Amid Worries About Russian Invasion, Ukrainians Visiting Fort Worth Talk About Fight Against Corruption

Arlington TX

15 February, 2022

7:28 PM

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By Sandra Sadek, Fort Worth Report February 15, 2022 Five Ukrainians visiting Fort Worth this week are getting a lesson in how to fight corruption — one they plan to use regardless if Russia invades their home. The delegates are here this week as part of the Open World Leadership Center, a U.S. exchange program with former Soviet bloc nations. This trip is a chance for them to not only gather skills they can bring home to help fight corruption but to also break stereotypes and misconceptions about their home country. Oleh Blinov, 32, is one of the five Ukrainian delegates. He is an expert analyst at the Center for Public Oversight and Research, a nonprofit Ukrainian organization established in 2016 that works to counter corruption in the country. "There's this kind of narrative that exists in American media about Ukraine that things are not getting any better, and that gets perpetuated and it feels like Ukraine suffers from that kind of negative publicity," Blinov said. "Yeah, there are problems. We're not denying them, of course. But we're making progress, and we've made huge progress in the past eight years despite the obvious threats." To read the full article, click here. Fort Worth Report is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that produces factual, in-depth journalism about city and county government, schools, healthcare, business, and arts and culture in Tarrant County. Always free to read; subscribe to newsletters, read coverage or support our newsroom at fortworthreport.org.