Key events that shaped Ukraine in 2017
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Ukraine’s billionaire oligarch Victor Pinchuk suggests that Ukraine trades Crimea for Donbas, only to get a harsh response from Ukraine’s authorities.
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U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden arrives in Kyiv for his last visit in office.
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Ukraine takes Russia to Hague to pay for war.
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More than 10,000 Ukrainians and supporters of Ukraine from around the world mark Ukraine’s Unity Day, by posting photos of themselves holding signs reading “United Ukraine.”
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Russian-backed separatist break cease-fire with heavy shelling of Avdiyivka, bringing the front line city of more than 10,000 people into crisis.
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Blockade of trade with occupied territories leads to coal shortage and political tensions.
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A low-key Ukrainian MP surprises everyone as he sneaks his peace plan into the White House.
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Austrian court arrests Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash on Spanish warrant and grants U.S. request to extradite him. As of the end of the year, Firtash remains in Vienna.
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Head of State Fiscal Service Roman Nasirov arrested on corruption charges.
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A debate over Women’s Day: Should Ukraine drop the Soviet holiday?
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Parliament approves free trade agreement with Canada. Government calls it the first major trade agreement success since the ratification of a deal with the European Union in early 2016.
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Ukraine bans all trade with the Russian-occupied territories of Donbas.
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Exiled Russian lawmaker Denis Voronenkov murdered in Kyiv. Prosecution blamed it on Russia’s secret services.
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Fire hits Ukraine’s biggest ammunition depot near Balakliya in Kharkiv Oblast, destroying thousands of tons of ammunition.
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American paramedic Joseph Stone, a member of OSCE Special Monitoring Mission, killed in a landmine explosion in Donbas.
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Investment firm Dragon Capital is searched due to Russian-made software in an emblematic case of pressure on business.
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Eurovision Song Contest kicks off in Kyiv. Ukrainian singer Jamala won the contest in 2016, bringing the next year’s event to Ukraine.
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Visa-free regime between Ukraine and European Union.
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Poroshenko and Trump meet for the first time.
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Ukrainian military intelligence chief killed in car blast in Kyiv.
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“Petya” virus paralyzes government computers, banks, infrastructure companies in Ukraine.
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Lviv suffers from “garbage blockade” for months.
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U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson makes his first official visit to Ukraine.
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Ryanair cancels its planned entrance to Ukrainian market.
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Rada strips three lawmakers of immunity on prosecutor’s office request.
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Poroshenko suspends his opponent Saakashvili’s Ukrainian citizenship while he is abroad.
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Winners of competition for new Supreme Court announced.
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Missile expert claims that Ukrainian plant supplies rocket engines to North Korea, then backtracks.
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As Ukraine celebrates Independence Day, Ukrainians that live abroad share their thoughts about their home country.
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Hungary is furious about Ukraine’s new education bill. It stops state funding of schools that teach in minority languages, including Hungarian.
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Parliament passes imperfect pension reform.
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Venice Commission backs creation of much-needed anti-corruption court in Ukraine, while Poroshenko tries to backtrack from it.
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Opposition begins a mass protest; tents are set up near parliament.
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Parliament passes healthcare reform bill.
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Whistleblower says corruption-preventing agency is secretly controlled by President’s Administration.
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Ukraine loses 600 million euro tranche.
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Biggest anti-government protest since EuroMaidan revolution
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Saakashvili arrested, freed by crowd, arrested again, released on bail – all in one week.
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National Anti-Corruption Bureau and Prosecutor General’s Office embroiled in a conflict.
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Parliament passes budget for 2018: realistic, but with some downsides.