Moulton Announces State of the Union Guest is Ukrainian National Oleksandra Kovalchuk
Ms. Kovalchuk, who resides in Salem, MA, is the Deputy Director of the Odesa National Fine Arts Museum and is a former Odesa city council member
Washington, D.C. — Congressman Seth Moulton’s 2024 State of the Union guest is Oleksandra Kovalchuk, a Ukrainian national currently residing in Salem, Mass., who is leading a transatlantic effort to protect heritage sites and museums in Ukraine.
After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Ms. Kovalchuk crossed Moldova, Romania, and Bulgaria with her husband and son before they were able to get a flight to the United States to stay with Ms. Kovalchuk’s parents on the North Shore of Massachusetts.
Ms. Kovalchuk now travels between the United States and Ukraine, organizing a system to support cultural heritage sites and museums in Ukraine. She is currently the Deputy Director of Development at the Odesa National Fine Arts Museum and previously served as a City Council member in Odesa. Ms. Kovalchuk is also the leader of the non-governmental organization Museum for Change, which raises funds to help protect museums in Ukraine.
Through her efforts to protect art and museums in Ukraine, Ms. Kovalchuk works to preserve Ukrainian culture and identity in the wake of Russia’s war. Since coming to the United States, she has presented at various institutions including Boston University, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Peabody Essex Museum, the Ogunquit Museum of American Art, and the House of the Seven Gables.
Ms. Kovalchuk’s story was profiled by the Boston Globe in 2022.
With the Senate-passed aid package that includes support for Ukraine still being held in limbo by the Speaker of the House, Congressman Moulton is raising awareness of the profound human and cultural costs of Russia’s war, now in its third year.
“Ukraine is facing an existential crisis for survival. We need to help Ukraine end this war on its own terms. If the United States turns its back on Ukraine now, it will only embolden Putin -- and it will show other autocrats, like Xi Jinping in China, that the U.S. doesn’t credibly stand up for democracies when they’re under threat. This is the right thing to do, and it’s an investment in our own national security,” said Rep. Moulton.
“I’m honored to be accompanied to the State of the Union this year by Oleksandra, whose important work is not just a reminder of the vast toll that this war is taking on Ukraine’s invaluable cultural and historical institutions, but also a testament to the unflappable spirit and resilience of the Ukrainian people.”
Congressman Moulton visited Ukraine in December 2021 in the weeks before Russia’s invasion and returned to Kyiv at the end of 2022. He has written multiple op-eds making the case for U.S. assistance to Ukraine.
Today, there are 6.5 Ukrainian refugees worldwide, as well as another 3.7 million internally displaced Ukrainians and 14.6 million Ukrainians in need of humanitarian assistance.