The SS-21 SCARAB short-range ballistic missile's self-destruction

MOSCOW: The SS-21 SCARAB short-range ballistic missile self-destructed on Thursday, October 30th shortly after a practice launch at training grounds in northwestern Russia, the Defense Ministry said. The accident occurred during life-firing drills at the Luga training grounds in the Leningrad Region. No casualties or damage have been reported. The missile self-destructed at the height about 1,000 meters. The official added that the missile was carrying a dummy warhead because its service life has expired and it was due for destruction. Nevertheless, an investigation into the accident will be launched. According to the official, the second SS-21 missile, which was launched during the same drills, hit the designated target. The SS-21 Scarab short-range tactical ballistic missile is a 1989 modification of the Tochka missile system that went into service with the Soviet military in 1976. It has an effective range of 120 km (70 miles). The SS-21 SCARAB (Tochka-U) is a high-precision weapon that can be used for strikes on enemy tactical targets, such as control posts, bridges, storage facilities, troop concentrations and airfields. It can carry conventional and nuclear warheads. At least 15 Tochka missile systems were reportedly deployed by Russia during the five-day war with Georgia in August 2008.

An epidemic of the A/H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu, has started in Ukraine, Health Minister Vasyl Kniazevych announced at a press conference on Friday. "Unfortunately, we have to state that an A/H1N1 flu epidemic has in fact started in Ukraine," he said. The Health Ministry is planning to impose quarantine throughout Ukraine, he said responding a question from Interfax-Ukraine. "We are considering the possibility of introducing quarantine not only in the western regions but throughout the country because the virus is spreading extremely fast," he said.

http://www.interfax.com.ua/

Ukrainian folk festivals in Carpathian Mountains

In the autumn it’s worth visiting an old town of Kolomyya. During this time there’s an international folk festival called “Kolomyika” wherein you’ll find yourself inside a whirlpool of folk songs and dances. In September you can taste national dishes made of brynza during the festival “Hutsulska brynza” and of course you’ll never be able to forget a Christmas in Lviv. In the theatres and in the streets of the city the festival of vertep theatres is in full swing. In the middle of January the “Red wine” festival starts in Mukachevo and it is no wonder since top quality wine is produced in Zakarpattya. According to a story, in 1376 Elizabeth, the Queen of Hungary and Poland conferred the right of medieval European self-government on the city for selling wine. During the festival you can appreciate the taste of home made wines and factory beverages in the central square of the town and if you like, you can buy a bottle or even a tub of wine. On an Easter Day it’s better to visit Lviv where you can hear the chime of cathedral bells and the sounds of the organ. What’s more, only at this time and only in Lviv can you purchase genuine Ukrainian pysanka, each a true work of art. Another festival that will take your breath away capitalized on the Carpathians being a unique European center for highland milk sheep breeding. The festival is called the “Polonyna March” and its roots go back to the times of paganism. The festival presupposes cattle coming out to the highland pastures, and the festivities it is accompanied with are nothing but striking. Among them is a special ceremony, the play of the most extraordinary musical instruments and theatric actions. Even the cattle are dressed up for the event.

Old Swedish Music has been performed in Moscow and Poltava

Mid October Moscow International Performing Arts Center and International "Antiquarium" festival presented a joint Russian-Swedish project timed to the 300th Anniversary of Poltava battle. Sweden-based outfit Laude Novella
http://www.laudenovella.com/
and Novosibirsk group Insula Magica
http://www.korni-i-krona.ru/executors/insula/
presented an "Echo of Poltava" project based on the unique musical and historical material - pieces from Tobolsk manuscript authored by Great Northern war prisoner, composer and oboe player Gustav Blidström. After 12 years of exile in Tobolsk on Siberia, he came back to Sweden, to his native town Scara where, 300 years later, his musical book was found. Besides Blidström´s music - marches, polonaises and menuets - the "Echo of Poltava" programme features Russian 18th century chants from the time of Peter the Great, Russian church music, Swedish songs about the Northern War and "unruly" Russians and Swedish traditional folk music of the 17th century. Musical confrontation ended peacefully, with "bar" and love cantatas and a 1721 cantata "For the Peace Treaty Between Russia and Sweden" by G. Lindemann (Sweden). The programme is to be performed in historical costumes and accompanied by detailed comments. A unique set of historical instrumets is involved into the performance. "Echo of Poltava" is filled with authentic historical dances by Diana Scrivener (UK) - the world-wide known expert and teacher in choreography and early dance interpretation, who worked also for a number of acclaimed movies including the BAFTA and Oscar-winning "Elizabeth". On October 23rd Swedish and Russian groups performed their programme in the Museum of the Battle of Poltava.

