The Diplomacy of the WUPR (1920-1923): on the Example of Relations with Canada

Abstract

The study of the functioning of Ukrainian diplomatic missions after the First World War is of great importance for the development of the modern Ukrainian diplomatic service. The fate of Ukrainian statehood was undoubtedly not in favor of Ukrainians. Unfortunately, the participation of Ukrainian diplomats in a number of negotiation processes to resolve post-war territorial disputes did not bring the desired results. Ukraine, as an independent state, could not withstand the enormous pressure and ceased to exist. During its existence, the government of the Western Ukrainian People's Republic established quite extensive diplomatic relations, opening its own missions in Austria, Italy, Germany, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia. In July 1919, the leaders of the WUPR sent a separate delegation to the Paris peace talks, where its representatives actively cooperated with the diplomatic mission of the Ukrainian People's Republic. Special missions were sent to countries where there were a significant number of representatives of the Ukrainian ethnic group - Canada, the United States, and Brazil. This article analyzes the activities of such a mission, in modern terms, the WUPR Mission to Canada. In researching this issue, the author used archival documents from the Library and Archives Canada, and the “Encyclopedia of Ukrainian Studies” published under the auspices of the Taras Shevchenko Scientific Society in Europe. Also used are the works of Canadian scholars of Ukrainian descent, domestic researchers, and a professor at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. It is quite clear that we cannot talk about a full-fledged diplomatic representation of the WUPR in Canada. The representative offices of the WUPR existed for a rather short time, and accordingly, their activities were aimed at supporting the republic itself.