She did not receive a penny from the budget for her position.
For the last few days, social media has been buzzing with reports about the newly appointed honorary consul of Ukraine in the Dominican Republic, Victoria Yakimova.
The scandal was sparked by the numerous nude and topless photos on Yakimova's social media pages, who until recently worked as a model. Many Ukrainians found it questionable that such a creative legacy is compatible with the role of an honorary consul.
For more details on the appointment and why Ukraine should reconsider its entire system of selecting honorary consuls, read the article by Sergey Sydorenko and Ulyana Krychkivska from "European Truth" titled "Nudes and Diplomacy: Why Ukraine Needs Honorary Consuls and Why Outspoken Photos Are Not the Main Problem." Below is a brief summary of the article.
Unlike Ukraine's consuls, honorary consuls are not government officials and do not receive a penny from the Ukrainian budget. In practice, they are often foreigners who hold authority in their city.
Ideally, honorary consuls should invest their time and money into this activity simply out of love for Ukraine and a desire to help it; in reality, however, motives can vary.
According to former Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin, honorary consuls can systematically assist the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the areas of public diplomacy, business contacts, interaction with local authorities, etc. The idea is that an honorary consul should have a high social status in their city or country and serve as a link between Kyiv and local elites.
However, what an honorary consul definitely cannot do is act on behalf of Ukraine and officially represent Ukraine. But that is in theory.
In reality, it is impossible to abstract from the actions of a person whom the state has appointed to such a position. His or her image will reflect on the image of Ukraine, which is why the vetting and selection of candidates is important. And the selection process is not without its issues.
There is an example from Cyprus, where a conflict continues between the ambassador, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the appointed honorary consul (the procedure regarding whom is still not completed). One of the reasons for the conflict is a dispute over whether a person with a criminal record in the past (and, likely, a conflict of interest) can be an honorary consul, even if this person currently demonstrates a pro-Ukrainian stance.
"It is important to carefully select candidates for consuls," explains Pavlo Klimkin. "There are situations when people simply want to obtain this status: either for publicity, for the status itself, or for privileges, even if limited."
Klimkin emphasizes that when appointing, it is necessary to understand what the added value of this appointment is for Ukraine.
Andriy Veselovsky, the former Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine, outlined the requirements that are relevant for all honorary consuls.
"First of all, this should be a wealthy, self-sufficient person, and their business should be clean and sustainable. Secondly, a person who has never had problems with the authorities or law enforcement agencies or, say, disputes over property, legal cases. Furthermore, the candidate should have social status in the community where they will work," says Veselovsky.
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