Ukraine celebrates 65th anniversary of its liberation from German occupation

Ukraine marks the 65th anniversary of its liberation from fascist invaders. Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko earlier issued a decree setting October 28, the Day of Ukraine's Liberation, as an official holiday. Fireworks displays will be put on at 8pm in ten cities, particularly Kyiv, Odesa, Sevastopol, Kerch, Simferopol, Vinnytsia, Lviv, Zhytomyr, Rivne, and Dnipropetrovsk. Flowers will be traditionally laid at many monuments to war heroes and at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Kyiv. A festive evening for war veterans will be held at the Ukraina National Palace. Ukrainian President Viktor Yuschenko has laid flowers to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Kyiv on occasion of the 65th anniversary of Ukraine’s liberation from fascist invaders, the president’s press service reported.

Swedish-Ukrainian talks

Newly appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Mr. Petro Poroshenko has paid one of his first working visits to Sweden where he has taken part in the international high-level round-table conference on Eastern Partnership in Visby. During his visit to Sweden (October 17th, 2009) Mr. Petro Poroshenko has met Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden, President of the Council of the EU Mr. Carl Bildt.

Ukraine to observe Black Sea Fleet agreements

MOSCOW, October 23 (Itar-Tass News Agency) Ukrainian Foreign Minister Petro Poroshenko has said that Ukraine is determined to observe basic agreements on the Black Sea Fleet. “Kiev has declared its allegiance to what is recorded in the basic agreements on the deployment of the Black Sea Fleet on the Ukrainian territory,” Poroshenko said at a press conference on the results of his talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. “Ukraine did not raise the question on the revision of the basic agreements on the Black Sea Fleet at today’s talks. We did not hear such proposals from Ukraine. We discussed at the talks the problem of the corresponding subcommission, in order to work out clear principles and to apply them in practical work,” Sergei Lavrov said. “I could only confirm that we agreed to settle the emerging problems by means of a direct and effective dialogue. This is why the commission should meet regularly,” Poroshenko said. “We should not become hostages of the discussion of legal aspects of that problem. Both parties will take real steps for ensuring the absence of any causes for using the factor of the Black Sea Fleet in discussions between Russia and Ukraine.”

2009 international conference "The Battle of Poltava and its international importance”

2009 international conference "The Battle of Poltava and its international importance” hosted by the Moscow Kremlin State Museum and the Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences will take place in Moscow on November 17 – 19th 2009.
Topics:
1. Peter the Great's military reforms, The Battle of Poltava and following events of the Great Northern war.
2. Celebration of the Russian victory in the Battle of Poltava in Moscow in 1709 and 1710. The way of celebration of military victories in the time of Peter I.
3. Armament samples and banner collections in the Russian and European museums.
4. Reflection of the Battle of Poltava in the Russian works of art.
5. Northern Europe after the Battle of Poltava.
6. The Battle of Poltava and its impact on the system of international relations in the 18th century Europe.

Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute Announces a Two-Day International Conference

Poltava 1709: Revisiting a Turning Point in European History
November 10-11, 2009
In association with the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Alberta and the Kennan Institute at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute (HURI) will on November 10th and 11th host Poltava 1709: Revisiting a Turning Point in European History, an international conference that marks the 300th anniversary of the pivotal battle. The two-day event coincides with the passing of three centuries since Russia’s Peter I vanquished Charles XII of Sweden in one of the most decisive assaults of the Great Northern War at Poltava in Ukraine in 1709. It also commemorates the October 1709 passing of Ivan Mazepa, the Cossack Hetman whose ambition to use the battle as a means to achieve an independent Ukrainian state has made him both a national legend and an international controversy.

