"ACTION UKRAINE REPORT"
In-Depth Ukrainian News and Analysis
"The Art of Ukrainian History, Culture, Arts, Business, Religion,
Sports, Government, and Politics, in Ukraine and Around the World"

"ACTION UKRAINE REPORT" Year 2004, Number 46
Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC), Washington, D.C.
www.ArtUkraine.com Information Service (ARTUIS)
morganw@patriot.net, ArtUkraine.com@starpower.net
Washington, D.C., WEDNESDAY, March 24, 2004

INDEX OF ARTICLES

1. HAMMER OF JUSTICE FINALLY STRIKES TRUE IN UKRAINE
COMMENTARY By E. Morgan Williams, Coordinator
Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC)
Washington, D.C., Wednesday, March 24, 2004

2. UKRAINIAN PROSECUTORS CLOSED CORRUPTION, BRIBERY
PROBE AGAINST EX-CABINET MEMBER LEONID KOZACHENKO
Associated Press Online, Kiev, Ukraine, Mar 23, 2004

3. U.S. URGES INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS, LOCAL
AUTHORITIES TO BOOST EFFORTS TO COMBAT HIV-AIDS IN UKRAINE
Associated Press Online, Kiev, Ukraine, Mar 23, 2004

4. PATH TO CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM IN UKRAINE STILL UNCLEAR
Inside Ukraine Newsletter, Kyiv, Ukraine, March 24, 2004

5. UKRAINIAN MEDIA GROUP COMPLAINS TO EUROPEAN
COMMISSION ABOUT POLITICAL PRESSURE
Interfax news agency, Moscow, in English, 19 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 22, 2004

6. RUSSIA "CONCERNED" BY RECENT UKRAINE-NATO ACCORD
Ukraine approved NATO plan without agreement from Russia
Interfax news agency, Moscow, in Russian, 20 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 20, 2004

7. UKRAINE MACROECONOMIC SITUATION-FEBRUARY 2004
Ukraine Macroeconomic Situation, February 2004
By Iryna Piontkivska and Edilberto L. Segura
SigmaBleyzer, Kyiv, Ukraine, March 23, 2004

8. UKRAINIAN LABOR PAY NEAR LOWEST IN EUROPE
Ukraine is 46th out of the 47 European countries rated
Inside Ukraine Newsletter, Kyiv, Ukraine, March 23, 2004

9. UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT WANTS IRAQ CONTRACTS,
ORDERS HIGHER PAY TO TROOPS
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, in Ukrainian, 20 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 20, 2004

10. KUCHMA APPOINTS MYKOLA MAYMESKUL AS
UKRAINIAN AMBASSADOR TO CANADA
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian, 20 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 20, 2004

11. U.S. OFFICIALS AIR CONCERNS ABOUT UKRAINE AT ACTION
UKRAINE COALITION (ACU) MEETING IN WASHINGTON
By Natalie Gawdiak, Journalist, Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC)
Washington, D.C., Tuesday, March 23, 2004

12. BYZANTINE ART: GLITTERING TROVE BUILT ON TRUST
ACROSS BORDERS
"The Glory of Byzantium, A.D. 843-1261"
By Carol Vogel, The New York Times, The Arts Section,
New York, New York, Monday, March 22, 2004
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER ONE
Politics and Governance, Building a Strong, Democratic Ukraine
http://www.artukraine.com/buildukraine/index.htm
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1. HAMMER OF JUSTICE FINALLY STRIKES TRUE IN UKRAINE FOR ONCE

COMMENTARY By E. Morgan Williams, Coordinator
Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC)
Washington, D.C., Wednesday, March 24, 2004

If I've got a hammer
And I've got a bell
And I've got a song to sing ... all over this land,
It's a hammer of justice
It's a bell of freedom
It's a song about love between all of my brothers and my sisters
All over this land.
[Words and Music by L. Hays and P. Seeger]

Monday, March 24, 2003 was one of the darkest days in the history of
Ukraine since Independence on August 28, 2001. On March 24, 2003, Leonid
Kozachenko, a truly outstanding, progressive, pro-reform agricultural
leader, private agribusinessman and former Deputy Prime Minister of the
Agro-Industrial Complex, was suddenly arrested, thrown in jail and a far
reaching criminal case was opened against him by the Prosecutor-General's
office.

I remember, as if it was just yesterday, opening my computer that Monday
morning in Washington, D.C. to check on the news from Ukraine, and suddenly
finding the horrifying, shocking and totally unbelievable news story about
Leonid Kozachenko being arrested and thrown in jail in Kyiv. My heart
sank and my faith in Ukraine to ever become a strong, independent, market
driven, democratic, wealthy country was severely shaken.

Kozachenko was charged with accepting bribes, allowing grain to be exported
from Ukraine at less than market value which causing a grain shortage in
Ukraine during 2003, abusing the office of deputy prime minister and evading
taxes.

Tuesday, March 23, 2004, one year later, turned out to be one of the
brighter days in the history of independent Ukraine. The same news agencies
who reported that Leonid was thrown in jail are now reporting the
prosecutor-general's office in Kyiv has totally closed the criminal case
against Mr. Kozachenko after prosecutors failed, despite their repeated
attempts during the past year, to uncover any facts constituting or proving
a crime.

