TO:NCSEJ Leadership and Interested Parties

FROM:Stephen M. Greenberg, Chairman;

Alexander Smukler, NCSEJ President;

Mark B. Levin, NCSEJ ExecutiveDirector

Dear Friend,

In a dramatic development this week,likely to add another level of uncertainty to the turbulent situation inUkraine, President Petro Poroshenko dismissed Ihor Kolomoisky from his positionas governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region. Please see NCSEJ's Ukraine Update#65 for analysis and reaction from Ukraine's Jewish community. In addition,the update includes several stories that analyze this development.

Earlierthis week, eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives announced theformation of a new "Bipartisan Taskforce for CombatingAnti-Semitism," which will educate members of Congress on the threat ofanti-Semitism and will work to minimize anti-Semitism worldwide. NCSEJ commendsthe decision and looks forward to working with the taskforce.

OnSunday, radical right-wing political organizations from Europe and the UnitedStates held the first ever International Russian Conservative Forum in SaintPetersburg. Russia's nationalistic party Rodina (Motherland) was the mainorganizer of the conference. During the event, participants praised PresidentVladimir Putin for his commitment to traditional values and his model ofgovernance, which in recent months has been gaining popularity among right-wingparties in Europe and elsewhere.

Finally,I would like to highlight a New York Times article that outlines thegrowing challenges confronting Ukraine. NCSEJ will continue to monitordevelopments there, and after the Passover holidays will report on the Passovercelebrations in the countries of the former Soviet Union.

Sincerely,  

Mark B. Levin

Executive Director