Tag Archives: ukraine

WITH her grandmother in a war zone, every day is filled with worry for Vlada Gorbunova, who lives in Ennis, having arrived in Ireland as a six-year-old child in 1997. “You’re constantly worried that you could get that phone call or text message, to say something happened. It could be the worst, or it could be that she lost her home where she’s lived for 40 years or more, that she has nowhere to go and I can’t give her a hand because I can’t get that deep into Ukraine. “It’s constant worry and constant stress and every time my phone rings I’m thinking it’s her ringing to say that something has happened,” she says. Her grandmother is in Luhansk, in the east of the country, and fighting is happening all around her. “I know they were shooting this morning, because when I rang her you could hear the gunfire behind her. She had to hang up very quickly and …

WEST Clare councillors are to write to the ESB to condemn the sourcing of coal from Russia for the Moneypoint power plant. It comes against the backdrop of sanctions taken by western nations against Russia over its attack on Ukraine. This coincides with the revelation that Russian coal accounted for almost all of the fuel consumed in Moneypoint in 2021. Responding to Clare Champion queries, the ESB outlined prior to 2021, electricity generation from Moneypoint had reduced significantly, requiring only small quantities of coal in those years. However, in 2021, a combination of factors saw an increase in electricity generation from Moneypoint to meet demand on the Irish electricity system, resulting in more than one million tons of coal being burned over that year. The ESB has seen that trend continue into the early part of 2022. “ESB sources coal for Moneypoint on international markets. Russian coal accounted for almost all of the coal consumed in Moneypoint in 2021,” the …

SEVERAL people whose families are affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine attended Thursday evening’s protest at Tim Smythe Park in Ennis. Irene Korniichuk was there with her mother, stepfather and her daughter. Having come here for a visit from the Ukraine, Irene can’t go home again. “My husband and my older children stayed there, I was just visiting Mum. I can’t return home now. My other two children are with my sister now and they crossed the border into Poland. My husband is still in the Ukraine.” The two children who have gone to Poland are 11 and 15 and she would like to bring them to Ireland if possible. She said her husband will hopefully help in the Ukrainian resistance. “He’s not a soldier but he’ll do everything he can.” Women in her home city are also very active in the fight. “They gather together in different places and they’re making camoflague nets for our soldiers, they are …

THE people of Clare are being urged to don their county colours in solidarity with the people of Ukraine this Wednesday. A march for Ukraine will be held at 6pm on March 2 at the Fair Green, Tim Smythe Park in Ennis. The event has been organised by concerned Irish and Polish people living locally who wanted to show their support for the people of Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s invasion. A spokesperson for the organisers told us that they are encouraging people to come along with their Clare county flags and colours as the saffron and blue is similar to the Ukraine yellow and blue flag. “This event has been organised as an opportunity for us as a community to share our solidarity and our grief with the people of Ukraine, and to call for further action to be taken to end what is happening. “People can bring a candle, and because the colours of the Ukrainian flag …

DOCTOR Lena Madden woke up on Thursday morning to text messages offering condolences after the invasion of her home country by Russia. An Ennis-based academic, Lena has lived in Ireland for 20 years and in the immediate aftermath of the Russian invasion of the Ukraine she is very concerned about the prospect of thousands of deaths. “The thing that people don’t talk about is loss. The biggest thing is loss of human life. How many people will die? How many children will die? The soldiers are someone’s children too.” Dr Madden’s father and step-mother were already here visiting when hostilities started, but her mother is living in the east of Ukraine. “I’m from Donetsk, the place where the war is happening currently and where it started in 2014. I moved to Ireland in 2002, that’s 20 years ago. I didn’t live through the war, but my Mum says she has lived through war already. She’s got an approach that she …

AS tensions between Russia and Ukraine continue to escalate, an East Clare tour operator planning a “dating tour” to Kiev has said he is not unduly concerned, writes Fiona McGarry. Scariff’s James Treacy told The Champion that he is keeping a watch on the situation ahead of the planned tour and will stick to whatever advice is issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs. Mr Treacy, who previously insisted that there will be no risk to the safety of the 50 men he aims to bring to Ukraine, said he doesn’t see the current crisis along the Ukrainian border as a particular cause for alarm. “Like all other destinations where there has been war, we cannot travel there unless the Department of Foreign Affairs allow us to travel,” he said. The experienced tour operator, who also runs pilgrimages to religious sites around the world, said he has already encountered situations where conflict has necessitated a change of plan. “I remember …

AN EAST Clare man’s efforts to find long-term love for up to 30 single men, by leading a dating tour to Ukraine, are to be the subject of a new video documentary. Scariff’s James Treacy, a professional photographer and pilgrimage organiser, made national news when he announced his plans last month. The trip to Ukraine, slated for next year, will be documented in a film directed by Malcolm Willis of Icy Peaks Productions, based in County Kerry. Some advance scenes for a trailer were shot at Kilmallock Mart last week, where Mr Treacy often works photographing livestock. “The documentary is starting next Monday, we are only filming now but this is going to take a year to put it together,” Mr Treacy said. “We are planning to go onto the Late Late Show on Valentine’s Day and we are applying for the Graham Norton Show.” In June, Mr Treacy announced that he has teamed up with an American tour operator, …

A SCARIFF man, who runs pilgrimages to the Holy Land and other religious sites, is to diversify by offering what he describes as “dating tours” to the Ukraine. James Treacy has teamed up with an American tour operator, A Foreign Affair, which runs so-called “singles introduction tours” to Eastern Europe, South America and Asia. The professional photographer is hoping to bring 30 men to Kiev next year and told The Champion he has already had interest from Clare men looking for wives. Mr Treacy insisted everyone involved is genuinely looking for long-term love and that there is no question of sex tourism. “The men are vetted by me,” he outlined. “Some of them have never had a girlfriend. They are genuinely looking for wives. This is not a sex tour. The cost of the tour is too high for anyone who isn’t looking for a serious relationship.” As to the issue of potential exploitation, Mr Treacy said the women involved …