The hammer of justice has finally struck true in Ukraine for once. The bell
of freedom is ringing out across the land, at least in the case of Leonid
Kozachenko.

For those of us who have known and worked with Leonid for the past
twelve years and understand the workings of private grain markets the
criminal charges brought against him were outrageous and unbelievable
in their content. Many top leaders in the parliament and elsewhere in
Ukraine knew the legal charges were wrong and stood up publicly
and strongly in support of Mr. Kozachenko. They are to be complimented
for their willingness to take a stand for truth and justice.

Leonid was one of the first agribusinessmen in the early 90's to fight to
set up a private agricultural distribution business. The government tried
to stop him but he finally won. Leonid continued to fight all through the
1990's for the private development of Ukraine's enormous agricultural
sector.

He maintained his pro-reform efforts to bring prosperity to rural people as
best he could though some very difficult times, including former Prime
Minister Pavlo Lazarenko's Soviet style programs which literally crushed the
progress that had been made in Ukraine's agricultural sector. Agriculture
was not the only sector of Ukraine's economy that Lazarenko crushed and
robbed in the very short time he was in office. The major path of
destruction caused by PM Lazarenko set back Ukraine's progress for
several years.

Kozachenko is one who completely understands why so many millions of poor
people in Ukraine live on some of the best farmland in the world and how to
correct this problem. He understands how to bring wealth and prosperity to
a major sector of Ukraine's economy that has for many decades been exploited
and robbed by distorted policies, local authorities and the central
government.

Kozachenko and the others in Ukraine who believe in a private market-driven
agriculture know how to bring prosperity to millions of poor Ukrainians, not
to just the privileged few, and how to bring prosperity to the thousands
of poor, run down rural villages found all across Ukraine.

There are many friends of Ukraine around the world who hope these and other
leaders never stop their work to build a society that will benefit all 48
million Ukrainians who live in Ukraine and a society that millions more of
Ukraine's citizens, who now live and work outside Ukraine, will want to come
home to soon.

There are other reformers who have been wrongly accused of crimes in
Ukraine. Some are still facing criminal charges and some are actually
sitting in jail. We hope the hammer of justice will strike and the bell of
freedom will soon ring out for them as it did yesterday for Mr. Kozachenko
and the Ukraine he believes in and fights for. Today is a brighter day in
Ukraine. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER TWO
Politics and Governance, Building a Strong, Democratic Ukraine
http://www.artukraine.com/buildukraine/index.htm
========================================================
2. UKRAINIAN PROSECUTORS CLOSED CORRUPTION, BRIBERY
PROBE AGAINST EX-CABINET MEMBER LEONID KOZACHENKO

Associated Press Online, Kiev, Ukraine, Mar 23, 2004

KIEV - Prosecutors closed a probe into claims that Ukraine's former deputy
prime minister accepted bribes and allowed underpriced exports that cost
this ex-Soviet republic hundreds of millions of dollars in losses, officials
said Tuesday.

The case against Leonid Kozachenko, who spearheaded Ukraine's agricultural
policy until a Cabinet reshuffle last year, was closed after prosecutors
failed to uncover facts constituting or proving a crime, said Oksana
Sokolova, spokeswoman for the General Prosecutor's Office. She did not
elaborate.

Kozachenko was accused of allowing underpriced grain exports which cost the
government US$283 million and accepting US$318,000 in bribes from two
European companies when he served as director of the Ukrahrobiznes concern
before joining the government. Kozachenko, who now heads a confederation of
agribusiness groups, has denied the charges.

The case against him was among dozens opened last year after President
Leonid Kuchma ordered prosecutors to investigate allegations of corruption
in the grain market. The government blamed graft for a critical grain
shortage in Ukraine, once the Soviet Union's breadbasket.

Kozachenko's supporters claimed the charges had been trumped up as part of a
government bid to re-impose state control over grain prices after harsh
weather destroyed up to 90 percent of the winter crops in some regions.
(am/mb) (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER THREE
Check Out the News Media for the Latest News From and About Ukraine
Daily News Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/newsgallery.htm
==========================================================
3. U.S. URGES INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS, LOCAL
AUTHORITIES TO BOOST EFFORTS TO COMBAT HIV-AIDS IN UKRAINE

Associated Press Online, Kiev, Ukraine, Mar 23, 2004

KIEV - U.S. officials urged international organizations and Ukraine's
authorities on Tuesday to increase efforts to stem one of the world's
fastest growing HIV infection rates.

The call for more action came as the International HIV/AIDS Alliance
reported on the results of a just completed three year U.S.-funded project
in this ex-Soviet republic. The British based organization has worked with
30,000 HIV infected people, Ukraine director Andriy Klepikov said.

"Much has been started, but much more needs to be done," said Christopher
Crowley, who heads the United States Agency for International Development
(USAID), that funded the US$4.3 million project.

Ukraine, along with Russia, is at the epicenter of concern over AIDS in
Eastern Europe, where the United Nations says HIV infection rates are
growing faster than Africa and threaten to stunt economic development.

