Ukrainian Association of Wellington

Ukrainian Association of Wellington Here you can find all events and announcements held by Ukrainian Association of NZ - Wellington

06/07/2026

𝐔𝐊𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐄: 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐒 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐄.
𝐒𝐎 𝐃𝐎𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐊. 🇺🇦

While much of the world turns its attention elsewhere, life across Ukraine continues under the shadow of war.

Recent days have brought another severe wave of Russian attacks across the country. Cities and communities far beyond the capital continue to face missiles, drones and repeated strikes. Homes and civilian infrastructure have been damaged. People have been killed and injured. Families are living with a level of uncertainty that is difficult to comprehend from a distance.

In Kyiv this week, 52,500 people, including nearly 4,500 children, sheltered overnight in the metro system.

For Ukrainians, spending hours underground is nothing new. That is precisely the point.

What still shocks the outside world for a moment has become part of the rhythm of ordinary life. Air-raid alerts. Interrupted sleep. Children carried into shelters. Families waiting for the all-clear. Emergency crews returning to work after another night of attack.

Meanwhile, global attention shifts. Other stories take over. The world moves on.

The people of Ukraine cannot.

GCS teams continue to serve in the country.

With limited resources, we continue to provide food assistance and basic medical support where we can, working alongside trusted humanitarian friends and partners and within the wider coordination environment of the Food Security and Livelihoods Cluster in Ukraine.

Our resources are stretched, but our teams also remain committed to the work at the heart of our calling: evangelistic ministry.

In communities marked by fear, grief, displacement and exhaustion, our people continue to pray with families, stand alongside those who are suffering, and share the hope of Jesus Christ. Humanitarian assistance matters deeply. So does the spiritual need of people who have now endured years of war.

We are profoundly grateful for our ground teams and collaborating partners who continue to serve in extraordinarily difficult circumstances. But we should also be candid: the need is greater than our present resources.

Please do not allow Ukraine to disappear from view.

Pray for an end to this war. Pray for civilians living through repeated attacks. Pray for our teams and partners. Pray for open doors for the Gospel.

If you are able to help financially, we urgently need more support to sustain both our humanitarian response and evangelistic ministry in Ukraine.

Support the GCS Ukraine Appeal:
https://www.gcsmissions.com/ukraine-appeal

The headlines may move on. The people cannot. Neither will we.

09/06/2026

To the Editor,
nzherald.co.nz

The Ukrainian community in New Zealand was deeply disturbed and disappointed by the Herald's recent profile of Russia's new ambassador, Stanislav Krans.

We do not object to the media interviewing Russian officials. Journalists should question those who represent governments, particularly during times of conflict. However, when public officials make demonstrably false claims, those claims should be challenged clearly and directly.

The article gave significant space to the ambassador's assertion that Russia's invasion of Ukraine is an "internal matter". This is not a matter of opinion or interpretation. Ukraine is a sovereign, internationally recognised state, including by New Zealand and Russia itself under multiple treaties and agreements. Describing the invasion as an internal matter is a political narrative used by the Kremlin to deny Ukrainian sovereignty.

Similarly, readers were presented with the ambassador's claim that there are "no war crimes" in Ukraine. This statement stands in direct contradiction to extensive evidence documented by the United Nations, the OSCE, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and numerous independent investigations. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and other senior Russian officials in relation to the war crimes. While individuals are entitled to dispute allegations against them, journalists should make clear when claims are contradicted by overwhelming evidence and international legal processes.

The article also repeated the familiar notion that "both sides need to sit down and talk". Such framing creates a false equivalence between aggressor and victim. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine after already occupying Crimea and parts of the Donbas since 2014. Ukraine did not invade Russia. Any discussion of peace must begin with an honest acknowledgement of that reality.
We were particularly concerned by language suggesting that the invasion is merely "considered illegal" by New Zealand and others. The issue is not simply one of differing opinions between governments. Russia's actions have been repeatedly condemned by the overwhelming majority of UN member states as violations of the UN Charter and international law.

The article's opening focus on cultural ties, Pavlova, and literary connections may appear harmless, but it also serves to soften the image of a state currently engaged in the largest war of aggression in Europe since World War II. Cultural exchange has value, but it should not distract from the reality that thousands of Ukrainian civilians have been killed, millions displaced, and entire cities destroyed.

The article also quoted the ambassador suggesting that Russia is "not only the conflict in Europe". For Ukrainians, this is not an abstract geopolitical dispute in Europe. It is a war that has killed our family members, destroyed our homes, occupied our cities, and resulted in the unlawful deportation of thousands of Ukrainian children. Many members of New Zealand's Ukrainian community have personally experienced these consequences or remain separated from loved ones because of Russia's actions. Any discussion of improving relations with Russia must be viewed through that reality.

New Zealand has consistently supported Ukraine's sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity. The Ukrainian community is grateful for that support. We simply ask that reporting on Russia's representatives be held to the same standards of scrutiny applied to any other public figure making extraordinary claims.

The role of journalism is not merely to relay statements. It is to provide readers with the context necessary to distinguish fact from propaganda.

Sincerely,
On behalf of members of the Ukrainian community in New Zealand
Kate Turska, MNZM

Ukrainian Association of New Zealand (UANZ) Посольство України в Австралії / Embassy of Ukraine in Australia Ukrainian Association of Wellington Ukrainian Association of NZ - Southern Regions Tautoko Ukraine Ukrainian Educational and Support Trust Creative Ukrainians Ukrainian Gromada of Wellington

Gorovyi Wellington Special - Live 25/04/2026 🇺🇦
25/04/2026

Gorovyi Wellington Special - Live 25/04/2026 🇺🇦

This Friday and Saturday we had the honour of hosting Ruslan Gorovyi in Wellington on his charity tour across Australia ...
25/04/2026

This Friday and Saturday we had the honour of hosting Ruslan Gorovyi in Wellington on his charity tour across Australia and New Zealand.

We would like to extend our gratitude to European Union in New Zealand who organised and secured a venue at the lovely Massey University cinema. We greatly appreciate the support of the European Union to Ukraine and its diaspora. Wellington got to see Ruslan's documentary "Moshchun: The Diary of Liudmyla Oleksandrivna", a deeply human and powerful frontline story of an elderly woman living through russian occupation.

We would also love to thank Phillip and the team for hosting Ruslan and the community over at The Undercurrent this Saturday. An absolute pleasure to share in the magic of Ruslan's texts and music live, in Wellington, at such a beautiful venue.

And also thank you to everyone who came out on Friday and Saturday supporting Ruslan's fundraising efforts, donating, buying books, as well as auctioning your money away.

Together we managed to collect $3,170!

All of it will be going to Ruslan's work with families, mostly elderly people, single mothers, and families whose loved ones are in Russian captivity, bringing much needed support to deoccupied regions of Ukraine.

А ми бажаємо Руслану безпечної дороги та ще більших благодійних назбирань. Сподіваємся побачитися знову!

До Перемоги! Слава Україні🇺🇦

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