Arts & Entertainment
Roland Oliphant, Russia Profile
alleged vote-fixing bears a close resemblance to a similar scandal that afflicted the Russian version of the show. In the “Name of Russia,” Joseph Stalin initially took the lead before finishing in 10th place, prompting speculation that his votes had been held back for political reasons.Why now?
Yushchenko has never made a secret of where he stands on the matter of Bandera’s heroism or criminality – in 2007 he similarly honored Roman Shukhevich, a no-less controversial contemporary and comrade of Bandera. But this time he waited until he was voted out of office (he was decisively defeated in the first round of the Ukrainian presidential elections on January 17) before making Bandera a Hero of Ukraine.
That has prompted inevitable charges of political opportunism. Since both of his prospective successors have been promising improved ties with Russia, honoring Bandera was a good way to put them in an awkward position. And, points out
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