In 1986, the Ukrainian World Congress and its member organizations helped expose the Soviet cover up and denial of the worst nuclear disaster in history. Our communities provided emergency aid immediately following the disaster and helped mobilize international support. In the decades that followed, UWC and its member organizations contributed numerous programs of medical, humanitarian, and technical assistance to deal with the legacy of the nuclear power disaster. The international community contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to help contain and remediate the fallout.
After 35 years, the Soviet legacy of Chornobyl still haunts Ukraine. Today Ukraine faces a new man-made environmental catastrophe at the hands of Moscow. Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula and Donbas region are zones of environmental disaster. Air and soil contamination, chemical spills, flooded mines, and the threat of radioactive contamination in Donbas, pollution of the Black and Azov seas are all consequences of Russian aggression and disregard for human life.
“Putin has delivered ‘Chornobyls’ to present-day Eastern Ukraine and Crimea. Moscow has once again created and is covering-up a series of humanitarian and environmental disasters affecting millions of people in addition to the war unleashed seven years ago to re-establish Moscow’s hegemony in the post-Soviet-space,” stated Paul Grod, UWC President. “Much like the Soviets when they denied and covered up the truth about what happened in Chornobyl, Putin lies and distorts the truth about the tragedies and disaster he continues to cause. We must expose Putin’s big lie.”
#ВеликаБрехняПутіна #PutinsBigLie
The UWC is the international coordinating body for Ukrainian communities in the diaspora representing the interests of over 20 million Ukrainians. The UWC has member organizations in 33 countries and ties with Ukrainians in 14 additional countries. Founded in 1967, the UWC was recognized in 2003 by the United Nations Economic and Social Council as a non‑governmental organization (NGO) with special consultative status.
