"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT"
An International Newsletter
In-Depth Ukrainian News, Analysis, and Commentary
"The Art of Ukrainian History, Culture, Arts, Business, Religion,
Sports, Government, and Politics, in Ukraine and Around the World"
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION INFORMATION BLOCKADE
"I would be interested to know if there is another country anywhere in
Europe where the prosecutor-general 'builds' his own TV channel and
squeezes others off the air. Look closely: the information space is
radically changing in front of our eyes. The candidate of the authorities
is not satisfied that the channels of [presidential administration chief
Viktor] Medvedchuk and others are working for him\ý [ellipsis as
published] He wants to have guarantees from his own channels."
[article four]
"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT" Year 04, Number 149
The Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC), Washington, D.C.
Ukrainian Federation of America (UFA), Huntingdon Valley, PA
morganw@patriot.net, ArtUkraine.com@starpower.net (ARTUIS)
Washington, D.C.; Kyiv, Ukraine, THURSDAY, August 26, 2004
-----INDEX OF ARTICLES-----
"Major International News Headlines and Articles"
1. UKRAINE: FARMERS HARVEST 33 MILLION TONS OF GRAIN
Grain harvest should total about 35 million tons in 2004
Liudmyla Martynova, Ukrainian News, Kyiv, Ukraine, August 25, 2004
2. DRUG TEST LOSES UKRAINE ROWING BRONZE MEDAL
Mistake by Ukraine's team doctor in prescribing medication
REUTERS, Athens, Greece, Thursday, Aug 26, 2004
3. "UKRAINE ON ITS THIRTEENTH YEAR OF INDEPENDENCE"
Statement On Behalf of the Executive Committee
Ukrainian American Coordinating Council (UACC)
Ihor Gawdiak, President; Dr. Roman Baranowskyj, Secretary
Washington, D.C., Tuesday, August 24, 2004
4. PROSECUTOR-GENERAL IN UKRAINE "BUILDS" HIS OWN
TV CHANNEL SQUEEZES OTHERS OFF THE AIR.
Breaking Through the Presidential Election Information Blockade
Interview with Oleksandr Zinchenko by Serhiy Leshchenko
Ukrayinska Pravda web site, Kiev, in Ukrainian 18 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Tuesday, Aug 24, 2004
5. UKRAINE CONDEMNED FOR DAMAGING WETLANDS
The EU joined a growing chorus of international criticism of Ukraine
Duncan Lumsden in Brussels
The Independent, London, United Kingdom, Thur, Aug 26, 2004
6. UKRAINE CANAL DISPUTE WITH ROMANIA ECONOMIC
No threat to the environment or wildlife reserve
ICTV television, Kiev, in Ukrainian, 25 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service,UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
7. ROMANIA PRAISES EU STATEMENT ON UKRAINIAN
DANUBE RIVER CANAL CONSTRUCTION DISPUTE
Rompres news agency, Bucharest, Romania, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
8. ROMANIAN PRESIDENT CALLS SPECIAL MEETING TO
DISCUSS DANUBE RIVER CANAL DISPUTE WITH UKRAINE
Rompres news agency, Bucharest, Romania, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
9.UKRAINE COMPLETES FIRST STAGE OF RECONSTRUCTION
OF DANUBE RIVER-BLACK SEA SHIPPING LANE
Andrii Monastyrskyi, Ukrainian News, Wed, August 25, 2004
10. UKRAINE: KUCHMA LEAVES FOR ODESA REGION TO
PARTICIPATE IN OPENING OF DANUBE-BLACK SEA CANAL
Daria Hluschenko, Ukrainian News, Kyiv, Ukraine, Thur, Aug 26, 2004
11.ROMANIA WILL SUE UKRAINE OVER DANUBE DELTA CANAL
REUTERS, Bucharest, Romania, Thursday, August 26, 2004
12. YANUKOVYCH FAVORS CREATION OF FREE TRADE ZONE
WITH RUSSIA WITHOUT EXEMPTIONS OR RESERVATIONS
Must be done before Russia and Ukraine enter the WTO
Liudmyla Martynova, Ukrainian News, Kyiv, Ukraine, August 21, 2004
13. FINNISH COMPANY IN TALKS TO BUY 51 PERCENT STAKE
IN UKRAINE'S KOLORIT PAINTS COMPANY
AFX Europe (Focus), Helsinki, Finland, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
14. MALAYSIA'S PREMIUM NUTRIENTS AND POLAND'S ELSTAR
AGREE TO NEW JOINT VENTURE TO FOCUS ON EU AND CIS
Premium Nutrients already has a strong presence in Ukraine
Business Times, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
15. UKRAINE SEEKS TO DISPEL POLAND'S CONCERNS OVER
RECENT OIL SECTOR AGREEMENT WITH RUSSIA
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, in Ukrainian, 5 Jul 04.
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
16. GEORGIA TO PAY 2M DOLLARS FOR THE REPAIR
OF Mi-14 HAZE COMBAT HELICOPTERS IN UKRAINE
Interfax-AVN military news agency web site
Moscow, Russia, Monday, August 23, 2004
17.UKRAINE HOPES RUSSIAN-GEORGIAN RELATIONS STABILIZE
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian, 25 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
18. UKRAINE POISED TO LAND ONE BILLION DOLLAR MAJOR
ARMS CONTRACT FROM PAKISTAN
By Mykola Syruk, "Is a major new arms contract in the offing in Ukraine?"
