Canada-Ukraine relations
Encyclopedia
Canada–Ukraine relations (also called Ukraine-Canada relations) are the bilateral
ties between Canada
and Ukraine
. This includes both diplomatic relations between the two governments and the wider relations two societies. There are also particularly deep and intense formal relations between regional and local government
s in the two countries.
and Ukraine
together enjoy a close cultural, social, economic and politically productive relationship. The relationship between the two countries is built on the legacy of mass Ukrainian immigration to Canada
. The migration took place in four distinct waves, beginning in the late 19th century and continuing to the present day.
In the early part of the migration there were no relations as such, since during this era neither country was sovereign
. Canada was a British Dominion, while Ukraine—having lost her historical independence—represented an ethnic region partitioned first between the Austro-Hungarian
and Russian
empires and later the Soviet Union
and Poland
. The political turmoil in the homeland saw the emergence of Ukrainian political movements in Canada that identified closely with the political situation there, notably nationalist and pro-soviet organizations.
The Second World War
led to a period of intense political rivalry amongst these groups, centering on the question of Ukrainian independence. During this time, Canadian authorities—having assumed greater independence in its foreign affairs—attempted to manage the inter-ethnic tension between the nationalist and pro-soviet camps while also trying to position itself to secure a working relationship with the Soviet Union in the post-war period. The tension between the two camps continued in the post-war period, especially on questions regarding recognition of the Soviet government in Ukraine
, Ukrainian independence, and human rights in the Soviet Union
. In the context of the Cold War
, the Canadian government steered a middle course, careful not to antagonize the Soviet Union. Throughout the post-war period, Canada's formal diplomatic relations with the USSR were conducted through the all-Union (USSR) Ministry of Foreign Affairs, although on minor issues diplomatic conatct was made with the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (a theoretically sovereign entity with its own seat at the United Nations
).
With the unravelling of the Soviet Union in 1991, Canada on December 2, 1991, became the first Western
country to recognize Ukraine's independence.
in April 1992, and the Embassy of Ukraine in Ottawa
opened in October of that same year, paid for mostly by donations from the Ukrainian-Canadian community. Ukraine opened a consulate general in Toronto
in 1993 and announced plans to open another in Edmonton
in 2008. Canada also has a consulate in Lviv
.
The main bilateral agreement signed between the two governments is the joint declaration of the "Special Partnership"
between the two countries signed in 1994 and renewed in 2001.
In 1992, the Governor General of Canada, the Rt. Hon. Ramon Hnatyshyn, visited Ukraine—his ancestral homeland with which he closely identified —in his capacity as Vice-Regent. This was followed in 2005 by the formal state visit of Governor General Adrienne Clarkson
and again in 2009 by Governor General Michaëlle Jean
. In 1994, Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma
, in a gesture recognizing the importance of Ukraine-Canada relations, undertook a visit to Canada, his first state visit abroad. Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
visited Ukraine in 1999. In 2008, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko
travelled to Ottawa and other centres as part of a state visit. While in Ottawa, he addressed a joint meeting of the House of Commons and Senate of the Canadian Parliament, a rare privilege extended foreign dignitaries. Periodic visits at the ministerial level, for example, foreign affairs, have also taken place since Ukraine's independence.
. This is a delicate matter as the East vs West trajectory (Russia vs. Europe) is a normally sensitive political issue in Ukraine. Direct involvement would violate international protocol (seen as interference in Ukraine's internal affairs), and possibly undercut pro-Western forces in the country. Nevertheless, many Canadians (including members of parliament, and former Prime Minister John Turner
) were part of an international observor team that monitored Ukraine's 2004 presidential election. Canadian media were typically sympathetic to the forces of the Orange Revolution
, with the national magazine Maclean's
running a front page story on the protests. Documented election irregularities by observor teams led to a re-run of the election resulting in the presidential electoral victory of the pro-Western Viktor Yushchenko
. Canadian Governor-General, Adrienne Clarkson
, Canada's head-of-state representative, would attend Yushchenko's investiture wearing an orange scarf, the colour of the pro-Western movement.
On September 22, 2009, talks between Canada and Ukraine on a free trade agreement began.
, Manitoba
) identifying Ukraine as a potentially significant area of immigrant recruitment for skilled workers.