UNAIDS, the United Nations anti-AIDS division, estimates that the number of
Ukrainians infected has grown almost 50 percent in the past three years.

U.S. Ambassador John Herbst, stressing the seriousness of the epidemic in
Ukraine, warned that in time it could reach "an irreversible level."

Officially, some 68,000 people are registered as HIV-positive in Ukraine,
but experts estimate 500,000 people, more than 1 percent of the population,
are infected. (am/an/mb) (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER FOUR
Major Articles About What is Going on in Ukraine
Current Events Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/events/index.htm
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4. PATH TO CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM IN UKRAINE STILL UNCLEAR

Inside Ukraine Newsletter, Kyiv, Ukraine, March 24, 2004

KYIV - With Constitutional Court approval accomplished, the Verkhovna Rada
has begun the final phase in its adoption of pending constitutional reforms
that would drastically change Ukraine's governing structure. However,
clashes among top officials, particularly Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn and
Stepan Havrysh, coordinator of the pro-presidential majority, suggest that
passage of the proportional election law, an absolute must precursor to
approval of the reform amendments, may be delayed or possibly even blocked.

The way to constitutional reform has been clouded since the effort began in
mid-2002. The first problems arose when Rada members realized that President
Leonid Kuchma's original reform proposals could give him extended control of
the country's levers of power, albeit through surrogates in the Rada and the
government.

Later versions of the reforms that would have allowed Kuchma to be
re-elected indefinitely were abandoned late in 2003 when Kuchma's health
problems became more apparent and pressing.

Thus, since last December constitutional reform has become an object of
bargaining between competing political groups with Kuchma's interest
centered on assuring a departure unencumbered by legal problems for himself,
personal safety for his family and guarantees that his financial assets
would be unquestioned. Of course, other forces have their desires and
demands.

All available evidence suggests that Viktor Medvedchuk, currently head of
the Presidential Administration and the real mastermind of almost all latest
Kuchma moves, would prefer to prolong his political longevity as either
prime minister or head of the parliament.

Viktor Yushchenko, inspired by his high political rating and the support of
followers from both Ukraine and overseas, would like not only to be elected
president but to see presidential powers unchanged from those currently
enjoyed by the incumbent.

Political newcomers from the Donetsk clan, notorious for their accumulation
of huge financial resources, are intent on extending their local influence
to the whole country. To do this, they need a powerful leader in an official
position who will take care of their ever-increasing appetites.

The leftists, Communists and Socialists who have developed party networks in
regions, are concentrating their efforts on strengthening the influence of
their parliamentary factions on the executive branch and future gains in the
Rada elections in 2006.

Numerous deputies that were elected from majority districts which they
regard as baronial manors are most concerned about the possibility that
strict proportional election procedures would rob them of their Rada
membership, the immunity for prosecution bestowed by their deputy privileges
and the influence their regional power gives under whoever is president or
prime minister.

Naturally, it is extremely difficult to reconcile all of these overlapping
and contradictory claims on power, particularly since the power of the
president as an arbiter would be greatly diminished under the reform plans.
Some fear, probably with very good reasons, that a weakened presidency
would turn the parliament into a permanent battle zone, even more fractious
than it is today.

These cross currents of the battles for power, somewhat muted and subsurface
in the past, have now flared into the open. For example, on Monday, March
22, journalists were privy to a clash between Lytvyn and Havrysh over
procedures the parliament will follow in consideration of the proportional
election law. Lytvyn proposed to postpone the vote until it is thoroughly
examined by deputies, perhaps a week or even longer. Havrysh claimed that
everything was already in hand to endorse the election law draft on
Thursday, March 25.

On Tuesday, an extraordinary meeting of the Rada conciliatory council lasted
for more than two hours and agreed to consider the election bill on Thursday
and Friday so that it could be adopted as a whole. For this purpose, in
their view, the corresponding Rada plenary meetings could last until
midnight. However, even this provision cannot give enough time to consider
all 972 amendments introduced to the bill by deputies.

If the election bill is approved, then comes the potentially months long
process of adopting the reform amendments to the constitution. Many
deputies, particularly those opposed to the reforms, will demand an
article-by-article consideration of the amendments. This procedure is
designed trigger a domino effect under which a failure to approve any single
point could lead to a blockage of the whole bill. With so many varied points
at issue affecting so many individual causes and fortunes, the chances for
chaos and legislative gridlock become almost palpable.

The coming legislative days will take on much of the drama and importance of
that period when the constitution was originally approved.

The big difference is that then there was considerable technical help from
interested parties outside Ukraine and a sense of national purpose. With the
current constitutional reform efforts, there are merely the political and
financial interests fighting with a blood lust to save their political
fiefdoms and their financial fortunes. The possibility for bloodletting,
both metaphorical and real, is enormous. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER FIVE
Exciting Opportunities in Ukraine for Travel and Tourism
Travel and Tourism Gallery: http://www.ArtUkraine.com/tourgallery.htm
=========================================================
5. UKRAINIAN MEDIA GROUP COMPLAINS TO EUROPEAN
COMMISSION ABOUT POLITICAL PRESSURE

Interfax news agency, Moscow, in English, 19 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 22, 2004

Kiev, 19 March: The Ukrainian media group Telegraph complained to head of
the Delegation of the European Commission to Ukraine, Norbert Jousten about
what it considers political and economic pressure, reported BBC, the only
foreign partner of Radio Era-FM, a member of the Telegraph, which relays
some programmes of BBC's Ukrainian service.

