Ukrainians in the Faroes: Russia deal is disgraceful

Seeing the Faroes signing a deal with a terrorist state is shocking.

This is the view of Ukrainian-born Olga Loburak, who has lived in the Faroes for 21 years.

“I understand that many Faroese families rely on this deal. But whichever way you turn it, this deal is just wrong,” she says.

“The Faroese government could do its bit to stop the war by placing the condition that the fisheries deal can be renewed when Russia stops terrorising Ukraine.”

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Slava Turchynets, Ukarina

Caption: 

Slava Turchynets has lived in the Faroes for six years. She lives in Argir

Slava Turchynets agrees:

“First, we see a documentary on Faroese TV about the atrocities committed by Russia in Mariupol. Two days later, the Faroes sign a deal with Russia. I don’t understand this. It’s disgraceful,” she says.

“Of course the Faroes should cut all ties with Russia. Nations that trade with Russia support the war.”

 >> SEE ALSO ”My family in Ukraine is safe… for now”

What are the views of the rest of the Faroese public?

An opinion poll conducted in October indicated that 39 percent were opposed to renewing the deal, 23 percent were in favour, 20 percent were neutral and 17 percent were undecided.

The poll suggested a somewhat stronger opposition in the capital region than in the rest of the country. It also suggested stronger opposition from left-wing voters.

The sample size of the poll has not been reported.

 >> SEE ALSO Poll: Faroese public’s reactions to the war

Heini í Skorini, who holds a PhD in international politics, headed the survey.

He says the survey results provide a fairly decent reflection of what values are prioritised in the Faroese political system.

“First of all, I should point out that the survey was conducted prior to the election being called. The results would have been different now, seeing as the opposition parties suddenly made a U-turn – initially, they opposed a deal renewal, then suddenly they supported it when the election was called.”

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The researcher is not convinced by the argument behind this U-turn – that the early election left the Faroes with too little time to prepare an alternative to a fisheries deal with Russia.

“The war started on 24 February. The Faroese authorities have had almost a year to formulate a Russia policy. Then suddenly they all agree to renew the deal,” he says.

“I’m not a politician, but all these conflicting signals we send out to the world give a fairly clear indication of our lack of experience in foreign policy decision making. This indecisiveness makes us very vulnerable to international criticism.”

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Referring to the statements by Olga Loburak and Slava Turchynets, Skorini says that it is impossible for Faroese people to fully understand the horrors that people in Ukraine are experiencing.

“This is a clash between moral and economic principles. There is no easy solution. This fisheries deal will in no way affect the war situation,” he says.

“Ultimately, this is a question of who we, the people of the Faroes, are. What signals are we passing on to our children and grandchildren? What did we do when there was war in Europe? In this case, we prioritised fish and money over moral principles.”

Read the Faroese version of this article here.

More Faroese News in English.