The conference will bring together prominent scholars from Ukraine, Russia, Austria, Sweden, Canada, Germany, Scotland, Italy, and the United Sates with the intent to utilize new historiographical approaches to reassess the Battle of Poltava as a crucial military event in the geopolitical development of Europe.

Find more details at

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~huri/poltava/poltava_main.html

Lady that was ranked as one of the most powerful women in the world by Forbes twice

I am embarrassed to say I failed the now vintage Huffington Post test on guessing who Yulia Tymoshenko is when presented with a collection of photos of her. For all you fellow dunces, she is the Prime Minister of the Ukraine-- and the first female Prime Minister the Ukraine has had. (My ignorance was especially embarrassing to me because my sister in-law is from neighboring Moldova and I like to pretend that I know what's going on in that part of the world). She has made the (some say suspect) switch from millionaire oligarch to revolution leader and has ranked as one of the most powerful women in the world by Forbes twice.

It was written not by me (Oleg Bezverkhnii) but by Tove Hermanson and then published in http://www.huffingtonpost.com/

If you want to read all this thrilling article about Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko just click at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tove-hermanson/a-daringly-stylish-politi_b_321241.html

An exhibition dedicated to the 300th anniversary of Poltava battle opens on November 10th 2009 in the museums of the Moscow Kremlin

An exhibition titled “The General Battle” dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the Battle of Poltava, opens on November 10th, 2009 to last till March 10th, 2010 in the Moscow Kremlin. Exposition in the first hall is about the first years of the Great Northern war, the first victories and defeats of Russian army. Special part of the exhibition is dedicated to the Battle of Poltava. The second part of the exposition is related to the celebration of Poltava victory in Moscow. The visitors will see many monuments that mark the Russian victory in the Great Northern war and the personality of Peter I. Main events of the Great Northern war are planned to be reflected through a story about the greatest personalities of the epoch - Tsar Peter I and the Swedish King Karl XII. For the first time their belongings, dispersed in different collections of Europe and Russia, will be exhibited together. Among other things, the full set of uniform of Preobrazhensky regiment, arms and the saddle of Peter I that were used by Russian Tsar in the Battle of Poltava, and the uniform and the arms witnessed the last days of Karl XII near the Norwegian fortress of Fredriksten. The Great Northern war caused the birth of the new Russian army and new generals - Menshikov, Sheremetyev, Dolgoruky, Bour, Bruce, Golitzin, whose belongings will be also shown at the exhibition . As for the Swedish army, the visitors will see portraits of generals Rehnsköld, Lewenhaupt, Steinbock, some samples of Swedish cold steel and firearms from the collections of the Royal Armoury Chamber in Stockholm, the Army Museum and the National Museum. A special section of the exhibition is dedicated to the personality of Getman Ivan Mazepa, who eventually took the Swedish side in the autumn of 1708. Unique set of trophies captured by Russians in the Battle of Poltava will take a special place in the exhibition. Museums of the Moscow Kremlin and other museums of Moscow and Saint-Petersburg are going to show almost all Swedish trophies including weapons, banners, drums, and officer’s breastplates. The exhibition will be hosted by the Moscow Kremlin museums and the State Hermitage features 17 museums, libraries and archives from Russia, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, and Austria.
www.museum.ru