Media group Telegraph, which incorporates the TV channel Era, the weekly
Kyivskiy Telegraph, the internet publication Versii and Radio Era- FM, said
local courts have blocked its bank accounts in over 20 regions.

The reason for these court rulings were lawsuits by private individuals,
"whose reputation was allegedly harmed by an article about Privatbank posted
on the Versii's web site this year".

The media group Telegraph considers these steps to be persecution and a
restriction of freedom of opinion and speech in Ukraine. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER SIX
The Story of Ukraine's Long and Rich Culture
Ukrainian Culture Gallery: http://www.ArtUkraine.com/cultgallery.htm
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6. RUSSIA "CONCERNED" BY RECENT UKRAINE-NATO ACCORD
Ukraine approved NATO plan without agreement from Russia

Interfax news agency, Moscow, in Russian, 20 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 20, 2004

MOSCOW - Moscow is concerned by official Kiev's recent decision to allow
Ukraine's territory to be used for NATO operations without agreement with
Russia.

"Ukraine's readiness to let its territory be used for any operations by NATO
without agreement with Russia is at odds with the spirit of Article 6 of the
big treaty [on bilateral relations], which stipulates, in particular, that
neither side shall allow its territory to be used to the detriment of the
security of the other," a source in Russia's Foreign Ministry told Interfax
on Saturday [20 March].

"The fact that the memorandum states that Ukraine is in support of any
operations by NATO, including without authorization by the UN Security
Council, is of particular concern.

"We hope that these concerns will be taken on board by Kiev as it builds its
relations with NATO," the source said. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER SEVEN
The Genocidal Famine in Ukraine 1932-1933, HOLODOMOR
Genocide Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/famineart/index.htm
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7. UKRAINE MACROECONOMIC SITUATION--FEBRUARY 2004

Ukraine Macroeconomic Situation, February 2004
By Iryna Piontkivska and Edilberto L. Segura
SigmaBleyzer, Kyiv, Ukraine, March 23, 2004

NOTE: To read this outstanding economic report please click on the
following link: http://www.artukraine.com/econews/MACRO-Feb04.pdf
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER EIGHT
Ukraine's History and the Long Struggle for Independence
Historical Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/histgallery.htm
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8. UKRAINIAN LABOR PAY NEAR LOWEST IN EUROPE
Ukraine is 46th out of the 47 countries rated

Inside Ukraine Newsletter, Kyiv, Ukraine, March 23, 2004

KYIV - The Federation of European Employers, a Europe-wide association,
on March 16 published a new report, "Wages in Europe." The report rated the
46 European countries in regard to their average hourly payments for labor.

The highest payment level in all of Europe was in Denmark with an average
hourly payment rate of 27.89 euros. The report was based on a scale with
Denmark's payment rate evaluated at 100 percent. Russia occupied 40th place
in the table with an average hourly labor rate that was 4 percent of that
shown for Denmark.

Ukraine was next to the bottom of the table with an hourly labor payment
rate that was evaluated at 1 percent of the rate for Denmark.

In all of the former Soviet republics, the only one that rated lower than
Ukraine was Moldova. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER NINE
The Rich History of Ukrainian Art, Music, Pysanka, Folk-Art
Arts Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/artgallery.htm
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9. UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT WANTS IRAQ CONTRACTS,
ORDERS HIGHER PAY TO TROOPS

UNIAN news agency, Kiev, in Ukrainian, 20 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 20, 2004

KIEV - Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma has signed an order to improve the
activity of Ukrainian peacekeeping contingent and ensure Ukrainian interests
in Iraq, the presidential press secretary, Olena Hromnytska, said.

The document instructs Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Andriy Klyuyev to
step up the work of the inter-agency group on ensuring Ukrainian interests
in Iraq and take additional measures to secure the participation of
Ukrainian companies and organizations in post-war rebuilding of the Iraqi
transport infrastructure and oil industry, supplying steel products,
providing facilities for repairing armoured vehicles to Iraq and the
training of Iraqi specialists.

The Ukrainian Defence Ministry is to continue working to improve the
organizational structure of Ukrainian peacekeeping contingents and support
them as part of regular units of the Ukrainian armed forces.

The government has until 1 April to work on raising monthly pay in foreign
currency to the servicemen of Ukrainian peacekeeping contingents taking into
account relevant UN standards.

The government is to speed up implementing the order of the president of
Ukraine from 21 January 2004 No 452/2255-01 on giving the status of combat
veterans to the servicemen in Iraq.
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER TEN
The Rich History of Ukrainian Art, Music, Pysanka, Folk-Art
Arts Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/artgallery.htm
=========================================================
10. KUCHMA APPOINTS MYKOLA MAYMESKUL AS
UKRAINIAN AMBASSADOR TO CANADA

Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian, 20 Mar 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Mar 20, 2004

Kiev, 20 March: Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma has issued a decree
appointing Mykola Maymeskul the Ukrainian ambassador to Canada.