Defense-Express web site, Kiev, Ukraine, in Russian 20 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149 ARTICLE NUMBER ONE
=======================================================
1. UKRAINE: FARMERS HARVEST 33 MILLION TONS OF GRAIN
Grain harvest should total about 35 million tons in 2004
Liudmyla Martynova, Ukrainian News, Kyiv, Ukraine, August 25, 2004
KYIV - Agricultural enterprises have harvested and threshed 33 million tons
of grain as of August 25. Deputy Prime Minister Ivan Kyrylenko
[agroindustsrial complex] announced this to journalists. According to him,
farmers have harvested and threshed over 18 million tons of wheat, of which
70% is high-quality food-grade wheat.
Kyrylenko said that the Cabinet of Ministers stands by its forecast that
this year's grain harvest will total about 35 million tons and that exports
will total 9 million tons. As Ukrainian News earlier reported, agricultural
enterprises had harvested and threshed 28.735 million tons of grain as of
Monday, August 16.
The Cabinet of Ministers had earlier forecast that grain production would
increase to 32-35 million tons in 2004 (with wheat production reaching 20
million tons) and that 9 million tons of grain would be exported (including
4-4.5 million tons of wheat).
In 2003, farmers cultivated 20.22 million tons of grain, which was 18.57
million tons or 47.87% less than the quantity they cultivated in 2002. In
2003, farmers had the lowest grain harvest of the past few years because
most of the winter wheat, which is traditionally the basis for the grain
harvest, perished. The grain harvest totaled 38.79 million in 2002, 2.3%
or 0.91 million tons more than the 2001 grain harvest. (END)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER TWO
The Action Ukraine Coalition, "Working to Secure Ukraine's Future"
=======================================================
2. DRUG TEST LOSES UKRAINE ROWING BRONZE MEDAL
Mistake by Ukraine's team doctor in prescribing medication
REUTERS, Athens, Greece, Thursday, Aug 26, 2004
ATHENS- Ukraine have lost the bronze medals they won in the women's
quadruple sculls on Sunday after crew member Olena Olefirenko tested
positive for a prohibited stimulant. The team has been disqualified,
International Olympic Committee spokeswoman Giselle Davies said on
Thursday. Australia will be promoted to bronze behind champions Germany
and silver medallists Britain.
Olefirenko had been prescribed medication containing the banned stimulant
by her team doctor. The IOC has urged the world rowing federation and
Ukraine's Olympic association to consider action against the doctor.
Under the IOC's anti-doping regime there is a policy of "strict liability"
under which an athlete is responsible for what he or she ingests, even if it
is prescribed by a doctor.
Because Olefirenko was deemed not to have deliberately taken a prohibited
substance, however, she and her team were not excluded from the Games.
Olefirenko had declared on an official form that she had taken medication.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
UKRAINE'S OLYMPIC MEDALS TOTAL EIGHTEEN!
GOLD ---Valeri Goncharov Gymnastics Parallel Bars
GOLD ---Yuri Nikitin Gymnastics Trampoline
GOLD ---Yuriy Bilonog Track & Field Shot Put
GOLD ---Olena Kostevych Shooting 10m Air Pistol
GOLD ---Yana Klochkova Swimming 200m Medley
GOLD ---Yana Klochkova Swimming 400m Medley
GOLD ---Nataliya Skakun Weightlifting 58-63kg
GOLD --- Irini Merleni Wrestling Under 48kg
SILVER-- Luka/Leonchuk Sailing 49er Class
SILVER-- Olena Krasovska Track & Field 100Meter Hurdles
SILVER-- Roman Gontyuk Judo 73-81kg
SILVER-- Taran/Katinina/
Matevusleva Sailing Yngling
BRONZE-Tetiana Tereschuk-
Antipova Track & Field Hurdles
BRONZE-Igor Razoronov Wrestling 125kg
BRONZE-Hrachov/Serdyuk/
Ruban Archery Team
BRONZE-Vladislav Tretiak Fencing Individual Saber
BRONZE-Grin/Bilushchenko/
Lykov/Shaposhnikov Rowing Quadruple Sculls
BRONZE-Andriy Serdinov Swimming 100m Butterfly
=======================================================
ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER THREE
=======================================================
3. "UKRAINE ON ITS THIRTEENTH YEAR OF INDEPENDENCE"
Statement On Behalf of the Executive Committee
Ukrainian American Coordinating Council (UACC)
Ihor Gawdiak, President; Dr. Roman Baranowskyj, Secretary
Washington, D.C., Tuesday, August 24, 2004
WASHINGTON - The Executive Committee of the Ukrainian American
Coordinating Council extends its warmest greetings to all the people of
Ukraine on the occasion of the 13th Anniversary of Ukrainian Independence.
By voting overwhelmingly for independence in 1991, you have demonstrated
to the world that decades of foreign domination and oppression could not
destroy your yearning and determination to join the family of free and
democratic nations.
We here in the diaspora are forever indebted to you for the many sacrifices
you made to keep the struggle for independence alive and for finally
reaching this great achievement peacefully and without bloodshed.
In reflecting on the progress that Ukraine has made in many spheres, we
welcome many of the changes that these thirteen years have wrought: the
diplomatic achievements, the growth in economic health, improvements in
infrastructure, a quantum leap in "creature comforts" that have been
afforded to a good portion of the population.
At the same time, we are deeply concerned that forces, both outside and
within Ukraine, are still threatening the sovereignty of this young nation,
as well as its continuing development towards becoming a truly democratic
state under the rule of law.
We therefore call on you to redouble your efforts to secure and to protect
Ukraine's full independence and ensure that it becomes a country free of
political corruption and of the shadow of the Soviet past.
