A statue commemorating Ronald Reagan's role in liberating Ukraine from Communism could be coming to the country's capital in the near future.
If the city of Kiev approves a petition from the Ukrainian Economic Freedoms Foundation, Reagan will be set up in the spot once occupied by a statue of prominent Ukrainian Communist Dmytro Manuilsky. The statue was destroyed during the 2014 Revolution of Dignity which deposed then President Viktor Yanukovych.
UEFF president Maryan Zablotskyy explained the desire for a Reagan memorial in a press release.
"This is to underline the great impact Reagan had on the destruction of Communism. Reagan met Ukrainian diaspora and proclaimed: 'your struggle is our struggle.' And we are forever thankful for that. Ukraine now has special laws in place that forbid the use of any communist regalia and symbols. We think this victory over totalitarianism should be polished with a monument to Reagan, who led the anti-communist movement globally," he said.
Eleven monuments to Reagan have been built in Eastern Europe since 2011. Additionally, there are 150 dedications in the United States as well as 17 international dedications in nine countries.
President of the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project Grover Norquist endorsed the memorial in a letter to the UEFF.
"Reagan's leadership left a resounding impact on the lives of citizens here at home and individuals worldwide. Abroad, his disdain for communism moved him to set in place policies that would see the Soviet Union fall," he said in a letter.
The current plans for the monument will depict Reagan as slightly larger than life. A small mock-Berlin Wall adorned with broken symbols of the USSR will feature Reagan quotes that pertain to Ukraine and the Ukrainian diaspora.