By another decree, Kuchma appointed the ambassador to Canada, Mykola
Maymeskul, as Ukrainian representative at the International Civil Aviation
Organization, the press service of the head of the Ukrainian state reported
today.

Earlier, Maymeskul headed the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's consular service
department and represented Ukraine at international organizations in Geneva.
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER ELEVEN
Send Us Names to Add to the Distribution List for UKRAINE REPORT
=========================================================
11. U.S. OFFICIALS AIR CONCERNS ABOUT UKRAINE AT ACTION
UKRAINE COALITION (ACU) MEETING IN WASHINGTON

By Natalie Gawdiak, Journalist
Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC)
Washington, D.C., Tuesday, March 23, 2004

Washington, D.C., March 23, 2004....The first of a proposed series of
working lunches focusing on Ukraine and US-Ukrainian relations was held last
Wednesday in Washington, D.C. at the initiative of the Action Ukraine
Coalition (ACU), comprised of the Ukrainian American Coordinating Council
(UACC), the Ukrainian Federation of America (UFA), and the US-Ukraine
Foundation (USUF).

The luncheon was to have featured Congressman Curt Weldon (R-PA), co-chair
of the Ukrainian Congressional Caucus, member of the House Armed Service
Committee, and chairman of its Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee.
Although a crucial committee session in the House at the time prevented Mr.
Weldon from attending the AUC luncheon, the participants engaged in a
dynamic, fruitful wide-ranging analysis and debate of Ukrainian issues.

The close to fifty attendees represented U.S. government agencies, including
State and USAID contractor organizations, Treasury, Commerce, the Office of
Personnel Management, and the Library of Congress. Representatives from
international organizations, development banks, think tanks, media, and the
Ukrainian Embassy also participated. The Citizens Network for Foreign
Affairs (CNFA) provided a conference room at its Washington headquarters.

Ihor Gawdiak, President of the Ukrainian American Coordinating Council,
served as moderator. Morgan Williams, AUC Coordinator and Editor of AUC's
"Action Ukraine Report" 2004, organized the event.

The meeting covered considerable ground, including the upcoming Ukrainian
presidential election, the controversial constitutional reforms regarding
the Ukrainian political system, attitudes of the U.S. government towards
Ukraine, Ukraine's membership in Euro-Atlantic institutions, freedom of the
press, access to Ukrainian radio audiences for US government broadcasters
(VOA, RFE/RL) and economic issues, among others.

Ihor Gawdiak opened the session by asking what can be done, if anything, by
the U.S. government to ensure a truly fair and democratic election campaign
preceding Ukraine's fall presidential election and to influence a more
democratic and judicious approach to the controversial "reforms" being
contemplated in Ukraine.

Vera Andrushkiw, Director of the US-Ukraine Foundation's Community
Partnership Project (CPP), pointed out that it is important in understanding
the current situation to take into account the effect upon Ukraine of the
accession of the country's neighbors to the European Union.

Dr. Bill Gleason, chair, Advanced Ukrainian Studies and coordinator of the
Eurasian Studies of the Foreign Service Institute )FSI) at State, noted that
at a conference co-sponsored a week earlier by FSI "great concern was
expressed by several members of the conference that the OSCE (Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe) is not moving aggressively enough
and that it is focused too much on the final election result and not enough
on the events leading down to the election."

He emphasized that this is what needs to be talked about now; otherwise, the
"damage will be done, or could be done, and it may be too late" to ensure a
fair election in Ukraine. He also noted that some participants at the FSI
conference felt that the Azeri model-between "East and West" with a lot of
control in the hands of the presidency-is the most pertinent model for the
Ukrainian situation.

This last assertion was categorically opposed by Nadia Diuk, Director,
Central Europe and Eurasia, National Endowment for Democracy (NED), by
Stephen B. Nix, Director, Eurasia, International Republican Institute (IRI),
and by the Ukrainian Embassy representatives Olexander Scherba, Political
Counselor and Volodymyr Samafalov, First Secretary and Head of Information
Section, as not an accurate model for a number of reasons.

"UKRAINE FATIGUE?"

The Ukraine Desk Political Officer at the U.S. Department of State, Dr. Paul
Carter, emphasized that the U.S. also views the coming election in Ukraine
"as a critical event in Ukraine's history. It will set the stage for
Ukraine's relationship not only with the U.S. but internationally for years
to come." He pointed out that, "if the election does not go well, this
could set Ukraine's membership in NATO back for quite some time."

Furthermore, he said, "there are certain psychological factors at work here.
It's not just a question of the formal things, like memberships in certain
organizations or not that's important here. If this election goes poorly,
Ukraine will be lumped in with other countries--I don't want to pick out any
particular country to the East--that have not done well on the democracy
front, and 'Ukraine fatigue' so to speak will set in-people will just not be
interested. There is an awful lot hanging on this for Ukraine."