Ukraine kicks off presidential campaign 2010

On Monday, the Ukrainian President signed a decree finally setting the date of the next presidential elections on January 17 next year, officially kicking off the 90-day election campaign. Unofficially, the campaign has already started as Ukrainian politicians have been trading accusations of all possible sins. Presidential candidates now have three weeks to register themselves in this capacity and more than 10 politicians announced this intention on the day the campaign was launched. However, according to recent polls, only two potential candidates stand some chances. These are: Viktor Yanukovich – the leader of the Party of Regions, representing the pro-Russian eastern parts of the country; and Yuliya Timoshenko – populist politician of pro-Western inclination who started an independent political career after breaking away from a coalition with incumbent President Viktor Yushchenko. Yushchenko himself has also said he would run for another term. Yet despite recent statements that he was absolutely sure he would win, observers estimate his chances as slim, as current support for Yushchenko hovers around three percent.
A dark horse in the race is former speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament Arseniy Yatsenyuk, who started his campaign very early and whose rating in late summer was at about 15%. At present, however, Yatsenyuk’s support is down at 8%, but with three months ahead, the situation can still change. Most probably Yatsenyuk is counting on a possible runoff in the election so that he can offer his support to the highest bidder – at present the former speaker is seen neither as a pro-Russian, nor as a pro-Western figure. The starting campaign will most likely be very harsh, even by Ukrainian standards. “We are facing an extremely harsh and non-correct elections campaign with beatings of activists, court wars and other unpredictable situations,” the Ukrainian press quoted former head of the Ukrainian Voters Committee Igor Popov. And this prophesy has turned out to be the case – Ukrainian politicians are using all forms of dirty play, even going as far as accusing opponents of pedophilia.
About two weeks ago, Ukrainian media supporting the Party of Regions reported that some women accused three top officials of Yulia Timoshenko’s bloc of raping children in the Artek summer camp. The media reported that the victims’ parents filed in a complaint with the police, but no actual proof was presented and, more importantly, the only person detained within the case has nothing to do with politics. Another sign indicating that the story could be bogus is that the Russian mainstream media and tabloids have dwelled heavily on the story, and Russia has always been supportive of Viktor Yanukovich’s cause. The pedophilia story continues to develop, but even in its brief and early form it cannot be called anything but outrageous.
Despite the fact that many election analysts expect the struggle to become even more vicious, all of them agree that an “Orange Revolution” is not likely to happen again (In 2005, mass street protests in Ukraine’s capital Kiev ensured the victory of the pro-Western bloc and gave the presidential post to Viktor Yushchenko). The situation in the country has changed significantly. The people are disappointed in the incumbent president and in the Orange idea in general, and the state of the Ukrainian and global economy is drastically different to what it was four years ago.
News agency Russia Today

Tsar Peter’s letter written after the Battle of Poltava.

A unique letter written by Russian Tsar Peter I to his wife Catherine soon after the victorious Battle of Poltava was shown to the public on the historical exhibition in the Russian State Historical Museum. The exhibition is dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the Battle of Poltava. The letter written by Russian Tsar on June 27th in the Russian fortified camp near Poltava is preserving in the Russian State Archives of Old Document. In his letter to Catherine Peter I wrote:

My dear sweety,
I am happy to announce an unexpected victory over the enemy that was granted to me today by loving and gracious God. In one word all enemy’s force was defeated utterly. Come here if you want to hear this news from me and congratulate me on this occasion.
Give my regards to the Princess

Peter

Early in 1703 Peter I becomes the lover of a Lithuanian peasant, captured in the Northern War and now working as the domestic serf of a Russian prince. Later in the same year, when their first child is born, the mother is received into the Russian Orthodox Church under a new name, Catherine. She becomes the tsar's inseparable companion, bearing him seven children of whom two daughters survive infancy. Divorced from his first wife, Peter marries Catherine formally in 1712 (they may have married secretly in 1707) and has her crowned empress in 1724. Less than a year later she succeeds him on the throne, as the empress Catherine I.

Russia upset at U.S.-Ukraine missile defense talks

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Thursday it was worried about U.S. talks on the use of Ukrainian radar stations as part of a revised missile defense shield, a step that could hinder efforts to reset ties between the two Cold War foes. Russia, which is extremely sensitive to any hint of U.S. cooperation with former Soviet republics, initially welcomed President Barack Obama's scrapping of Bush-era plans for a missile defense system in central Europe. But Moscow has been irked by a U.S. statement that countries like Ukraine could contribute early warning information as part of the revised shield plan and reports that talks between the U.S. and Ukraine on the issue had already begun. "We feel concerned," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by RIA news agency as saying when asked about the possible use of Ukrainian radars by the United States.
Ukraine's ambassador to the United States, Oleh Shamshur, was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying that talks with Washington on the use of radar stations had already begun. "This issue is in the process of working discussions. It is still at a beginning stage," Interfax cited Shamshur as saying. He added that previous Ukrainian leaders had backed this idea.
Shamshur's comments appeared to relate to possible use by Washington of two Soviet-era early alert stations at Mukachevo in western Ukraine and one near the Black Sea port city of Sevastopol. Ukraine's foreign ministry declined to comment.
President Viktor Yushchenko was in Brussels on Thursday and his office had no immediate comment on Shamshur's remarks. But on October 12 Yushchenko said at a meeting of Commonwealth of Independent States leaders in Moldova that Ukraine was ready to contribute these two facilities to a collective world and European security system.