The influence of strong cultural and historical contacts between regions cannot be overstated. The majority of Ukrainians who migrated to the Canadian province of Alberta
between 1893 and 1929 came from a few small districts in western Ukraine, many of them in modern-day Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast
. Consequently, Alberta's premier Ralph Klein visited Ivano-Frankivsk in 2002, reciprocated by a subsequent visit to Edmonton
from the governor of Ivano-Frankivsk
, Mykhailo Vyshyvaniuk, at which time the two governments signed a trade and cooperation agreement. Alberta is expected to sign a similar document with neighboring Lviv Oblast
, with current Alberta premier Ed Stelmach
, who is of Ukrainian origin. Other recent significant contacts at the provincial level include Premier Roy Romanow's official visit to Ukraine in 1995 and the visit of Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma
to Saskatchewan
at the invitation of Premier Romanow (2000), as well as delegations to Ukraine from Alberta, Manitoba
and Saskatchewan at the ministerial level, all of which have led to a series of concluded agreements and memoranda of understanding on culture, education and economic matters. As a means to increasing prospective relations, a number of provincial jurisdictions have also established formal Advisory Committees (Saskatchewan-Ukraine Advisory Committee, Manitoba-Ukraine Secretariat, Advisory Council on Alberta-Ukraine Relations).
Finally, beyond a number of twinning regional agreements, e.g. Saskatchewan-Chernivtsi oblast, a number of Canadian cities are also twinned with Ukrainian municipal counterparts, strengthening cultural and social contacts at the local level. Twinned cities include Toronto
/Kiev
, Winnipeg
/Lviv
, Vancouver
/Odessa
, and Saskatoon
/Chernivtsi
.
The Canada-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce (CUCC) plays an important role in promoting trade and business ties between the two countries.
and Chernivtsi National University
. An inter-university agreement has been in existence between the two partners since 1977. The relationship, however, currently operates through the Ramon Hnatyshyn Canadian Studies Centre, a research and teaching unit created in 2003 and devoted to Canadian studies at Chernvitsi National University. The National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy has also established a Canadian Studies Center in 2009 to help facilitate the study of Canada and to foster greater inter-university contact and scholarly exchange.
Bilateral exchanges between Canadian and Ukrainian universities exist in the sciences, social sciences and humanitites across a variety of fields. Canadian universities and colleges with active exchange programs include: University of Alberta
, University of Manitoba
, University of Saskatchewan
, University of Toronto
, Queen's University
, St. Thomas More College and MacEwan College.
In 1991, with the support of the Chair of Ukrainian Studies Foundation of Toronto, the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program
(CUPP) was created. CUPP
has provided Ukrainian university students with an opportunity to learn how democracy functions in Canada by working closely with Canadian Members of Parliament of all parties. Ukrainian students are competitively selected from among 48 participating institutions of higher-learning in Ukraine.
Secondary school exchanges and trips with Ukraine are extensive, supported by school boards in local jurisdictions with a concentration of residents who identify with their Ukrainian origins.
Bilateral
Bilateral may refer to any concept including two sides, in particular:*Bilateralism, the political and cultural relations between two states*Bilateral symmetry, symmetry between two sides of an organism...
ties between Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. This includes both diplomatic relations between the two governments and the wider relations two societies. There are also particularly deep and intense formal relations between regional and local government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...
s in the two countries.
History
CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
together enjoy a close cultural, social, economic and politically productive relationship. The relationship between the two countries is built on the legacy of mass Ukrainian immigration to Canada
Ukrainian Canadian
A Ukrainian Canadian is a person of Ukrainian descent or origin who was born in or immigrated to Canada. In 2006, there were an estimated 1,209,085 persons residing in Canada of Ukrainian origin, making them Canada's ninth largest ethnic group; and giving Canada the world's third-largest...
. The migration took place in four distinct waves, beginning in the late 19th century and continuing to the present day.
In the early part of the migration there were no relations as such, since during this era neither country was sovereign
Sovereignty
Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided...
. Canada was a British Dominion, while Ukraine—having lost her historical independence—represented an ethnic region partitioned first between the Austro-Hungarian
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
and Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
empires and later the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. The political turmoil in the homeland saw the emergence of Ukrainian political movements in Canada that identified closely with the political situation there, notably nationalist and pro-soviet organizations.
The Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
led to a period of intense political rivalry amongst these groups, centering on the question of Ukrainian independence. During this time, Canadian authorities—having assumed greater independence in its foreign affairs—attempted to manage the inter-ethnic tension between the nationalist and pro-soviet camps while also trying to position itself to secure a working relationship with the Soviet Union in the post-war period. The tension between the two camps continued in the post-war period, especially on questions regarding recognition of the Soviet government in Ukraine
Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic or in short, the Ukrainian SSR was a sovereign Soviet Socialist state and one of the fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union lasting from its inception in 1922 to the breakup in 1991...
, Ukrainian independence, and human rights in the Soviet Union
Human rights in the Soviet Union
Human rights in the Soviet Union have been viewed differently, one view by the communist ideology adopted by the Soviet Union and another by its critics. The Soviet Union was established after a revolution that ended centuries of Tsarist monarchy...
. In the context of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, the Canadian government steered a middle course, careful not to antagonize the Soviet Union. Throughout the post-war period, Canada's formal diplomatic relations with the USSR were conducted through the all-Union (USSR) Ministry of Foreign Affairs, although on minor issues diplomatic conatct was made with the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (a theoretically sovereign entity with its own seat at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
).
With the unravelling of the Soviet Union in 1991, Canada on December 2, 1991, became the first Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
country to recognize Ukraine's independence.
Formal relations
Diplomatic relations were established between Canada and Ukraine on January 27, 1992. Canada opened its embassy in KievKiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
in April 1992, and the Embassy of Ukraine in Ottawa
Embassy of Ukraine in Ottawa
The Embassy of Ukraine in Ottawa is Ukraine's diplomatic mission in Ottawa, Canada. Canada was the first western nation to recognize Ukraine's independence on December 2, 1991. The existence of a large Ukrainian-Canadian community has led to continued close relations between the two nations. The...
opened in October of that same year, paid for mostly by donations from the Ukrainian-Canadian community. Ukraine opened a consulate general in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
in 1993 and announced plans to open another in Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
in 2008. Canada also has a consulate in Lviv
Lviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
.
The main bilateral agreement signed between the two governments is the joint declaration of the "Special Partnership"
Treaty of Friendship
The Treaty of Friendship is a common generic name for any treaty establishing close ties between countries. For example:* 2001 Sino-Russian Treaty of Friendship* Élysée Treaty...
between the two countries signed in 1994 and renewed in 2001.
In 1992, the Governor General of Canada, the Rt. Hon. Ramon Hnatyshyn, visited Ukraine—his ancestral homeland with which he closely identified —in his capacity as Vice-Regent. This was followed in 2005 by the formal state visit of Governor General Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Louise Clarkson is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 26th since Canadian Confederation....
and again in 2009 by Governor General Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation, from 2005 to 2010....
. In 1994, Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma was the second President of independent Ukraine from 19 July 1994, to 23 January 2005. Kuchma took office after winning the 1994 presidential election against his rival, incumbent Leonid Kravchuk...
, in a gesture recognizing the importance of Ukraine-Canada relations, undertook a visit to Canada, his first state visit abroad. Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
visited Ukraine in 1999. In 2008, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko is a former President of Ukraine. He took office on January 23, 2005, following a period of popular unrest known as the Orange Revolution...
travelled to Ottawa and other centres as part of a state visit. While in Ottawa, he addressed a joint meeting of the House of Commons and Senate of the Canadian Parliament, a rare privilege extended foreign dignitaries. Periodic visits at the ministerial level, for example, foreign affairs, have also taken place since Ukraine's independence.
Politics
The main Canadian political parties are keen to be seen promoting democratic reform initiatives in Ukraine, encouraging Ukraine to engage and possibly join Western institutions such as the EU, NATO while distancing itself from RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. This is a delicate matter as the East vs West trajectory (Russia vs. Europe) is a normally sensitive political issue in Ukraine. Direct involvement would violate international protocol (seen as interference in Ukraine's internal affairs), and possibly undercut pro-Western forces in the country. Nevertheless, many Canadians (including members of parliament, and former Prime Minister John Turner
John Turner
John Napier Wyndham Turner, PC, CC, QC is an English Canadian lawyer and retired politician, who served as the 17th Prime Minister of Canada from June 30 to September 17, 1984....
