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What Ukraine's week of diplomatic friction looked like
Summary
A look back at three developments involving Ukraine reported in the days before 23 January 2020, from a coat of arms dispute to a resignation offer.
What was pressing on Ukraine's political and diplomatic agenda on 23 January 2020? Three reports from the preceding days give a picture: a row with London over a national symbol, a resignation offer in Kyiv, and continuing anger in Iran over the downing of a Ukrainian airliner.
A dispute over the Tryzub
On 21 January 2020, Ukraine demanded that the United Kingdom's National Counter Terrorism Policing Network remove the country's Tryzub coat of arms from a guide on hate symbols associated with white supremacy and Neo-Nazism. Counter Terrorism Policing said the coat of arms had been included because National Action, a proscribed far-right terror group, used it.
A resignation offer in Kyiv
On 17 January 2020, Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk submitted his resignation. This followed the leak earlier that week of an audio clip in which he allegedly criticised the economic policies of President Volodymyr Zelensky. Zelensky subsequently announced that Honcharuk was allowed to keep his position.
Anger over Flight 752
Also on 17 January 2020, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei gave his first Friday sermon in eight years. He defended the Revolutionary Guards over the accidental killing of passengers aboard Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, and praised Operation Martyr Soleimani for delivering a "slap on the face" to the United States. The sermon came as public anger mounted against the Iranian government over its handling of the disaster.
The airliner had been shot down by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on 8 January 2020, and the revelation prompted anti-government protests in Iran.
