports that “the Bulgarian National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) has stopped the delivery of some drugs against cancer for children under 18 years”: “A very simple question arises: what sort of a European Union Member State is Bulgaria, really??? How is it possible to leave the children without proper medication supply? Who will take the responsibility if the health of these children deteriorates further because of erratic treatment?”

Updates on the arrest of Ejup Ganić in London on March 1: Amila Bosnae – here and here; Gray Falcon – here, here, and here; Greater Surbiton – here and here; Samaha – here; CAFÉ TURCO – here;

Richard Byrne of Balkans via Bohemia pays tribute to Serbian writer Mihajlo Mijhajlov, “a prominent former dissident to both Titoism and nationalism,” who died recently at the age of 76. Sladjana Lazic of A Slice Of Serbian Politics muses on whether “the political engagement of artists can degrade their work,” in a post prompted by the recent death of Momčilo Momo Kapor, a Serbian writer, painter and journalist, as well as “a member of the Committee for Protection of Radovan Karadžić” and an illustrator of one of Karadžić’s children’s books.

Steve Bandera of Kyiv Scoop writes about the insights he gained while working with the recently declassified Soviet secret police archives – and about Ukraine's new State Security Service chief, who appears likely to limit public access to the archives again: “‘The special service’s main concern is the protection of its secrets,' Khoroshkovsky was quoted by UNIAN on March 11. In this statement Khoroshkovsky betrays his bias: as far as he’s concerned, it might as well be the KGB he’s heading.”

Tammy Lynch of Jamestown Foundation Blog posts an update on Ukraine's new ruling coalition and the new PM.

Leigh Turner, UK Ambassador to Ukraine, writes about one of the Ukrainian definitions of “democratic” – and about the “undemocratic” Ukrainian VIPs.

Siberian Light looks at the BBC News “infographic about internet access in Europe” and wonders “why a relatively authoritarian country like Belarus has managed to get more than 1/3rd of its people online, whereas Ukraine has only managed 1/10th.”

On Feb. 25, the European Parliament adopted a resolution, in which, among other things, it called on “the new Ukrainian leadership” to “reconsider” the posthumous award granted to Stepan Bandera a month earlier. In a post titled “Bandera Bashing Déjà vu,” Stepan Bandera's grandson – Steve Bandera of Kyiv Scoop – recalls how he accompanied his mother to the Supreme Court of Canada 25 years ago “to defend the honour and integrity of the Bandera name.”

LJ user boga4 posts 29 photos from Vinnytsya region (UKR), including this image from Shargorod, of the Monument to a New Monument, a 2009 work by Ukrainian artist Zhanna Kadyrova.

Two years after the death of former Slovenian president Janez Drnovšek, Sleeping With Pengovsky observes that “most of the nation is on the prowl against any sort of deviation from ‘normality', be this deviation actual or imagined, personal or political”: “President Drnovšek rarely passed judgement. […] But when he spoke, his words had merit. Today, a lot of what is being said is judgemental to start with and is fluff to boot.”

Photos of some of the aftermath of a record-breaking snowfall in Moscow, as well as musings on whether the Russian capital needs its gastarbeiter or not – at Pictures of Moscow.

“Not content to watch Serbia and Croatia fight it out over Serbo-Croatian, Montenegro now wants its own language,” Eternal Remont reports.

Irina Filatova comments on Russia's new military doctrine at the Guardian's Comment is free.

The Ivanov Report analyzes the Western media response to the Russian prime minister's “Vancouver Olympics quote/misquote” and concludes: “Attaching his name to a piece of ‘analysis' helps sell this questionable product as efficiently as attaching the name of another celebrity to a product that consumers would be reluctant to buy otherwise.”

IZO links to LJ user maratguelman's post (RUS) and writes: “Silvio Berlusconi travels round Rome in a Russian-made VAZ-Patriot car and likes to wear a commando jacket given to him by Putin.”

IZO links to LJ user postoronniy-cb's post (RUS) and writes: “When prez Medvedev visited Omsk recently, a sign advertising a play for children called We Await You, Merry Gnome was removed from his route in great haste at the last moment.”

IZO reports on some Russian bloggers' thoughts (RUS) on why “the massively popular Russian file-sharing site torrents.ru has been shut down.”

IZO writes about Best Of Russia ‘09 photography exhibition at Winzavod Contemporary Art Center in Moscow: “The wide range of amateur or semi-pro content and the big turn-out reminded me of what the Royal Academy Summer Show in London used to be, before professional artists squeezed the non-professionals out: a chance for amateur artists from all over the country to see their work on the walls of a top institution.”