Ukraine must display the same determination to become truly a part of
Europe--this year, in 2004-that it did when it rid itself of its "Soviet
sarcophagus" in 1991. Only then will it become a truly free nation and an
integral part of a democratic European civilization. (END)(ARTUIS)
=======================================================
ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER FOUR
A leading news source for thousands around the world
=======================================================
4. PROSECUTOR-GENERAL IN UKRAINE "BUILDS" HIS OWN
TV CHANNEL SQUEEZES OTHERS OFF THE AIR.
Breaking Through the Presidential Election Information Blockade
Interview with Oleksandr Zinchenko by Serhiy Leshchenko
Ukrayinska Pravda web site, Kiev, in Ukrainian 18 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Tuesday, Aug 24, 2004
KIEV - Ukraine's leading opposition presidential candidate, Viktor
Yushchenko, employs no Russian spin doctors, his campaign manager
Oleksandr Zinchenko has said. Speaking in an interview with a Ukrainian
web site, he forecast that the current president and prime minister would
both be in opposition within six months. He also said that he had been
manoeuvred out of ownership of Inter TV by former colleagues and had
no plans to return to TV.
The following is the text of the interview with Zinchenko conducted by
Serhiy Leshchenko published on the Ukrayinska Pravda web site on
18-19 August; subheadings have been inserted editorially:
[Deputy speaker] Oleksandr Zinchenko is tired of staying quiet. This is
the impression one is left with following his two-hour interview with
Ukrayinska Pravda. He has not talked to the press at all for many months,
only sometimes making brief statements. His announcement about leaving
the leadership of the USDPU [United Social Democratic Party of Ukraine]
a year ago was couched in three sentences. Then there were some
publications, but Zinchenko did not touch on his recent past connected with
the USDPU. In the interview with Ukrayinska Pravda he himself consciously
said more than we were counting on hearing from him.
[Editor's Note: The interview with Zinchenko is quite long. This is the
section of the interview dealing with Ukraine's presidential election
information blockade.]
[Leshchenko] What is the main problem now facing Yushchenko?
INFORMATION BLOCKADE
[Zinchenko] Breaking through the information blockade. The authorities,
and primarily their executive branch, which is directly subordinate to the
current prime minister and in combination to the "single" candidate, prove
that they do not intend to hold fair elections. They are putting hard
pressure on the heads of TV and radio companies, publishers and
journalists.
Bribery is also being used. There are threats to remove licences. You can
see that in the example of Channel 5. There is an attempt to squeeze it out
of cable networks, replacing it with other "correct" channels that most
often belong to directly to Donetsk oligarchs.
I would be interested to know if there is another country anywhere in
Europe where the prosecutor-general "builds" his own TV channel and
squeezes others off the air. Look closely: the information space is
radically changing in front of our eyes. The candidate of the authorities
is not satisfied that the channels of [presidential administration chief
Viktor] Medvedchuk and others are working for him\ý [ellipsis as
published] He wants to have guarantees from his own channels.
The TV and radio companies Ukrayina, KTM, IVK, Kiyivska Rus and
others that are expanding their networks are working for this. Nobody
else manages to do that. Those channels are given licenses and frequencies
too easily.
It is not immediately noticeable, but what is now happening in the
information space is the same as what happened with the privatization of
[steel giant] Kryvorizhstal. Things belonging to others are being
appropriated.
[Leshchenko] But how can Yushchenko break through this blockade?
[Zinchenko] When you ask "how", it means that I should reveal details:
name people and companies, quote examples of interesting decisions.
And they will immediately come under attack from the authorities. I don't
want to name techniques that will become a target.
I can give you an example: 85 per cent of the population of Ukraine know
how the nomination of Yushchenko took place at Spivoche Pole. Although
on 4 July all central TV channels showed the event "through a filter": three
bottles of beer and 20 people. We are now using seven different
technologies, starting with the Internet. You will be able to see some new
things as early as 21 August. The information is posted on a nationwide
scale, a regional one and even on a sectional scale. Under conditions of
pressure, it is being done by other, I would even say smart, means.
The battle in the media is very tough. Did you hear the recent statement by
the head of the State Committee for TV and Radio, Ivan Chyzh? He said
that the election campaign was proceeding transparently and that all
candidates were given equal opportunities. Can one take this state
official's statement seriously? The overwhelming majority of our compatriots
have heir own, different opinion about equal opportunities.
[Leshchenko] Have you tried to solve these questions at a political level
with the top person - [President Leonid] Kuchma?
[Zinchenko] The president is perfectly well informed about the situation in
the information space. With his interest in the media, he is well informed
even about details. The president does not live on Mars.
[Leshchenko] Can the Supreme Council [parliament] speaker, Volodymyr
Lytvyn, influence the situation in this information war in some way? After
all, he himself has not bad relations with Kuchma.
[Zinchenko] Lytvyn's position regarding the media is consistent and
democratic. However, he has insufficient possibilities, since the
legislative body cannot issue direct instructions. Unfortunately, far from
all resolutions are carried out. Has Kuchma's attention been focused on
the problems of the media? At one time I also had such conversations\ý
[ellipsis as published] (End of this portion of the very long interview.)
"--------------------------------------------------"
[FOOTNOTE: The position of prosecutor-general in Ukraine is
similiar to the position of attorney general in the United States.]
=======================================================
ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER FIVE
A leading news source for thousands around the world
=======================================================
5. UKRAINE CONDEMNED FOR DAMAGING WETLANDS
The EU joined a growing chorus of international criticism of Ukraine
Duncan Lumsden in Brussels
The Independent, London, United Kingdom, Thur, Aug 26, 2004
BRUSSELS - Brussels joined a growing chorus of international criticism
of Ukraine yesterday for pressing ahead with a controversial canal across
an environmentally sensitive region of the Danube Delta.
