Olena Zelenska on Ukrainian bookshelves in the world
First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska spoke about the development of her Ukrainian Bookshelf project, which provides Ukrainian publications to the world’s leading libraries.
“In total, Ukrainian bookshelves under the patronage of the First Lady and with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ukrainian Book Institute have already opened in 37 countries: Austria, Turkey, Lithuania, Slovakia, Sweden, Czech Republic, France, the Netherlands, Greece, Latvia, Finland, Jordan, Croatia, Lebanon, Japan, Belgium, Albania, the Republic of Korea, Poland, Switzerland, Germany, Spain, Norway, Moldova, Qatar, Slovenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Portugal, South Africa, Cyprus, the UAE, Namibia, North Macedonia, Hungary, Indonesia, and Armenia. 170 shelves with 44 thousand titles” – about this the Office of the President of Ukraine reports.
Ukrainian books
Olena Zelenska emphasized the importance of developing Ukrainian culture and representing Ukraine at international book fairs:
“Books are not just victims. They, like our entire culture, are our support. That is why it is very important for our publishers and publications to participate in book fairs around the world, because it is an opportunity to tell about our country and its resistance through culture. In particular, we are especially pleased that at the annual Best Baltic Book Design competition, where Ukraine was invited in 2023, one of the awards went to our “Barrier-Free Handbook,” a unique publication about equality and correct interaction. This is another example of how our values are shared by the entire free world.”
The First Lady also noted that she personally supports the representation of Ukraine at international book fairs.
Author: Daria Skotchenko
Photo: press service of the Presidential Office