Dr. Carter described a recent series of bilateral meetings with Ukraine at
the State Department. These meetings, known as the Foreign Policy
Committee, are held semi-annually, and it was the U.S.'s turn to host the
talks. Deputy Prime Minister Yelchenko led the Ukrainian delegation at the
two-day meetings, which covered the upcoming election, NATO, and US
briefings on a broad range of issues, including South Asia, and Iraq.

"We stressed throughout the importance of the elections. We don't support
any particular candidate; our interest is in free and fair electoral
process. We would be willing and quite happy to work with whoever is
elected in a free and fair electoral process. One thing in terms of the
election to keep in mind is Ukraine's aspiration towards a closer
relationship with Euro-Atlantic institutions, including NATO. Ukraine has
expressed interest in joining NATO and the United States supports this
action."

It is a matter of timing, he said. "If the election goes well, and we have
made this point quite often, the US will be much more inclined to support an
early decision regarding membership in NATO for Ukraine. Fifty years from
now, we may think of it only as another bad election in that part of the
world--as an election that went nowhere and Ukraine went nowhere."

Carter went on to note that, "One of the participants on the Ukraine side at
the Foreign Policy Committee meeting said, 'There is too much focus on this
election in the international community. Who remembers what happened to the
election in Poland in 1939?' Our response to that was that we certainly
don't think that is a good way to look at it. But if this election does go
poorly, maybe we won't remember it. Fifty years from now, we may think of
it only as another bad election in that part of the world. That this
election went nowhere and Ukraine went nowhere."

Responding to a query, Dr. Carter avowed that the Bush administration has
certain sanctions in the planning stage should the upcoming presidential
election indeed prove to have been fraudulently carried out. He declined to
offer any details.

On the positive side, Dr. Carter gave recognition to many in the room who
are carrying out important, "work-a-day" assistance to Ukraine in the
attempt to build a civil society and promote democratic reform. Another
positive sign, he said, was President Kuchma's recent move to cut
inspections by tax police. "But," he added, "we are watching the
implementation of this very closely."

Olexander Scherba, Political Counselor at the Embassy of Ukraine in
Washington, responded to Dr. Carter's remarks by noting that the United
States tends to emphasize everything that is negative about Ukraine but
ignores positive developments in that country. Scherba stated the U.S. pays
far more attention to Russia than to Ukraine, and that it ignores Ukraine's
considerable and steady economic progress. Everyone, he said, is aware that
this year Ukraine faces critical changes.

As for the coming presidential elections, Scherba stated, the fact that
Ukrainian leaders Viktor Pinchuk and Akhmatov are in communication with
Viktor Yushchenko shows that the potential victory of Yushchenko [in the
presidential race] is not viewed in Ukraine as some remote possibility. The
United States, therefore, should not be telling Ukraine how to behave and
threaten it with some sort of sanctions, but instead it should treat Ukraine
as an important partner and accept the results of the coming elections as a
legitimate expression of the Ukrainian electorate.

Dr. Carter admitted to this unequal treatment but countered by saying the
U.S. administration is harsher on Ukraine than on Russia because of
Ukraine's stated desire to become part of Europe and join European
institutions. Thus the question of democratic progress in Ukraine is for
the United States very important. He responded to a question on what was
meant by "if the elections go well," by saying that it was what would lead
up to the election that is important-what things have to stop, like pressure
on journalists, harassment of opposition at rallies--as happened at
Donetsk--and the like. If these things were to stop, that would be a very
positive step.

Christopher Grewe, international economist and Ukraine Desk Officer at the
U.S. Treasury Department, agreed with the two participants from the Embassy
of Ukraine, that Ukraine has been doing well economically. He noted that
the beneficial influence of the policies set in place in 2000 and 2001,
under Victor Yuschenko's term as prime minister, are still being felt and
that the first half of last year was also a good period for economic
policies.

Ukraine's macro economic policy has been good, Mr. Grewe observed, and
Ukraine has also been "very lucky." Ukraine has a good central bank that
has been reasonable and has had a fairly good fiscal policy. "You have to
have stability if you are going to have economic growth. Our concerns are
for the future, while we applaud what has happened, we always point out that
Ukraine is not there yet; some substantial distortions still exist." The
time to address these distortions is now because some of these reforms will
cause pain, so it is better to suffer that pain when the economy is doing
well, he observed.

MISDIRECTED RESOURCES

For U.S. Treasury officials looking at Ukraine's situation, the energy
sector is a major concern. "It is still one of the least transparent, most
corrupt sectors in the economy" and provides subsidies to Soviet-era
industries, even so far as to make them turn a profit. These resources are
being misdirected," Mr. Grewe asserted.

The second major area to improve is the business climate. Mr. Grewe stated
that there is a tremendous amount of potential in Ukraine for people to set
up new businesses. They have great trade ties with the EU and former Soviet
republics. The old Soviet system did not kill the entrepreneurial spirit.
Instead of favoring some groups over others, however, there needs to be a
transparent way for the government to obtain the funding that it needs.