The canal, which is already being built, has angered Romania, which shares
the ecologically rich wetlands with Ukraine. Even the United States, with
its stained reputation on the environment, has criticised Kiev's decision.
The European Commission said it "deeply regrets the reported opening to
navigation of the initial part of the Bystroye canal between the river
Danube and the Black Sea". Yesterday an EU spokesman added that
Kiev's insistence on forging ahead with the contentious canal "is not a
welcome development at all".
Carving a waterway through the region, which is a registered Unesco World
Heritage site of some 70,000 hectares on the Ukraine side, has already
caused ecological damage; whole colonies of nesting terns abandoned their
eggs this year as building work started, wiping out a generation.
Environmentalists fear further wide-ranging damage to the delta's sensitive
and sometimes endangered bird populations and fish stocks.
The project, said Mike Baltzer of the conservation group WWF, "would lead
to a very significant negative impact on the region. It would result in the
loss of a habitat for some of our most rare and threatened birds". About 330
species of bird nest in the area, the second-largest wetland in Europe, home
to 2,500 pairs of white pelicans and the same number of pygmy cormorants.
Disturbing the fish stocks through the construction and annual dredging of
the Bystroye is also expected to have a ruinous knock-on effect on fishing
communities. But Ukraine's government has thumbed its nose at the
international rebuke, standing by its decision to press ahead with what one
campaigner called the "worst possible route",but the one that was also
suspected to be the shortest and cheapest option.
"We see no reason to worry about ... the presumed danger this canal poses
for the ecology of the region," said a Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman,
Markian Lubkivsky. He accused his Romanian neighbours of misrepresenting
the issue.
Kiev is aloof to threats that UNESCO may withdraw its special protected
status from Ukraine's Danube wetland, a move that would have no punitive
effect bar a little international embarrassment, something the
administration seems willing to endure. Nor has the government been swayed
by the EU's diplomatic efforts aimed at changing Kiev's policy. The EU
environment commissioner, Margot Wallstroem, has made appeals, but they
"apparently had a limited effect, to say the least", the commission
spokesman added.
The prospect of stalling a political and commercial rapprochement with
Europe as a result of the spat has not dissuaded Kiev either. Since Europe's
enlargement east this year, Ukraine has been seen in Brussels as vital to
the EU's fledgling "neighbourhood policy", aimed at making friends with its
new neighbours. "It is not going to help our relations with Ukraine, that is
clear," the spokesman added.
Mr Baltzer urged the EU to be "much more proactive" and accused Kiev of
"delaying tactics" in the shuttle diplomacy while the construction - and
destruction - carries on apace. (END)(ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER SIX
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=======================================================
6. UKRAINE-ROMANIA CANAL DISPUTE PURELY ECONOMIC
No threat to the environment or wildlife reserve
ICTV television, Kiev, in Ukrainian, 25 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service,UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
KIEV - [Presenter] Official Kiev sees no grounds for Romania's concern
over the building of the Ukrainian Danube-Black Sea canal. It poses no
threat to the environment in the region or to the wildlife reserve, the head
of /the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's press service, Markiyan Lubkivskyy,
has said.
This is the reaction to Romanian President Ion Iliescu's recent statements
saying that the canal harms the environment and to the concern expressed by
the US Department of State. Ukraine provided Romania and the international
community with explanations about the legitimacy of the construction.
Tomorrow the reconstructed section of the sea navigation canal is to be put
into operation.
[Lubkivskyy] We have provided all the necessary information, including to
our European colleagues, about the building of the canal and about the
possible environmental effects. That is, both Romania and our European
partners have the whole set of materials. In this case, the case involving
the construction of the canal, at issue is the defence of our economic
interests. The problem is purely of an economic nature. (END)(ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 149: ARTICLE NUMBER SEVEN
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=======================================================
7. ROMANIA PRAISES EU STATEMENT ON UKRAINIAN
DANUBE RIVER CANAL CONSTRUCTION DISPUTE
Rompres news agency, Bucharest, Romania, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
BUCHAREST - The Romanian Foreign Ministry (MAE) on Wednesday
[25 August] hailed the European Commission' issuing on the same day a firm
statement on the opening of the Bystre canal in Ukraine.
The European Commission voiced regret at Ukraine inaugurating the first
portion of the Bystre canal, a waterway crossing an area of the Danube Delta
included among world heritage sites and under special protection by UNESCO
and the provisions of the Ramsar Convention on prime importance wetlands,
MAE reports.
The Foreign Ministry appreciates the European Commission's President
Romano Prodi and External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten expressing
their serious concerns during the recent EU-Ukraine summit of 8 July. These
concerns included the lack of a comprehensive Environmental Impact
Assessment for the construction project, and the Commission had asked
Ukraine to halt the works pending a full assessment. Environment
Commissioner Margot Wallstroem also conveyed the concerns twice in
writing to the Ukrainian authorities and on the sidelines of the recent
Danube Cooperation Process meeting of Foreign Ministers in Bucharest.
The commission reiterated its position and would welcome receiving
reassurances from the Ukrainian government confirming its intention not to
proceed further with this project pending preparation of a proper
Environmental Impact Assessment to international standards, including the
appropriate public consultation and an evaluation of the crossborder impact.