) were part of an international observor team that monitored Ukraine's 2004 presidential election. Canadian media were typically sympathetic to the forces of the Orange Revolution
Orange Revolution
The Orange Revolution was a series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter...
, with the national magazine Maclean's
Maclean's
Maclean's is a Canadian weekly news magazine, reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events.-History:Founded in 1905 by Toronto journalist/entrepreneur Lt.-Col. John Bayne Maclean, a 43-year-old trade magazine publisher who purchased an advertising agency's in-house...
running a front page story on the protests. Documented election irregularities by observor teams led to a re-run of the election resulting in the presidential electoral victory of the pro-Western Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko is a former President of Ukraine. He took office on January 23, 2005, following a period of popular unrest known as the Orange Revolution...
. Canadian Governor-General, Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Louise Clarkson is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 26th since Canadian Confederation....
, Canada's head-of-state representative, would attend Yushchenko's investiture wearing an orange scarf, the colour of the pro-Western movement.
On September 22, 2009, talks between Canada and Ukraine on a free trade agreement began.
Sub-national ties
Much about the relationship is based on the legacy of migration. However, Ukrainians, migrating to Canada, did not come equally from all parts of Ukraine, nor did they move equally to all parts of Canada. The largest number of Ukrainian immigrants in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries settled in the Canadian Prairies and accounts for this region's strong cultural and historical ties with Ukraine, notably Western Ukraine from whence the majority came. Ontario has also been a province that has attracted Ukrainian immigrants, especially in the immediate post-war period. Recent immigration to Canada from post-independence Ukraine (post-1991) is a function of resumed immigration flows (prevented during the Soviet period) and targeted provincial immigration programs. The latter has resulted in migrants coming to those provinces (SaskatchewanSaskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
) identifying Ukraine as a potentially significant area of immigrant recruitment for skilled workers.
The influence of strong cultural and historical contacts between regions cannot be overstated. The majority of Ukrainians who migrated to the Canadian province of Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
between 1893 and 1929 came from a few small districts in western Ukraine, many of them in modern-day Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast
Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast
Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Ivano-Frankivsk. As is the case with most other oblasts of Ukraine this region has the same name as its administrative center – which was renamed by the Soviets after the Ukrainian writer, nationalist...
. Consequently, Alberta's premier Ralph Klein visited Ivano-Frankivsk in 2002, reciprocated by a subsequent visit to Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
from the governor of Ivano-Frankivsk
Ivano-Frankivsk
Ivano-Frankivsk is a historic city located in the western Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast , and is designated as its own separate raion within the oblast, municipality....
, Mykhailo Vyshyvaniuk, at which time the two governments signed a trade and cooperation agreement. Alberta is expected to sign a similar document with neighboring Lviv Oblast
Lviv Oblast
Lviv Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Lviv.-History:The oblast was created as part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic on December 4, 1939...
, with current Alberta premier Ed Stelmach
Ed Stelmach
Edward Michael "Ed" Stelmach, MLA is a Canadian politician and served as the 13th Premier of Alberta, Canada, from 2006 to 2011. The grandson of Ukrainian immigrants, Stelmach was born and raised on a farm near Lamont and speaks fluent Ukrainian. He spent his entire pre-political adult life as a...
, who is of Ukrainian origin. Other recent significant contacts at the provincial level include Premier Roy Romanow's official visit to Ukraine in 1995 and the visit of Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma was the second President of independent Ukraine from 19 July 1994, to 23 January 2005. Kuchma took office after winning the 1994 presidential election against his rival, incumbent Leonid Kravchuk...
to Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
at the invitation of Premier Romanow (2000), as well as delegations to Ukraine from Alberta, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
and Saskatchewan at the ministerial level, all of which have led to a series of concluded agreements and memoranda of understanding on culture, education and economic matters. As a means to increasing prospective relations, a number of provincial jurisdictions have also established formal Advisory Committees (Saskatchewan-Ukraine Advisory Committee, Manitoba-Ukraine Secretariat, Advisory Council on Alberta-Ukraine Relations).
