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Ukraine has removed all 1,320 statues of the communist revolutionary Lenin following a government drive to rid the country of Soviet-era symbols.

Monuments to the Bolshevik leader have been dismantled in every town, village and city controlled by the Kiev-based government that brought down pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych three years ago, according to officials.

The anti-Soviet initiative, which also orders the renaming of streets and cities, was made law by President Petro Poroshenko in May 2015, according to The Times.

Many places have been named after Ukranian heroes, however a Lenin Street in Zakarpattia, a western region, was renamed Lennon Street in a tribute to the Beatles.

Volodymyr Viatrovych, director of the Institute of National Remembrance, confirmed that every Lenin statue had been removed along with 1,069 other Soviet monuments.

Despite the policy, Communist relics still remain in the eastern parts of Ukraine controlled by Kremlin-backed forces.

According to United Nations figures more than 10,000 have died in Ukraine after Russia took control of Crimea in 2014.

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Ukraine has removed all 1,320 statues of Lenin | The Independent - The Independent

The new U.S. special envoy for efforts to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine, Kurt Volker, met with a Kremlin aide on August 21 in the Belarusian capital, Minsk.

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said on Twitter that Volker and Vladislav Surkov, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin's point man for the conflict in eastern Ukraine, were meeting behind closed doors.

The U.S. State Department announced on August 18 that Volker and the Russian representative would discuss "Russian-Ukrainian relations."

Volker's talks with Surkov kick off three days of U.S. diplomacy on the war between Russia-backed separatists and government forces in eastern Ukraine, which has killed more than 10,000 people since April 2014.

From Minsk, Volker will head to the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, to meet with senior government officials on August 22 to discuss "the way forward in Ukraine," the State Department said.

On August 23, Volker will join U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis in meetings with senior Ukrainian government officials to discuss "the next steps in diplomatic negotiations to restore Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity," the department said.

After Moscow-friendly Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was pushed from power in February 2014 by massive pro-European protests, Russia seized control of Ukraine's Crimea region and fomented separatism in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Russia-backed separatists seized parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces, which border Russia, and the war has persisted despite a pact known as Minsk II, a February 2015 agreement on a cease-fire and steps to resolve the conflict.

Sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union have not prompted Russia to abandon its support for the separatists or fulfill its commitments under the Minsk agreements.

Tillerson named Volker, a former U.S. ambassador to NATO, as the U.S. special representative for Ukraine negotiations in July.

In an interview with Current Time TV in July, Volker said that ending the fighting will require agreement by all sides on two major principles -- the "territorial integrity of Ukraine, security of all the people" -- and a change in Russia's approach. Current Time TV is the Russian-language network, run by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA.

He said that the United States is considering sending Kyiv weapons to help government forces defend themselves against Russia-backed separatists. To date, the United States has provided only nonlethal military aid.

Relations between Moscow and Washington have been driven to a post-Cold War low by disagreements over issues including Russia's aggression in Ukraine, its role in the war in Syria, and its alleged interference in the U.S. presidential election in 2016.

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US Envoy On Ukraine Conflict To Meet With Russian Counterpart In Minsk - RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty

The 26th annual Ukrainian Folk Festival, an outdoor summer concert celebrating Ukraine's independence, is being staged Aug. 27 from noon to 8 p.m. in Horsham, Pennsylvania.

The full essence of Ukrainian folk art, song, music and dance can be experienced from the rich color and deep symbolism of the pysanka (Ukrainian Easter egg) to the rhythm and power of hopak, an ethnic dance, to the Kolomiyka polka.

A sampling of events includes an outdoor summer stage concert and show from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. and a public social dance from 4:30 to 8.

Also featured will be homemade Ukrainian foods and baked goods, a barbecue pit, standard picnic fare, a kids' fun area, vendors grove, arts and crafts displays and bazaar, refreshments, and live re-enactments.

Among the dancers, musicians, singers, ensembles and re-enactors that will perform include the Voloshky Ukrainian Dance Ensemble, Vox Ethnika Orchestra, violinist Innesa Tymochko Dekajlo, singer-songwriter Iryna Lonchyna, Iskra Ukrainian Dance Ensemble, Living in Song Chamber Choir, and Banner of Jasna Gora.

The artistic unity at the event is meant to underscore the theme United Ukraine: United with US, honoring the United States' support of Ukraines commitment to a self-determined democratic future, and the creation of permanent bonds of friendship between the two countries. This years festival honors these special relationships and developments.

The festival will be held at the Ukrainian American Sport Center at Lower State and County Line roads in Horsham.

Admission is $15; students are $10 and children under age 15 are free. Parking is free.

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26th annual folk festival honors the culture of Ukraine - The Intelligencer

Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Kremlin Envoy Played Central Role in Eastern Ukraine Wall Street Journal (subscription) MOSCOWWhen American envoy Kurt Volker meets his Russian counterpart Monday to try to restore peace in eastern Ukraine, he will be sitting across the table from no ordinary diplomat. Vladislav Surkov, Moscow's point person, is a powerful Kremlin ...

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Kremlin Envoy Played Central Role in Eastern Ukraine - Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Reform has become a dirty word in the post-financial crisis politics of many countries, a euphemism for painful austerity.

But for Ukraine, a country born out of the collapse of the Soviet Union, it has been embraced as the only way forward.

In 2015, when Greece joined Zimbabwe to become one of a handfulof countries to default on itsInternational Monetary Fund bail-out loan, Ukraine was doing everything to meet the terms of its IMF rescue bargain.

War had broken out in the east of the country in a conflict that has so far claimed 10,000 lives. Ukraines currency collapsed, with the hryvnia halving in value overnight. Inflation spiked, and the countrys debt pile was heading to unsustainable levels.

At first, authorities burned through foreign reserves in a bid to prop up the currency. When it became clear they were fighting a losing battle, they embraced a flexible exchange rate.

Inflation...

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The smoke clears as Ukraine pulls itself back from the brink - Telegraph.co.uk