Stocking up on popcorn: A squabble has begun between Klimkin and Vyatrovich
Volodymyr Vyatrovich, the controversial head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, criticized Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin's idea of switching the Ukrainian alphabet from Cyrillic to Latin.
Vyatrovich stated that abandoning the Cyrillic alphabet will push even more Ukrainian citizens towards Russia, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
“Changing the letter can play the opposite role - increasing Russification. In recent years, more and more Russian-speaking citizens are switching to Ukrainian. The introduction of the Latin alphabet will create an additional barrier and stop many of them.
Moreover, such a change could provoke a movement in the opposite direction - familiar Cyrillic Russian for many (especially older people) will be easier than unfamiliar Latin Ukrainian,” Vyatrovych wrote on his blog.
He also added that a quick transition to another alphabet will lead to an even greater split in Ukrainian society and actual trilingualism in the country: “The option of a smooth transition, with the parallel use of Cyrillic and Latin, will mean actual trilingualism in the country - two Ukrainian and Russian. So we’ll just get another line of difference, which will in no way help the joint movement towards Europe.”
According to Vyatrovich, the Cyrillic alphabet is what distinguishes Ukrainians from other Europeans: “The Cyrillic alphabet is a fundamental element of our thousand-year-old culture and identity. Rejecting it will make us weaker because it will dissolve our uniqueness.”
Stock up on popcorn: The squabble between Klimkin and Vyatrovich has begun.