Finally, beyond a number of twinning regional agreements, e.g. Saskatchewan-Chernivtsi oblast, a number of Canadian cities are also twinned with Ukrainian municipal counterparts, strengthening cultural and social contacts at the local level. Twinned cities include Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
/Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
/Lviv
Lviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
, Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
/Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
, and Saskatoon
Saskatoon
Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....
/Chernivtsi
Chernivtsi
Chernivtsi is the administrative center of Chernivtsi Oblast in southwestern Ukraine. The city is situated on the upper course of the River Prut, a tributary of the Danube, in the northern part of the historic region of Bukovina, which is currently divided between Romania and Ukraine...
.
Humanitarian and development aid to Ukraine
Canadian organizations, including non-governmental, are active in providing different kinds of aid to Ukraine. Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) funded the establishment of Centre for Small Business and Economic Development (SBEDIF) in Ivano-Frankivsk. An additional $3.8 million (CAD) was committed for a regional network project to support small business growth and economic development in five additional communities in the same oblast of Western Ukraine.The Canada-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce (CUCC) plays an important role in promoting trade and business ties between the two countries.
Educational Contacts
The longest standing educational partnership at the post-secondary level is that of between the University of SaskatchewanUniversity of Saskatchewan
The University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...
and Chernivtsi National University
Chernivtsi University
The Chernivtsi National University is the leading Ukrainian institution for higher education in northern Bukovina, in Chernivtsi, a city in southwest Ukraine....
. An inter-university agreement has been in existence between the two partners since 1977. The relationship, however, currently operates through the Ramon Hnatyshyn Canadian Studies Centre, a research and teaching unit created in 2003 and devoted to Canadian studies at Chernvitsi National University. The National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy has also established a Canadian Studies Center in 2009 to help facilitate the study of Canada and to foster greater inter-university contact and scholarly exchange.
Bilateral exchanges between Canadian and Ukrainian universities exist in the sciences, social sciences and humanitites across a variety of fields. Canadian universities and colleges with active exchange programs include: University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
, University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...
, University of Saskatchewan
University of Saskatchewan
The University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...
, University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
, St. Thomas More College and MacEwan College.
In 1991, with the support of the Chair of Ukrainian Studies Foundation of Toronto, the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program
Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program
The Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program or CUPP is a parliamentary internship program for Ukrainian students, established by the Ukrainian Diaspora in Canada. The Program provides an opportunity for Ukrainian students to learn about the principles of democratic government and parliamentary...
(CUPP) was created. CUPP
Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program
The Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Program or CUPP is a parliamentary internship program for Ukrainian students, established by the Ukrainian Diaspora in Canada. The Program provides an opportunity for Ukrainian students to learn about the principles of democratic government and parliamentary...
has provided Ukrainian university students with an opportunity to learn how democracy functions in Canada by working closely with Canadian Members of Parliament of all parties. Ukrainian students are competitively selected from among 48 participating institutions of higher-learning in Ukraine.
Secondary school exchanges and trips with Ukraine are extensive, supported by school boards in local jurisdictions with a concentration of residents who identify with their Ukrainian origins.
See also
- Ukrainian CanadianUkrainian CanadianA Ukrainian Canadian is a person of Ukrainian descent or origin who was born in or immigrated to Canada. In 2006, there were an estimated 1,209,085 persons residing in Canada of Ukrainian origin, making them Canada's ninth largest ethnic group; and giving Canada the world's third-largest...
- Canadian UkrainianCanadian UkrainianCanadian Ukrainian is a variety of the Ukrainian language specific to the Ukrainian Canadian community descended from the first two waves of historical Ukrainian emigration to Western Canada.Canadian Ukrainian was widely spoken from the beginning of Ukrainian...
- Embassy of Ukraine in OttawaEmbassy of Ukraine in OttawaThe Embassy of Ukraine in Ottawa is Ukraine's diplomatic mission in Ottawa, Canada. Canada was the first western nation to recognize Ukraine's independence on December 2, 1991. The existence of a large Ukrainian-Canadian community has led to continued close relations between the two nations. The...
- Embassy of Canada in Kiev
- Ramon Hnatyshyn
External links
- Embassy of Ukraine in Canada - Political Affairs /
- Canadian Embassy in Kiev - Canada & Ukraine //