A unique numismatic collection of medals dedicated to the Battle of Potava was shown to the public in Yaroslavl Art Museum (Russia)

Russian Tsar Peter I has issued an order about rewarding of all participants of the Battle of Poltava soon after June 27th 1709, but an official decree about coining medals for rewarding of lower ranks of Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments was published only on February, 8, 1710. Since that time many different medals have been stricken unofficially. Yaroslavl Art Museum has gotten this unique collection in 1988 from successor of famous St. Petersburg collector Ashik. Mostly these medals were struck in bronze in 1908 and 1909 when Russian Empire were getting ready for the coming 200th anniversary of the decisive battle of the Great Northern war.

Heavy Snow Cuts Power In Ukrainian Region

LVIV, Ukraine -- Heavy snowfall and storms have left more than 600 towns and villages in Ukraine's Lviv Oblast without electricity, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. The outage affected major oil pipelines in the region on the night of October 13. The regional branch of the Extraordinary Situations Ministry announced that work on restoring electricity has begun. The water supply in the regional capital, Lviv, was also affected by the conditions. The storm also caused dozens of traffic accidents in the region and many trees were downed.

Moscow doesn’t wish to deal with Ukrainian President Viktor Uschenko

The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) summit has taken place on October 9th , 2009 in the Moldavian capital of Chisinau (Kishinev). The agenda of the day was quite extensive: CIS heads of state discussed approaches in overcoming the international economic crisis, the joint message to the international community in connection with the 65th anniversary of the Great Patriotic War victory, approaches in cooperation on reinforcement of boundary security, as well as the fight against the illegal drug trade. The breaking news during the summit could be Russian president Dmitry Medvedev’s meeting with Ukrainian President Viktor Uschenko. A letter with the request for meeting was sent through the Russian Embassy to the country’s foreign ministry back on September 15 and the Russian foreign ministry notified Kremlin about it, said a source from the Ukrainian foreign ministry. However, the Russian paper Vedomosti’s Kremlin source insists that Moscow did not receive a request from Kiev for a bilateral meeting. “It is clear that Uschenko was refused a meeting for political reasons. Official Moscow once more gives a clear understanding that they don’t wish to deal with him, though Kiev insists that it is better to state claims face-to-face than on TV,” stated representative of the Ukrainian foreign ministry.

Tymoshenko will not protest presidential election outcome

"If the people elect their President, and this is not Yulia Tymoshenko, I will take this choice easy, for sure," the Prime Minister of Ukraine said on TV in Poltava, Ukrainian radio reported. "We will not challenge any election returns to avoid tremors, which may bring about instability in this country," she assured. Tymoshenko confirmed once again that her key rival in the presidential race is Party of Regions' leader Viktor Yanukovych. Presidential elections in Ukraine are scheduled for January 17, 2010. This election will be Ukraine's fifth presidential election since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Nobody in Ukraine believes that this election will take place without shady fighting using all possible methods to obtain power. Not long ago Tymoshenko started using election posters saying: “They loot Ukraine. She works”, “They promise. She works”, “They are talking. She works” pointed against Viktor Yanukovych and his Party of Regions. In response to such fierce attack, Party of Regions has hunged up following posters: “Ukraine is getting poor. She works”, “Ukraine is starving. She works”, “Euro-2012 is under the threat of frustration. She works”. suddenly Yulia Tymoshenko decided to change the meaning of the word “She” that caused following video available now on YouTube. You may watch it at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxziMHypmzk

, but please read translation below before!

PM Yulia Tymoshenko (voiceover): Every day, I work till late night because I know that my every minute is for the sake of the people, for the sake of my native Ukraine. I know that millions of people work a lot every day as well because they know that today their work is needed like never before. Every minute, our country smelts ore, sows bread, heals the sick, creates art, teaches and brings up kids. It is she, our best country. She works. She is Ukraine!

