“We Muslims must fight against the dissemination of ideas that support terror under the cover of Islam in our surroundings. We cannot forget that Islam is above all peace, a religion based on respect for human life.” With these words, Dr. Ashur Faruka, head of Arraid, the Ukrainian Muslim Interregional Association of Civic Organizations, addressed the Muslims of Kyiv on 22 July 2005.

Most Ukrainians are, traditionally, Eastern Orthodox Christians. Volodymyr, the Grand Prince of Kyivan Rus, officially accepted Christianity for himself and his people in 988. His grandmother, Olga, had converted several years earlier. According to the Primary Chronicle, Volodymyr, a pagan, invited representatives of Judaism, Islam, Catholicism and Orthodoxy to his capital to chose which religion to convert to.

It is often believed that under the Soviet regime in Ukraine — in particular after the mass deportation of Crimea Tatars — Islam ceased to be a communal project. New research, however, reveals that the local reproduction of religious knowledge has continued to date.

Ukraine’s two-million Muslim minority is complaining about the alarming escalation of racist attacks targeting them recently.

A Europe-based Muslim activist has called for according due attention to the sizable Muslim community in Eastern Europe, which has broken loose from the Communist yoke.

A presentation of the Ukrainian Center for Islamic Studies, a new all-Ukrainian civic organization, took place in Kyiv on 20 January 2005. Many noted Ukrainian scholars specializing in Islam and the history and culture of the Near and Middle East joined the organization. Dr. Mykola Kiriushko, a noted scholar of Islam, heads the organization. One of the center’s priorities is to spread accurate information about Islam.

The first batch of Kosovan pilgrims left home for Saudi Arabia to perform hajj, as some 40 Ukrainians are readying themselves for the soul-searching journey.

On Friday, December 3, Muslims of Ukraine expressed their concerns over the current political impasse on the disputed elections, as the country's top court was poised to rule on the polls.

Dr. Ashur Faruk, head of “Arraid,” the Ukrainian Muslim Interregional Association of Civic Organizations, announced that none of the Muslim organizations in Ukraine is associated with Islamic extremists or Osama Bin Laden’s organization.