The Romanian MAE voiced satisfaction with the European Commission's
stance being identical with that of the Romanian side and it will go on
taking a firm stand in this respect, alongside the Brussels body, to make
the Ukrainian side comply with its international commitments. (END)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER EIGHT
Ukrainian Information Website: http://www.ArtUkraine.com
=======================================================
8. ROMANIAN PRESIDENT CALLS SPECIAL MEETING TO
DISCUSS DANUBE RIVER CANAL DISPUTE WITH UKRAINE
Rompres news agency, Bucharest, Romania, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
BUCHAREST - Romanian President Ion Iliescu will meet on Thursday
[26 August] officials of various state institutions at the presidential
Cotroceni Palace to examine the effects of Ukraine's plans to build the
Bystre canal on the River Danube, the Presidential Administration's press
office announced on Wednesday.
Attending the meeting will be Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, Minister of
State Ioan Talpes, Foreign Minister Mircea Geoana, Justice Minister Cristian
Diaconescu, Minister of Transport, Construction and Tourism Miron Mitrea,
Minister of Environment and Water Management Speranta Ianculescu, the
chairmen of the foreign policy commissions with the Senate and the Chamber
of Deputies, Ghiorghi Prisacaru and Radu Podgoreanu respectively, governor
of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Administration Virgil Munteanu and
chief of the General Border Police Inspectorate Aurel Neagu. (END)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER NINE
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9. UKRAINE COMPLETES FIRST STAGE OF RECONSTRUCTION
OF DANUBE RIVER-BLACK SEA SHIPPING LANE
Andrii Monastyrskyi, Ukrainian News, Wed, August 25, 2004
The Ministry of Transport has completed the first stage of reconstruction of
the Danube-Black Sea shipping lane along the Bystre Estuary. Oleksandr
Aheev, chief spokesperson for the Delta Lotsman company, a contractor in
the canal construction project, disclosed this to Ukrainian News.
He said realization of the first stage makes it possible for passage of
ships with water draught of up to 5.85 meters. "A pilot passage of a 120-
meter long and 5-meter draft ship was successfully performed on Thursday,
which was recorded by the commission," Aheev said.
The first stage of the canal's construction provided for building a
3.3-kilometer long sea entrance canal with bottom width of 85 meters, depth
of 7.65 meters and the dam section with length of 1.54 kilometers. The
shipping canal runs 170.36 kilometers. Aheev has confirmed the plan to
finish the reconstruction project by autumn 2005. (END)(ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.148: ARTICLE NUMBER TEN
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10. UKRAINE: KUCHMA LEAVES FOR ODESA REGION TO
PARTICIPATE IN OPENING OF DANUBE-BLACK SEA CANAL
Daria Hluschenko, Ukrainian News, Kyiv, Ukraine, Thur, Aug 26, 2004
KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma has left for Vylkove, Odesa region, to
open the first line of the Danube-Black Sea shipping canal. The program
of his visit includes the Akkerman Castle in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi and the
gas distribution station where the President will participate in the opening
of the high-pressure gas pipeline Ovidiopol-Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi.
After that, Kuchma will fly to the Vylkove border station of the Izmail
border detachment. There, he will have a tour around the Ship Movement
Regulation Center and the surface picture lockout station of the state-run
company Delta-Lotsman, the Ministry of Transport and the Vylkove border
station.
Then the President will climb the deck of the Hadjibei ship anchored at the
entrance to the Bystre Estuary canal to take part in the opening of the
canal. The opening ceremony will be followed by a press conference of
Kuchma.
The first line of the Danube-Black Sea canal construction ran into UAH
78.64 million, including UAH 49.496 million spent on construction and
assembly works.As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the first stage of the
canal project initially involved construction of a 3.3-kilometer approach
canal with a width of 85 meters and a depth of 7.65 meters and part of a
1.54-kilometer dam.
The Ukrainian Transport Ministry embarked on the construction of the
Danube-Black Sea deep-water shipping canal in the Bystre Estuary in May.
=======================================================
ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER ELEVEN
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=======================================================
11. ROMANIA WILL SUE UKRAINE OVER DANUBE DELTA CANAL
REUTERS, Bucharest, Romania, Thursday, August 26, 2004
BUCHAREST - Romania said on Thursday it plans to submit a lawsuit against
Ukraine at the Hague-based International Court of Justice over the opening
of a shipping canal in the ecologically-sensitive Danube delta.
President Ion Iliescu, Prime Minister Adrian Nastase and the foreign
affairs, transport, environment and justice ministers met to discuss the
opening of the Bastroe canal, which Romania says would cause water levels
to change and harm the delta.
The delta is home to more than 280 species of birds as well as 45 freshwater
fish species in its numerous lakes and marshes. "The participants agreed
that all the conditions needed to unilaterally alert the International Court
of Justice in Hague have been met," Iliescu's spokeswoman Corina Cretu said.
The European Union has condemned the opening of the canal, which provides a
waterway between the Black Sea and the Ukrainian part of the Danube delta,
fearing it could harm the unique ecosystem, an UNESCO world heritage site
since 1991.
Romanian television reports said Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma was
taking part in the official ceremony to mark the opening of the Bastroe
waterway, which goes through a specially protected area under the Ramsar
Convention on wetlands.
The Worldwide Fund for Nature has said the canal threatens the delta's most
important wetland, where 70 percent of the world's white pelicans and 50
percent of pygmy cormorants live. Romanian officials complained that Ukraine
has repeatedly delayed providing complete information on the works.
Earlier this week, Romania, which hopes to join the EU in 2007, asked for an
international committee to assess the project's impact on the environment
and officials said that a report was expected next month. An EU spokesman
said on Wednesday the issue would not help the wealthy bloc's relations with
Kiev and reiterated the appeal to Ukraine to stop the works until an
environmental impact assessment has been carried out.