On the political side, the Treasury Department's concern is that free and
fair elections support free market economy. This is a well established
correlation throughout the world. "You can get economic growth without a
democracy, as we have seen many times, but a really well functioning market
economy really requires a free society otherwise resources can't move within
the economy because they are blocked by political concerns," Mr. Grewe
noted.

Acknowledging the positive side, Mr. Grewe observed that Ukraine has had its
fifth year of growth. It's a balanced growth with growth in consumption, in
investments, and in exports. All these different parts of the economy
growing are very encouraging signs, especially in view of the economic
situation in Ukraine in the 1990s. "In looking at this growth and the good
outcomes, one of the questions we have asked, is what is driving this?
Where is the growth coming from?" Mr. Grewe asked. It is really coming
from Russia. Russia is growing in a very stable manner. Ukraine has reduced
its share of exports to Russia, but Russia is still its major trading
partner, he concluded.

Arriving at the meeting representing Congressman Weldon, Xenia
Horczakiwskyj, the Congressman's legislative director, relayed the
Congressman's apologies and explained that some legislative priorities
required him to stay on the Hill. Ms. Horczakiwskyj heard direct appeals
about broadcasting concerns from participants who spoke on behalf of the
Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL).

Asta Banionis, special assistant to the President for Public Outreach at
RFE/RL and Jaroslaw Martyniuk, regional research manager, InterMedia, which
does audience research in Ukraine for Radio Liberty and Voice of America,
both spoke about Ukraine's clampdown of media outlets in Ukraine for
international broadcasts.

Mr. Martyniuk observed that the only means of getting the signal to
Ukrainian currently is by shortwave, but that the shortwave signal to
Ukraine for Ukrainian broadcasts is much weaker than the one for
Russian-language broadcasts, as it has always been. Since 1996, broadcasters
found a way around this through access to FM stations, but now that these
are no longer available, the strength of the shortwave signal is a critical
issue.

He urged that the US assign a stronger frequency to Radio Liberty at least
to the Ukrainian shortwave, but warned that this would have to be done
almost immediately in order for the U.S. to have an impact on elections six
months ahead.

Ms. Horczakiwskyj promised to relay this appeal to Congressman Weldon and to
work directly on the problem. She also announced that the Congressional
Record for March 17, 2004, carried a floor statement by Mr. Weldon's
regarding his views on the troubled media situation in Ukraine. (END)
=========================================================
ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-2004, No. 46: ARTICLE NUMBER TWELVE
Politics and Governance, Building a Strong, Democratic Ukraine
http://www.artukraine.com/buildukraine/index.htm
=========================================================
12. BYZANTINE ART: GLITTERING TROVE BUILT ON TRUST
ACROSS BORDERS
Byzantine Art at the Met Comes From Some 30 Nations
"The Glory of Byzantium, A.D. 843-1261"

By Carol Vogel, The New York Times, The Arts Section, B1
New York, NY, Monday, March 22, 2004

As Helen C. Evans was putting together "The Glory of Byzantium, A.D.
843-1261," the sumptuous exhibition that opened at the Metropolitan Museum
of Art in 1997 and attracted a staggering 460,854 visitors, she was already
planning a sequel. Ms. Evans, the museum's curator of early Christian and
Byzantine art, knew there was more to be told.

"The last big centuries of Byzantium have never been explored in an
exhibition," Ms. Evans said. "And they're by far the most important because
they represent the empire at its peak."

So for seven years Ms. Evans and Mahrukh Tarapor, the museum's associate
director for exhibitions, traveled to places few would dare, organizing
"Byzantium: Faith and Power (1261-1557)," a feat of international diplomacy
that opens at the Met tomorrow and runs through July 4.

Byzantium, the name given to both the state and the culture of the Eastern
Roman Empire in the Middle Ages, saw a great artistic outpouring. "Byzantium
Faith and Power" begins in 1261, when the capital Constantinople (now
Istanbul) was restored to imperial rule after its sacking by the Crusaders.
It concludes in 1557, when the empire that had fallen to the Ottoman Turks
in 1453 was renamed Byzantium, the name by which it is still known.

The art and objects of that era, produced primarily for the Orthodox
Church - sacred painted icons, lavishly embroidered silk textiles, richly
gilded metalwork, illuminated manuscripts, delicate micromosaics -
illustrate the artistic treasures that have come to define Byzantium.

The show is the last of a grand trilogy. In 1977 Ms. Evans organized "The
Age of Spirituality," which dealt with Christian art between the third and
eighth centuries A.D., followed by "The Glory of Byzantium" in 1997.

Less than 10 percent of the art and objects presented in "Byzantium: Faith
and Power" had ever left their home countries, the curators said. While
negotiating these loans Ms. Evans and Ms. Tarapor visited 35 countries. They
spent days waiting to be summoned by archbishops of the Orthodox Church,
went mountain climbing with monks at midnight and pressed their case with
political figures.

Their wish list included 14th- and 15th-century icons and richly illustrated
manuscripts, miniature mosaics created in court ateliers of Constantinople
and elaborately embroidered religious vestments of silk, gold and gems, each
a priceless example of cultural heritage.

