"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT - AUR"
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"
"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT - AUR" - Number 523
Mr. E. Morgan Williams, Publisher and Editor
morganw@patriot.net, ArtUkraine.com@starpower.net
Washington, D.C. and Kyiv, Ukraine, THURSDAY, July 14, 2005
------INDEX OF ARTICLES------
"Major International News Headlines and Articles"
1. "AN INDEPENDENT UKRAINE WITH ITS OWN POLITICAL IDENTITY"
COMMENTARY: By Olaf Osica, Political Commentator
Scholar at European University Institute in Florence
Summary of article in Rzeczpospolita
Polish News Bulletin, Warsaw, Poland, Wed Jul 13, 2005
2. "POLAND AND RUSSIA HAVE CONFLICTING STRATEGIC INTERESTS
AND THE SOONER BRUSSELS UNDERSTANDS IT, THE BETTER"
Russia wants to keep Ukraine in its exclusive zone of
influence and Poland perceives Ukraine as a EU member
in the near future. Those two strategies are irreconcilable.
COMMENTARY: By Joanna Strzelczyk
Chief of Staff of Warsaw Mayor Lech Kaczynski
Former Foreign Ministry Official (1990-1996)
Article published in Rzeczpospolita
Polish News Bulletin, Warsaw, Poland, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
3. "PINNING HOPES ON AUSTRIA"
Ukrainian president asks for Austrian support for EU entry bid
By B. B., Die Presse, Vienna, Austria, in German 13 Jul 05 p 4
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
4. YUSHCHENKO ASKING UKRAINE"S AUSTRIAN DIASPORA TO
DRAW ATTENTION TO UKRAINE
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wed, July 13, 2005
5. "EUROPEAN UNION WILL OPEN ITSELF TO UKRAINE"
INTERVIEW: With Borys Tarasyuk, Ukrainian Foreign Minister
By Adelhaid Woelfl, Austrian newspaper Der Standard
Der Standard website, Vienna, Austria in German 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
6. PRO-NATO POLICIES OF "ORANGE" LEADERS IN UKRAINE CREATING
INSURMOUNTABLE ABYSSES REGARDING RUSSIA'S BLACK SEA FLEET
NEWS CONFERENCE: By Col-Gen Leonid Ivashov
Vice-President, Academy of Geopolitical Problems
RIA news agency, Moscow, in Russian 1106 gmt 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
7. BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT TELLS HEAD OF COMMUNIST PARTY
OF UKRAINE THERE IS AN ABRUPT SPLIT AND DIVISION IN
RELATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO NATIONS
Lukashenka said the split is absolutely unacceptable and
that he counts on the Ukrainian Communist Party's support
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, in Ukrainian 0708 gmt 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
8. UKRAINE PRESIDENT SPEAKING IN AUSTRIA SAYS ABOLISHING
FREE ECONOMIC ZONES WAS A MISTAKE
Honest businesses were put in new and unexpected conditions
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 1032 gmt 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
9. ENERGY, IMAGINATION AND EMOTION AT PARIS HAUTE COUTURE
Gaultier even offered emotion, as Kateryna Yushchenko, the wife
of the popular Ukrainian leader, sat with her daughter Sophia and
watched the collection of velvet tops, sable trims, exotic peasant
blouses and colorful skirts unfold.
FASHION: By Suzy Menkes, International Herald Tribune
IHT, Paris, France, Tuesday, July 12, 2005
10. UKRAINE'S FIRST LADY MEETS WITH UNESCO DIRECTOR-GENERAL
Discussed possibility to open a Trypillyan exhibition in Paris
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, 8 JULY 2005
11. PRESIDENT VICTOR YUSHCHENKO AND FAMILY ATTENDED
KRAIINA MRIY INTERNATIONAL FOLK FESTIVAL
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, 10 July 2005
12. PRESIDENT VICTOR YUSHCHENKO PARTICIPATED IN MEMORIAL
EVENING DEDICATED TO VADYM HETMAN
Extraordinary person, development of Ukrainian banking
His murder has not been solved
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, 13 July 2005
13. INTERNATIONAL RECORDING INDUSTRY WELCOMES UKRAINE'S
NEW CD PLANT LAW, A DECISIVE STEP AGAINST PIRACY
Computer Crime Research Center (CCRC)
Zaporozhye, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 13, 2005
14. TURKISH FINANSBANK TO OPERATE IN UKRAINE
Turkish Daily News, Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, July 13, 2005
15. KRAFT FOODS UKRAINE TO RESUME POTATO CHIP
EXPORTS TO RUSSIA IN AUGUST
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, July 12, 2005
16. AIRCRAFT CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION CREATED IN UKRAINE
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 1209 gmt 12 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Tue, Jul 12, 2005
17. BUNGE UKRAINE BUYS GRAIN ELEVATORS IN CRIMEA
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wed, July 13, 2005
18. INTERIOR MINISTRY SUMMONS UKRAINE MAGNATE
By Tom Warner in Kiev, Financial Times, London, UK, Thu, July 14 2005
19. LAWYERS FOR UKRAINE TYCOON VIKTOR PINCHUK
CHALLENGE RESALE OF KRYVORIZHSTAL STEEL MILL
Associated Press (AP), Kiev, Ukraine, Wed, July 13, 2005
20. UNITED STATES EMBASSY CALLS ON UKRAINIANS NOT TO
USE INTERMEDIARIES WHEN APPLYING FOR AMERICAN VISAS
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, July 13, 2005
21. CHIEF RABBI OF UKRAINE VISITS 'GAN ISRAEL" CAMP IN ODESSA
The Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS
Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, July 13, 2004
22. UKRAINE WILL BECOME WTO MEMBER IN 2005, ECONOMICS
MINISTER SERHIY TEREKHIN IS CONFIDENT
Olena Kryvenko, Ukrinform, Kyiv, Ukraine, Tue, July 12, 2005
23. PRESIDENT SAYS UKRAINE ON TRACK TO JOIN WTO THIS YEAR
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed Jul 13, 2005
24. INTERNAL DIVISIONS MAY DEFEAT YUSHCHENKO'S WTO ASPIRATIONS
Kuzio writes that Ukraine's drive for WTO membership remains uncertain
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS: Taras Kuzio
Eurasia Daily Monitor, Volume 2, Issue 135
The Jamestown Foundation, Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
25. UKRAINE: WOULD HIKE IN RUSSIAN GAS PRICES
PROVE A BLESSING IN DISGUISE?
