The Siege. From Pereiaslav to the Present

In the article, the author analyses the book of memoirs of a veteran of the diplomatic service, Volodymyr Chornyi. “The siege from Pereiaslav to this day” – under this significant name, with the assistance of the Directorate-General for Rendering Services to Foreign Missions and the creative team of the Advertising and Publishing Department of the “Mediacenter” Directorate, the long-awaited book was published. The book presents author’s reflections on the difficult past and present not only of our Ukraine and its people, but also of an individual who has suffered and cooled down over many years. The author claims that this work of his colleague is impossible to read without accompanying personal reflections and memories. It is noted that the book started with a story about Volodymyr Chornyi’s native village – Ivanhorod in Cherkasy region – which then goes into the context of Ukrainian history. The book contains many unknown or little-known facts. The author claims that the book pays great attention to the sad and tragic periods of social life in Ukraine in different years – wars and famines. Volodymyr Chornyi also mentions the negative consequences of a strategic partnership with post-Soviet Russia. It is noted that under the leadership of the current President, the Russian Federation is increasingly becoming an outspoken successor of the totalitarian ideology of the former Soviet “Evil Empire”. The author of the article described the publication as a collection of memoirs, interviews and documents about the Soviet reality from the personal Latvian, Kazakh and Yakut experience of the author of the book. It is important that the book presents for the first time all available lists of victims of political repression, the Second World War and the Holodomor of 1932-1933. It is mentioned that the lead in the story has an opinion about the extremely important role of parents in everything that the author has achieved over the long years of his life. He dedicated this book to them and his countrymen. Keywords: Volodymyr Chornyi, memories, Ukraine, World War II, Holodomor.