Despite a political landscape altered drastically by the events of Sept. 11,
2001, the curators were able to gather some 350 examples of Byzantine art
from about 30 nations, including Greece, Bulgaria, Egypt, France, Italy,
Romania, Russia, Turkey, Serbia and Montenegro and Macedonia.

Ms. Tarapor said that she and Ms. Evans were "affected by world events even
before September 11th" and noted that with "any political event, whether
small or large, we would feel the tremors."

"We were dealing with a living faith and a glorious culture," Ms. Tarapor
added. "But at the same time the cultures we were trying to display were in
ruins."

Because of the war in Kosovo, she and Ms. Evans had to postpone traveling to
Serbia. Eventually Slobodan Curcic, a professor in the department of art and
archaeology at Princeton University, took them to Belgrade, the Serbian
capital. "I'd never seen the effects of a real bombing," Ms. Tarapor said.
"It was a shock and very sobering."

One place that resisted their entreaties was Mount Athos, an ancient
community of 20 monasteries on a rocky peninsula in northern Greece. Since
women were not allowed there, "we would go to the border and a priest would
come down to have lunch with us," Ms. Tarapor said. "We'd talk." They had no
luck because the monastery has been hesitant to lend since the start of the
war in Iraq. Still, they managed to get important loans of art and objects
that originally came from Mount Athos but were now in other collections.

"It was all about trust," Ms. Tarapor said of getting monasteries to part
with portions of their collections. And sometimes about giving them a little
help. The Holy Monastery of St. Catherine, on the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt,
had lent 10 works for the 1997 show. This time it has contributed 43
objects.

In exchange the museum helped design a new sacristy area, which is being
paid for by some of the exhibition's donors. Now the monastery, which draws
many tourists, will be able to preserve its treasures and display them with
greater security. The museum also published a book of photographic essays,
with royalties going to St. Catherine's.

Museum officials would not say exactly how much this exhibition cost. But
people inside the museum said it was close to $4 million, nearly $1 million
more than "The Glory of Byzantium," making it one of the most expensive
shows in the Met's history. It has financing from the Arts and Artifacts
Indemnity program, as well as support from the National Endowment for the
Arts. The show also has Greek and Cypriot sponsors: Alpha Bank, the J. F.
Costopoulos Foundation, the A. G. Leventis Foundation and the Stavros S.
Niarchos Foundation.

To ensure the safe travel of many treasures in the show, conservators from
the Met designed climate-controlled cases in New York and then traveled to
places like the Sinai Desert with the proper crates and packing materials.

Installing the show was a bit like running the United Nations. For days
before the opening the first gallery became a staging area for inspecting
objects as they were being unpacked. Throughout the galleries languages from
around the globe could be heard.

One object of which Ms. Evans is particularly proud is the "Holy Face of
Laon," a 13th-century cedar panel with the face of Jesus on it from the Laon
Cathedral in Northern France. The state turned down a request from the
Vatican when it tried to borrow it four years ago. "We worked with priests
and with the French government," Ms. Evans said. "Eighteen people attended
the packing, including the local bishop and every government and church
official."

Icons borrowed from the Holy Monastery of St. Catherine are shown in a
gallery designed to evoke the nave of the church there, built in the sixth
century by the Emperor Justinian. Forty-three icons are hung in groups in
the gallery as they are hung on rails in the original church. A nearby
gallery contains a stunning collection of micromosaics, the tiniest mosaics
set in beeswax. "They are the greatest art form of the late Byzantine," Ms.
Evans said, noting that few survive.

The exhibition is rich in gold-ground painted icons. In the gallery of works
from St. Catherine is a large diptych that shows St. Prokopios and the
Virgin Kykkotissa. Above her is the image of the Virgin in the burning bush.
There is also a monumental pair of full-length figures of two saints,
Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom, from around 1408. The icons
were borrowed from the State Tretiakov Gallery in Moscow.

The show also has rooms of richly embroidered textiles and objects, like a
giant copper chandelier, or choros, that frequently hung in late-Byzantine
churches. Vitrines contain elaborate, illuminated manuscripts and fresco
decorations.

One would think the topic had now been well explored, but Ms. Evans is
already busy planning her next big exhibition. "Hopefully it will be about
the myth of Byzantium," she said. "I'd like to call it `Sailing to
Byzantium,' after the Yeats poem. We've spent the past two exhibitions
making the empire real. Now I would like to explore the romantic vision and
why we think of it as a fairy tale."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINK: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/22/arts/design/22BYZA.html
LINK: http://www.nytimes.com/pages/arts/index.html [go down to this
article and click on "photographs"]
LINK: The Metropolitan Museum of Art: http://www.metmuseum.org
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ARTICLES ARE FOR PERSONAL AND ACADEMIC USE ONLY
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NEWS AND INFORMATION WEBSITE ABOUT UKRAINE
LINK: http://www.ArtUkraine.com
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New Issue Just Published...Year 2003, Issue 3-4
FOLK ART MAGAZINE: NARODNE MYSTETSTVO
LINK: http://www.artukraine.com/primitive/artmagazine.htm
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NEW BOOK: Three Hundred Eleven Personal Interviews, Famine 32-33.
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http://www.artukraine.com/famineart/sokil.htm
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