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What did Ukraine's news look like on 25 May 2018?
Summary
A look back at the reports that framed Ukraine's agenda in the days before 25 May 2018, from football to the CIS to Donbas.
What was Ukraine dealing with as 25 May 2018 arrived? The reports from the preceding days pointed in several directions at once: a sweeping police inquiry, a political break with a regional bloc, a sporting triumph and continuing shelling in Donbas.
Match-fixing inquiry
On 22 May 2018, the National Police of Ukraine announced a large-scale special operation in a case about fixed matches in Ukrainian football. Police said 35 clubs were under suspicion. They documented at least 57 episodes of criminal activity, involving more than 328 people.
Leaving the CIS bodies
On 19 May 2018, President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree ending Ukraine's participation in the statutory bodies of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) for good.
War in Donbas
Also on 19 May 2018, Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation said Russian-led militants had carried out 43 attacks on Ukrainian troops in Donbas over the previous 24 hours. Artillery systems were used, and 120mm and 82mm mortars were fired 10 times. No Ukrainian servicemen were reported killed or wounded. According to intelligence data, two militants were killed and three wounded.
A record in Rome
There was also good news from sport. On 20 May 2018, Elina Svitolina won the WTA Premier tournament in Rome, beating the world number one, Simona Halep. The win set a national record for the number of tournaments won.
Taken together, these reports show a country where an investigation into domestic sport, a formal step away from a post-Soviet institution and daily fighting in the east all shared the same news cycle, alongside a notable sporting success.