Poltava hosts annual lard holiday

Over one thousand people were eager to try the announced delicacy, lard covered with chocolate, and to entertain themselves. The holiday's initiators did not allow anyone to get bored: artists were singing folk songs, dancing, holding contests. The winners of the contests were awarded with a piece of lard and a bottle of vodka. According to Head of the Poltava City Council Andriy Matkovsky, the crisis is unable to frighten Ukrainians until they have such a product. However, not only Poltava residents love lard. Thus, on October 19, participants in the festival With Love to Lard in Lutsk (West Ukraine) made a 23-meter long sandwich with lard and the day before a new party was created, namely the Party of Lard Lovers.

http://poltava.us/

Poltava City Council has announced bypass highway construction ahead of Euro 2012 finals

One of many weak points of Ukrainian roads is a lack of bypass highways and flyover crossing. By preliminary calculations an approximate cost of the project is about 485 million hryvnas (400 million SEK). This number doesn’t include compensation to be paid to the seized land owners. Ukrainian Government has proposed to the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) to increase in 2009 the financing for the construction and reconstruction of roads in six cities hosting the finals of the Euro 2012 European Football Championship. Moreover, the government foresees additional UAH 5 billion in state guarantees to road building company Ukravtodor to raise loans for the development of roads of national importance ahead of Euro 2012 finals.

Russia and Ukraine will work together under the AN-70 project

There are sufficient grounds to state that Russia and Ukraine have passed the lowest point in their relations. After negotiation between Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko and her Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that has taken place in August an agreement was signed during the MAKS 2009 airshow to resume work on the AN-70 military cargo project, including its civilian version, and launch it into serial production. This project is of utmost importance for the aircraft industries in both countries, because it allows them to meet the domestic need by using this unique design and vie for a worthy place on the world cargo aircraft market.
The AN-70 aircraft belongs to a new generation of the short takeoff and landing tactical military medium transport. AN-70 is capable to carry practically any item of the military armament and equipment nomenclature with a total weight up to 35-47 t of cargo over the 3,000-5100 km range at cruising speed of 700-750 km/h, air drop of personnel and vehicles, including the single piece of cargoes up to 21 t with both high and low altitudes, delivery of 300 soldiers and evacuation of 206 wounded and sick persons. Maximum service range is 8,000 km. Nowadays the AN-70 aircraft is coming to the end of flight and certification tests. At Aviant Kiev Aviation plant 2 first serial aircraft are being built under the order of Air Force of Ukraine. Learn more about ANTONOV Aeronautical Scientific/Technical Complex on company’s official site
http://www.antonov.com/products/air/transport/AN-70/

New findings from the Battle of Poltava are available for the visitors.

A few very interesting findings from the time of the Battle of Poltava were shown to the public in the special exhibition hall of Poltava Regional Museum. Many of them were found during archeological excavations that were carried out recently in the downtown. Besides some examples of cold steel, firearms, maps, and portraits are also shown there. This hall is a very place where the bronze bust of Swedish King Charles XII created by artist Bernhard Englund is exhibited. For those who a fond of live Swedish history I would like to recomend strongly his amazing site dedicated to Ryttmästarbostället vid Simsjön. To learn more about Swedish military settlements of 18th - 19th century just click on http://www.ryttmastarbostallet.nu/

Fighting with ragweed on Poltava Battle field.

Poltava battle field is under the threat of being closed for visitors because of extremely high level of weediness. The most dangerous sort of weeds is ragweed (ambrosia), a summer annual plant whose growth height largely depends on the environment (the kind of soil, light, humidity, etc.) and may vary from about 30 cm to 1.5m. The highly allergenic plant pollen may cause symptoms similar to those of grass pollen allergy: running, itching nose; watery, swollen eyes. That is why Poltava City Council asked students from local institutes and colleges to take part in mass weeding on the Poltava Battle field. To stop ragweed spreading each plant must be pulled up by the roots that makes a fighting with ambrosia difficult and time consuming. The total square polluted by ambrosia in Poltava region is estimated to be app. 8,000 hectares.