World Is Again Frightened by Ukrainians

Kyiv has never before heard so many reports about Ukrainian customs irregularities, involvement in illegal trafficking of people, and unlawful employment abroad. In early May, these reports came flooding in from all parts of the world. And entirely unsurprisingly many of them proved false.

CNN reporters have told the world, savoring the details, about a successful American FBI operation to bust a criminal group dealing in the smuggling of people. Among the smugglers, AP reports, were eleven Ukrainians arrested on the morning of May 3 near Los Angeles. All are suspected of illegally smuggling hundreds of immigrants into the US via Mexico. According to an FBI representative, this well organized gang managed to unlawfully bring several hundred Ukrainian residents to the United States. At first, the criminals brought the illegals to the Mexican town of Ensenada, where they were given forged documents. Then a special vessel took them to Los Angeles by water. This pleasure cruise cost those in quest of America’s streets of gold $7000. Most of the illegal women migrants, short of such a hefty sum, had to work as prostitutes to be able to pay the smugglers. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has denied this information, for, according to Serhiy Borodenkov, ministry deputy spokesman, there were no Ukrainian citizens among the detained smugglers (all were former citizens of Ukraine), enabling this country’s foreign policy officials to decline comment. As to the return of the illegal immigrants to Ukraine, the Ukrainian side has not yet received, by all accounts, official US confirmation that there were Ukrainians among those detained.

Other Ukrainian smugglers were exposed by Bulgarian authorities. A Ukrainian airplane was impounded in the Burgas airport on suspicion of transporting weapons to Eritrea and Ethiopia, which is banned under UN Security Council resolutions, is considered a violation of international law, and also casts further shadow on Ukraine, which has long and often without foundation been accused of illegal arm sales. The IL-76 plane indeed belongs to Volare, a Ukrainian company that wished to transport weapons, but not of Ukrainian origin and not to Africa. This is at least what the Czech Foreign Ministry states. BBC reports that thirty tons of Czech-made weapons, including Kalashnikov assault rifles and ammunition, were intended for Georgia, and Prague was not going to change the airplane’s course. The plane was flown by a Ukrainian crew of eight. But in this case it is not quite clear who leaked information that the plane had taken off from Ostrava, Czech Republic, then was scheduled to arrive in the Eritrean port of Asmara, and only then in Kutaisi, Georgia. Official Kyiv has in fact brushed off the scandal, stating, firstly, that the Volare Air Co. “is not authorized to transport military supplies.” Secondly, the State Committee for Export Control has never received any such request from this firm. According to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, the plane’s crew returned home on April 30. However, investigation of this affair is likely to take quite some time.

Another incident connected with the transport of white slaves took place on the Franco-Spanish border. This time the Ukrainians fell victim to smugglers and the effective performance of the Spanish police. 115 citizens of Ukraine, who had hoped to earn a little money in a foreign land, were detained having fake visas and forged reservations at Spanish hotels. As Deutsche Welle reported, all the illegals (over two hundred, including the Ukrainians) were turned over to French gendarmes who will, in all probability, deport them.