Around 500 protesters carrying stuffed pelicans marched the Bucharest
streets on Tuesday asking for the halt of the project. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER TWELVE
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12. YANUKOVYCH FAVORS CREATION OF FREE TRADE ZONE
WITH RUSSIA WITHOUT EXEMPTIONS OR RESERVATIONS
Must be done before Russia and Ukraine enter the WTO
Liudmyla Martynova, Ukrainian News, Kyiv, Ukraine, August 21, 2004
KYIV - Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych favors creation of a free trade
zone with Russian without exemptions and reservations as early as in 2005.
He voiced this in his address to Cabinet veterans at the Cabinet Club, which
was just opened after repair.
"We must cancel exemptions from the free trade regime as early as in 2005,
and to create a free trade zone [without exemptions and reservations] with
Russia," Yanukovych said. He noted that Russia has already made a serious
step in this direction by taking a painful decision to exempt oil and gas
exports to Ukraine from VAT.
Yanukovych said the free trade agreement was signed by CIS states in 1994,
but it did not come in effect lacking ratification by all signatory
countries. The Prime Minister added that Uzbekistan was the first country in
CIS to enter into the agreement on a free trade zone without exemptions and
reservations with Ukraine. Yanukovych believes that Ukraine and Russia have
to create a free trade zone between them before entering the World Trade
Organization. "...We must do that," he said.
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, President Leonid Kuchma in July
described the creation of a free trade zone a top priority in
Ukrainian-Russian relations. To this effect, the Agreement on the Principles
of Levying Direct Taxes in Mutual Trade and the Protocol on a stage-by-
stage cancellation of exemptions from the free trade regime must be signed.
In July, the governments of Ukraine and Russia agreed to continue talks on
abolishing exemptions from the free trade regime of the two countries by
September. Moreover, Ukraine is insisting on significant reduction of the
timeframe for cancellation of exemptions from the free trade regime.
Presently a timetable has been prepared by the sides for stage-by-stage
phrasing out of exemptions from the free trade regime, with the abolition of
these exemptions to start from August 2004 and be completed by 2012.
This year it is planned to exclude confectionary goods from the list of
exemptions, next will be sprit in 2007, and then sugar in 2012. (END)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER THIRTEEN
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13. FINNISH COMPANY IN TALKS TO BUY 51 PERCENT STAKE
IN UKRAINE'S KOLORIT PAINTS COMPANY
AFX Europe (Focus), Helsinki, Finland, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
HELSINKI - Kemira Oyj said its paint and coatings unit Tikkurila Oy is in
talks to acquire a 51 pct stake in the Kiev-based company Kolorit Paints.
"We have been exporting paints and coatings to the Ukraine since the
beginning of the 1980s, and the acquisition of a majority stake in Kolorit
Paints will further strengthen our position in the country," said Ilpo
Jousimaa, vice president of Tikkurila.
Kolorit Paints produces water-borne varnish and paint materials, with annual
sales of about 2 mln USD, it said. On Aug 3, Kemira said in conjunction with
its second quarter earnings report that it expects full year sales of paints
and coatings to be at last year's level, with operating profit expected to
improve on efficiency-measure and synergy benefits. arild.moen@afxnews.com,
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 149 ARTICLE NUMBER FOURTEEN
The Action Ukraine Coalition, "Working to Secure Ukraine's Future"
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14. MALAYSIA'S PREMIUM NUTRIENTS AND POLAND'S ELSTAR
AGREE TO NEW JOINT VENTURE TO FOCUS ON EU AND CIS
Premium Nutrients already has a strong presence in Ukraine
Business Times, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
KUALA LUMPUR, - Premium Nutrients Bhd has teamed up with Poland's
edible oils and fats producer, Elstar Oils SA, to develop, manufacture and
market specialty fats and oils for the food industry in the European Union
(EU) and former Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries.
Premium Nutrients chairman Tan Sri Dr K.R. Somasundram said the areas
of cooperation under the partnership include marketing both companies'
existing products, manufacturing certain specialty fats for the animal feed
industry and producing trans-free or health fats for margarine production
for the food industry.
"We see the possibility of implementing our joint-venture plans in three
phases. Phase one will be purely marketing, followed by manufacturing, and
finally the setting up of an independent manufacturing plant," Somasundram
said after signing the joint-venture agreement in Petaling Jaya, Selangor,
yesterday. He did not provide a time-frame for the various stages of the
joint venture.
"We are delighted that the agreement between our companies has been
reached after such a short time, and we plan to keep up with this impressive
pace and quickly produce high-quality results for mutual benefit," Elstar
Oils chairman Stanislaw Rosnowski said.
Somasundram said the joint venture will enable Premium Nutrients to gain
a strong foothold in the EU and to tap the vast market of the former CIS
nations. He expects Premium Nutrients' sales from these countries to grow
10 per cent in three to four years through the partnership. The company
already has a strong presence in Ukraine and West Asia.
Elstar Oils, listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, produces refined oils
and fats for institutional customers in Poland. Its primary focus is on the
manufacturing of rapeseed oil and other vegetable oils and fats, which will
be sold to the food and non-food sectors. "In fact, Elstar Oils has one of
the best oil-refining and modification facilities of its class in Poland,"
Somasundram said. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER FIFTEEN
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15. UKRAINE SEEKS TO DISPEL POLAND'S CONCERNS OVER
RECENT OIL SECTOR AGREEMENT WITH RUSSIA
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, in Ukrainian, 5 Jul 04.
