The Wall Street Journal: Comprehending the Jewish President of Ukraine

“After Vladimir Zelensky won the Ukrainian presidential election with an overwhelming majority of votes in April this year, his country became the only one, except Israel, where both the president and prime minister are Jews. This is remarkable given that Jews in Ukraine are only a small minority, and the international press has seized on the issue. However, during the election campaign, Zelensky’s Jewishness did not play a role as a factor,” writes The Wall Street Journal.

Фото: Depositphotos

“Weeks before the election, Zelensky told a Wall Street Journal writer that “the fact that I’m Jewish is number 20 on a long list of my traits.” As a comedian who has sometimes made fun of politicians who were openly religious in public, he has no interest in making faith part of his political and national identity. (...) »

On the subject: President for one term: 10 facts about Vladimir Zelensky

“Zelensky was born 41 years ago into a family of intellectuals in the Ukrainian city of Krivoy Rog. The future president was never religious. Vadik Pereverzev, a childhood friend, told the author of the publication, Natalie Grivnyak: “We knew that he was Jewish by nationality, but this did not manifest itself in holidays, in communication or in observing the Sabbath. His family was absolutely the same as others.” As an adult, he remained family-oriented, but “what Vladimir took from his family as a tradition was a great work ethic”—not a religious identity. (...) Zelensky’s wife is not Jewish, and his children were reportedly baptized in the Orthodox tradition, which is followed by about two-thirds of Ukrainians,” the article notes.

“Zelensky is Ukrainian,” said Mikhail Tkach, chairman of the United Jewish Community of Ukraine. — He was taught in a family where they knew that they were Jewish by origin. He understands what the Sabbath is. The question of whether he prays... is not the most important question.” Tkach has met Zelensky and considers him a secular, non-observant Jew. “Once you become the president of a predominantly Orthodox country, you must respect the laws of that country. You must respect the traditions of this country. This is our Jewish law. Therefore, I have no doubt that Vladimir will respect Orthodoxy, Christianity in general and any other religion in Ukraine.”

“The 2014 revolution on the Maidan helped strengthen the Ukrainian identity, which united society. “In Ukraine, during the Maidan, there was a phenomenon of the merger of Jewish activists with the Ukrainian political nation,” points out Anna Vishnyakova, who advises the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry on issues of xenophobia and anti-Semitism. “Jews took part in the events on the Maidan and fought shoulder to shoulder in the East.” This rallied Ukrainians around political rather than ethnic identity. Five years after the revolution, Zelensky's Jewish heritage was rarely discussed during the campaign. Usually she was mentioned only indirectly - for example, according to rumors, he was close to the Ukrainian-Israeli oligarch Igor Kolomoisky,” reports The Wall Street Journal.

On the subject: Zelensky - President: 7 First Promises and Future Plans

“After his election, some in the Jewish community worried that if the new president failed, the country's Jews would be scapegoated,” the article said. — Despite its difficult history, today Ukraine may be one of the least anti-Semitic countries in Central or Eastern Europe. A 2018 Pew poll found that only 5% of Ukrainians “say they do not accept Jews as fellow citizens.” This is only about a third of the number of respondents in Russia and the lowest figure in the region.”

“Zelensky is now mainly focused on creating a new political identity. (...) “Modern Ukraine is a tolerant and inclusive nation that has left problems of religion and ethnicity far behind,” says political scientist Konstantin Batozsky. (...) Voters are thinking about strengthening law and order, improving the economy and protecting the territorial integrity of Ukraine. If Zelensky can ensure results are achieved on these issues - and shows that he is a Ukrainian patriot who is most interested in building Ukrainian unity - questions about his origins and faith will dry up,” the author of the publication summarizes.
Translation: Foreign press

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