Gwynne Dyer: Russian pride should not require revisionist history

Here is a quotation taken from a very interesting article dedicated to the problem of writing and publishing a historical textbooks in the Russian Federation.

.....Two weeks ago, a group of politicians and academics met in Moscow’s main library to discuss how to make Russians proud of their history. The answer? Get an upbeat history book into the schools. “(The book) should not be a dreary look at or apology for what was done,” explained Prof. Leonid Polyakov of the Higher School of Economics.
The politicians were from Vladimir Putin’s United Russia Party, and they wanted the academics to come up with a single history textbook for use in all Russian schools. It should downplay the crimes and failures of 74 years of Communist rule—the purges, the mass deportations, the famines, the gulags—and concentrate on the glorious epic of the Soviet victory in the Second World War. Which means they must rehabilitate Stalin.
Rewriting the history books is not a Russian monopoly. The Texas Board of Education recently caused a great furor by deciding that its history textbooks should show that the founding fathers of the United States, and the authors of its constitution, intended America to be a Christian nation, not a country committed to the separation of church and state. Even that is an easier job than making Stalin look good, but it can be done.....

The whole article is available at

http://www.straight.com/article-331261/vancouver/gwynne-dyer-russian-pride-should-not-require-revisionist-history

Ukraine plans to have fully professional army by 2015

Ukraine must have a fully professional army by 2015, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said on Thursday, according to RIA Novosti. "We are planning to complete by 2015 the full transition of the Ukrainian military forces from a mixed recruiting system to a new model based solely on contracted service," the ministry quoted head of the personnel policy department Maj. Gen. Serhiy Kropyvchenko as saying. Ukraine has long been making plans for a transition to a fully professional army, but low defense budgets (currently only 1% of GDP) have hampered the process. At present, over 52% of the military personnel in the country`s 200,000-man Armed Forces are professional soldiers. Under former president Viktor Yushchenko Ukraine sought close relations with NATO. To this end, the country cooperated in a combined peacekeeping operation with its neighbor Poland in Kosovo. Ukrainian soldiers also serve under NATO command in Iraq, Afghanistan and in Operation Active Endeavour in the Mediterranean. However, Viktor Yanukovych, who became Ukrainian president in February, has made it clear he intends to drop his predecessor's plans to seek NATO membership and said his country would pursue non-bloc policy in the future.
http://www.unian.net/eng/news/news-383593.html

New generation nuclear submarine successfully launched in Russia

Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev traveled to the northwest of the country on Tuesday to join in the launch of a new generation nuclear submarine. The ceremony of launching the submarine of the fourth generation “Severodvinsk” has been held at the Sevmash defense shipyard.
The construction of this submarine began in 1993, but due to the financial setbacks that Russia experienced in the late 1990s, the project was deferred. The submarine was completed just recently. The Severodvinsk general-purpose submarine is unique, and there are plans to build six more similar submarines in Russia. At the launch ceremony, Dmitry Medvedev said that this is only the first step in the modernization process of the Russian Navy.

To see President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev delivering a speech in the northern Russian town of Severomorsk on June 15, 2010 at the "Sevmash" shipyard click at

http://rt.com/Top_News/2010-06-15/nuclear-submarine-severodvinsk-launch.html

Holiday of Halushky in Poltava

Last weekend Poltava celebrated its own unique holiday, The Holiday of Halushky. Halushky, Ukrainian folk meal, are a traditional variety of thick, soft noodles or dumplings irregular in shape. They are made with wheat flour and/or potatoes. During the holiday that took place on the main pedestrian street of the city, many local inhabitants and guests were treated to these old and very varied meals.

It is worthy of mention that the holiday have taken place near the only one in Ukraine Monument to Halushky shown on the photo.

For those of Blogg's readers who probably would like to cook halushky at home I can recommend following link:

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/ukrainian-filled-halushky-dumplings/Detail.aspx

Video is available at

http://video.mail.ru/list/khatot/aus_video/374.html

In Sevastopol, Russian-Ukrainian naval exercise enters active phase

The “Fairway of Peace – 2010” Russian-Ukrainian naval exercise has entered the active phase in Sevastopol, - the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s base. The exercise is held for the first time since 2006, when the then Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko banned the two countries’ joint naval manoeuvres.
Because of the long break, the exercise is held in the form of a virtual simulation at Ukraine’s Pavel Nakhimov Naval Academy. In the framework of the exercise the seamen are drilled in carrying out rescue operations at sea, including rescuing a submarine in distress.
The exercise is due until this Thursday. Russia’s Defence Minister Anatoly Serdiukov and his Ukrainian counterpart Mikhail Yezhel are due to arrive in Sevastopol to attend the exercise.
http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/06/21/10284999.html

Grandfather of the modern rocket artillery was born not far from Poltava.

Alexander Zasyadko (1779 - 1837), was a Russian-Ukrainian gunner and specialist in rocketry, Lieutenant General (1829). He was born in a small village of Lyutenka about 70 km. north from Poltava. In 1797, Zasyadko graduated from the Artillery and Engineering School in Saint Petersburg (currently Mozhaysky Military Engineering-Space University). In 1799, he participated in the Italian campaign of the Russian army under the command of Aleksandr Suvorov, Russo-Turkish War of 1806-1812 and Russian-French of 1812. In 1815, Zasyadko began his work on creating military gunpowder rockets (see photo).
He constructed rocket-launching platforms, which allowed to fire in salvos (6 rockets at a time), and gun-laying devices. Zasyadko elaborated a tactics for military use of rocket weaponry. In 1820, Zasyadko was appointed head of the Petersburg Armory, Okhtensky Powder Factory, pyrotechnic laboratory and the first Higher Artillery School in Russia. In 1827, Zasyadko was in charge of Artillery Headquarters of the Russian army and took part in the Russo-Turkish War of 1828-1829. His rockets were broadly used during the laying in siege and taking the fortress of Brailov (close to the present day Vinnytsya, Ukraine) in 1828 (see photo).

He organized rocket production in a special rocket workshop and created the first rocket sub-unit in the Russian army. In 1834, Zasyadko retired due to his illness. He died on May 27, 1837 in Kharkiv. The crater Zasyadko on the far side of the Moon is named after him. In Poltava Museum of the Aviation and Space there is a special exposition dedicated to this gifted engineer and gunner.

A valuable replenishment for the Ryttmästarbostället museum in Skövde.

Two valuable exhibits were purchased by Bernhard Englund for his Ryttmästarbostället museum in Skövde. http://www.ryttmastarbostallet.nu/

They are Charles XII’s writing-desk and Gustaf III’s play-wagon.

Video is available at
http://www.tv4play.se/nyheter/lokala_nyheter/skaraborg?videoId=1.1673907