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
KIEV - The signing of the Ukrainian-Russian agreement on cooperation in
the oil sector for the next 15 years does not preclude Ukraine from
supplying Caspian oil to Europe through the Odessa-Brody oil pipeline. The
Ukrainian ambassador to Poland, Ihor Kharchenko, said this to Polish
journalists. He was commenting on the agreement which was signed in Sochi
[Russia] last week [on 18 August].
Kharchenko said the agreement between the Ukrainian and Russian govern-
ments cannot preclude Ukraine from carrying out any international agreements
which were signed earlier. "This means that all Ukrainian-Polish agreements
signed, including an accord creating the joint venture Sarmatia, will be
honoured," Kharchenko told journalists.
At the same time Kharchenko described as positive the signing of the oil
transit agreement for 15 years with Russia. "We are for the first time
laying the foundation for a 15-year-long cooperation between Ukraine and
Russia in this sector," Kharchenko said, adding that [earlier] agreements
had only been signed for one year, which was "not very good".
Kharchenko also said that Ukraine cannot begin to supply Caspian oil through
the Odessa-Brody pipeline until a section [of the pipeline] is built to the
Polish town of Plock. He recalled Polish President Alexander Kwasniewski's
statement saying that the construction could be completed within three
years. (This July the [Ukrainian] government agreed to use the oil pipeline
in the reverse mode for three years to supply Russian oil.) [Passage
omitted: list of earlier agreements signed]
Commenting on the oil transit agreement with Russia, the majority of Polish
media outlets said the agreement consolidated the reverse use of the
Odessa-Brody pipeline for 15 years. [Passage omitted: main provisions of
the oil transit agreement]
[The Odessa-Brody pipeline was originally built to transport Caspian oil
from Odessa to Brody and then to Europe via Poland.] (END)(ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER SIXTEEN
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16. GEORGIA TO PAY 2M DOLLARS FOR THE REPAIR
OF Mi-14 HAZE COMBAT HELICOPTERS IN UKRAINE
Helicopters have been in Ukraine for four years.
Interfax-AVN military news agency web site
Moscow, Russia, Monday, August 23, 2004
TBILISI - Georgia will pay over 2m dollars obtained through the
redistribution of the 2004 budget for the repair of Mi-14 Haze combat
helicopters in Ukraine.
"More than 2m dollars will be transferred for repairs of Georgian Mi-14
combat helicopters, which have been staying in Ukraine for four years,"
First Deputy Defence Minister Paata Gaprindashvili said in an interview
published in Samkhedro (Military) newspaper on Monday [23 August].
The previous Georgian government wanted to sell the helicopters, but the
situation is now different, he said. "Georgia's new leaders have a different
attitude towards the army, and the repaired helicopters will definitely be
delivered to Tbilisi," Gaprindashvili stressed. According to him, the
Georgian Defence Industry obtained 24.6m Georgian laris (13.5m dollars)
in addition to 67m laris (37m dollars) as a result of the budget
redistribution.
In addition to helicopter repairs, the ministry is planning to spend the
money on outfit procurement and on financial support of the army's
special-purpose battalions trained by US instructors. (END)(ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER SEVENTEEN
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17. UKRAINE HOPES RUSSIAN-GEORGIAN RELATIONS STABILIZE
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian, 25 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
KIEV - Ukraine hopes that Russian-Georgian relations will stabilize and is
ready to help Georgia reach stability, the head of the Ukrainian Foreign
Ministry's press service, Markiyan Lubkivskyy, told a briefing [in Kiev] on
Wednesday [25 August].
Lubkivskyy was commenting on Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili's
statement saying that his country was on the brink of war with Russia. "We
hope that the situation will stabilize, while statements of this kind, if
they have been voiced and if they have been interpreted and presented the
way the Georgian president said, will not harm the negotiation process,"
Lubkivskyy said.
Lubkivskyy said that this was the case of "rhetoric and raised voices". He
is certain that talk of the kind does not make the negotiation process
between Russia and Georgia more constructive. Lubkivskyy said that Ukraine
opposes any war and cannot accept any statements about war, as it deems any
hostilities unacceptable. (END) (ARTUIS)
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ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No.149: ARTICLE NUMBER EIGHTEEN
Ukrainian Information Website: http://www.ArtUkraine.com
=========================================================
18. UKRAINE POISED TO LAND ONE BILLION DOLLAR MAJOR
ARMS CONTRACT FROM PAKISTAN
By Mykola Syruk, "Is a major new arms contract in the offing in Ukraine?"
Defense-Express web site, Kiev, Ukraine, in Russian 20 Aug 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Aug 25, 2004
KIEV - Pakistan is going to buy weapons worth almost 1bn dollars from
Ukraine, a web site has reported, quoting unnamed "informed sources".
According to the web site, who was commenting on a recent visit by senior
Pakistani military officials to Ukraine, Pakistan would also like to jointly
manufacture tanks with Ukraine for export to Saudi Arabia. Pakistan was
said to be currently interested in Ukrainian APCs, tank upgrades, guided
munitions and air-to-air missiles.
The following is the text of the article by Mykola Syruk, posted on the
Ukrainian web site Defense Express on 20 August under the title "Is a major
new arms contract in the offing in Ukraine?":
On 19 August, a Pakistani military delegation led by Gen Muhammad Aziz
Khan, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee [JCSC] of Pakistan's
armed forces, completed a six-day official visit to Ukraine and left for
home.
Although this was the first official visit by such a high-ranking military
leader, it did, in effect, take place under a veil of secrecy. Not a single
publication was allowed to cover the Pakistani delegation's visit, and not a
single news conference was organized.
The Ukrainian Defence Ministry confined itself to an announcement that the
development of military and military-technical cooperation was discussed at
a meeting between the Pakistani delegation, Oleksandr Oliynyk, acting head
of the defence department, and Gen Serhiy Kyrychenko, chief of the general
staff of the Ukrainian armed forces. The Pakistani general's meeting with
representatives of the Ukrainian arms trade and defence establishment
indicates that Pakistan has an interest in continuing to purchase armaments
and military hardware in Ukraine.
It should be recalled that Islamabad has not lost interest in Ukrainian
weapons since the completion in 1999 of the major contract to supply
Pakistan with 320 T-80UD tanks, worth about 640m dollars. When he was
in Ukraine two years ago, Zakir Jaffer, head of Ahmed Jaffer & Company
Ltd, which specializes, among other things, in supplying the Pakistani army
with military hardware, confirmed Pakistan's interest in expanding and
renewing the partnership with Ukraine in the field of military-technical
cooperation.
The Pakistani arms dealer stressed that collaboration in that area could be
extended by cooperation in joint production. The result of the Pakistani
arms dealer's "reconnaissance assault" was the signing in the summer of 2002
of a contract worth some 100m dollars for the state-owned Kharkiv Malyshev
plant to supply 285 6TD engine-transmission sections for the Al Khalid,
Pakistan's new main battle tank. This was previously known as project
MVT-2000. Zakir Jaffer also recalled the successful experience of running
Ukrainian KrAZ [Kremenchuk motor vehicle plant] vehicles in Pakistan,
specifying that Pakistan was currently interested in renewing the army's
fleet of heavy vehicles.
Incidentally, the AvtoKrAZ open joint-stock company has already prepared
a new right-hand drive vehicle for Pakistan. At the same time, the Pakistani
arms dealer spoke of the prospects for cooperation in the aviation field,
and particularly of Pakistan's need for military transport aircraft and
helicopters to carry army personnel. According to some reports, a
consignment of Ukrainian military transport helicopters taken from the
arsenals of the Ukrainian Defence Ministry was delivered to Pakistan.
But now, informed sources maintain, what is at stake is a contract worth
virtually a billion [dollars, presumably] to supply Pakistan with armaments
and military hardware, which may be signed with Islamabad shortly. The
Pakistani general wanted to check with his own eyes to see what sort of
goods he was being offered in Ukraine. First and foremost, cooperation will
be continued in the armoured vehicle field. Some reports say that Pakistan
intends to produce, jointly with Ukraine, tanks that will be exported to
Saudi Arabia. At the test site of Kharkiv's Malyshev plant, the JCSC
chairman of Pakistan's armed forces was shown the Ukrainian tank-building
industry's capacity to modernize tanks and create new armoured equipment.
In particular, he saw a development by the Morozov engineering design
bureau, Kharkiv - a multipurpose wheeled transport vehicle, offered in two
versions - as a multipurpose vehicle with increased cross-country ability
and a carrying capacity of up to two tonnes, and an armoured personnel
carrier that is intended to carry loads and people and provides protection
against small arms and weapons of mass destruction. Obviously, the visitor
was able to see for himself that the Ukrainian "Hummer" was just as good
as its American counterpart but cost only half as much. It is likely that
the Pakistani general was also shown the T-64 "Bulat" tank that has been
upgraded for the Ukrainian army and a version of the modernized T-55.
There are over 500 such tanks in Pakistan.
Evidently, Muhammad Aziz Khan was offered Ukrainian know-how for
improving the combat performance of the Chinese-made T-59 tanks that are
in service with the Pakistani army. There are more than 1,000 such tanks in
Pakistan, and they are in need of modernization, in which, incidentally,
Ukraine is taking part. It is well known that 50 modifications have been
made to the tank's original design. In particular, the 520-hp engine has
been replaced with a new, Ukrainian-made engine with a capacity of 730 hp.
The armour has been strengthened, and a more powerful, 125-mm gun has
been fitted, as well as an electronic fire control stabilization system,
which can be used while the vehicle is in motion, and night vision
equipment.
So the supply of Ukrainian engines for these tanks may well continue, and
the Ukrainian share in upgrading the vehicles may possibly increase.
The Ukrainian arms dealers may also have convinced the Pakistani military
of the advantages of the latest guided munitions, which were successfully
tested at the beginning of this year. If so, a major contract can be
expected as a follow-up, since the tanks that are in service with Pakistan's
ground forces will be equipped with these munitions, and so too will those
that are to be exported. Finally, experts think, Pakistan is showing
considerable interest not only in ground-based high-precision weapons
made in Ukraine, but also in developments that might strengthen the state's
air defences.
Accordingly, at the invitation of Valeriy Shmarov, director-general of the
Ukrspetseksport state company, the Pakistani general also visited the Artem
state joint-stock holding company. Evidently, the visitor was shown the Kiev
company's latest air-to-air missiles. The experts are not ruling out the
possibility that Islamabad will soon conclude with Ukraine a contract to
supply new air-to-air missiles that can hit air targets at a range of up to
100 km.
The seriousness of the two sides' intentions is corroborated by the fact
that JCSC chairman Muhammad Aziz Khan was received by Yuriy Prokofyev,
head of the committee for military and technical cooperation and export
control policy under the Ukrainian president. The meeting was also attended
by representatives of the Progress specialized foreign trade firm. It was,
of course, through Progress that the famous tank contract was negotiated.
Ukraine conducts trade with Pakistan in weapons and dual-purpose products
through that company. It may well be that formal approval was given at this
meeting to the largest deal to supply arms to Pakistan since the tank
contract. (END) (ARTUIS)
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"POWER TENDS TO CORRUPT,
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An observation that a person's sense of morality lessens as his or
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