FEATURE ARTICLE: By Valentinas Mite
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)
Prague, Czech Republic, Wed, July 13, 2005
=============================================================
1. "AN INDEPENDENT UKRAINE WITH ITS OWN POLITICAL IDENTITY"
Even if it were to mean that for some time the EU would share with Ukraine
everything except the institutions, that would still be worth striving for.
COMMENTARY: By Olaf Osica, Political Commentator
Scholar at European University Institute in Florence
Summary of article in Rzeczpospolita
Polish News Bulletin, Warsaw, Poland, Wed Jul 13, 2005
The following is a summary of an article, featured in Rzeczpospolita, by
Olaf Osica, political commentator and scholar at the European University
Institute in Florence.
The Economist, writes Osica, a periodical known for its sober, or even
somewhat caustic approach to the political reality in Europe, likened the
eurocrats' reaction to the fiasco of the French constitutional referendum to
that of a small town mayor in a Hollywood disaster movie. Unfortunately, the
Polish debate has also steered that way and that may have fatal
consequences.
The idea that "it is Russia that won the European referendum" because its
fiasco means the end of enlargement and the resurrection of the idea of the
Commonwealth of Independent States as a quasi-EU with Moscow in
Brussels' role is a case in point.
The same applies to alarmist reports about the premature death of the
common foreign and security policy. As if the constitution's endorsement
would be automatically tantamount to further enlargement and the
emergence of the EU as a military and political power.
Nothing of the sort things would have been neither easier nor swifter,
which also means that the future does not have to be, and probably will not
be, as black as it is painted.
That the Russian experts and politicians have interpreted the constitution's
fiasco in their favour is obvious. Russia intuitively sees its chance in the
lapses and incoherencies of European policy. It would not, however, be
wise to confirm it in this.
The scenario has a substantial potential of self-fulfilment because it gives
many European politicians and officials a convenient pretext to justify
their passivity towards the post-Soviet states, and thus a return to the
state from before the Georgian revolution of the roses and Ukraine's
orange revolution.
Such a line of thinking will doubtless narrow also the Polish policy's room
of manoeuvre. At our own request, we are pushing it again into a stereotype
framework where the policy towards Ukraine is a result of Poland's
anti-Russian phobias.
Secondly, Ukraine's EU accession has never been subject to even unspoken
consent among the 25 member states. The very fact that in France further
enlargement will have to be accepted in a popular referendum is a sufficient
reason to look at the issue not in the context of the constitution but
rather that of the attitudes of the western politicians and societies.
Paradoxically, however, while the chances for a French "oui" for Kiev's or
Ankara's membership appear slim, they are still greater than they would
have been had the constitution been pushed through. Five to ten years from
now as that would be the realistic timetable of further enlargement
following the accession of Romania and Bulgaria the situation can be
completely different. Between is a whole range of possibilities.
And finally, what witness do we bear to the people and politicians of
Ukraine by suggesting that difficulties in relations with the EU will
inevitably push them towards the autocratic and discrepant Russia? If
Europe is for Ukraine solely a matter of tactics rather than a
civilisational choice, then perhaps it is better to stop deluding ourselves
and risking our own interests on Kiev's behalf.
If this is not the case, then we should focus on what the EU has already
offered so that the money and effort are not wasted. It needs to be
remembered that Ukraine's membership is a means rather than a goal
of Poland's policy.
The goal is an independent Ukraine with its own political identity. Even if
it were to mean that for some time the EU would share with Ukraine
everything except the institutions, that would still be worth striving for.
The Ukrainian issue is also a good example for demonstrating the impact,
or rather the lack of it, of the constitution's failure on the EU's common
foreign policy. Both the constitution's supporters and its opponents clearly
overestimate the potential significance of the new institutions it
establishes.
The opponents are asking whether, under an EU foreign minister, president
Kwasniewski would have been able to react quickly to the Ukrainian events.
Or would he first have had to go Brussels to secure a green light for his
mission, thus wasting precious time?
The answer is: he would not have had to. The Polish government would
have done the same thing that it did, informing the EU foreign minister
about its plans and asking him or her for active support and cooperation.
The minister would have called several other capitals and would, or would
not, have received the green light. Poland would thus have had the EU's
support, or would have acted alone, with all the consequences of that for
the whole EU.
For the same reason, however, the high hopes that a foreign minister will
radically transform the EU's image and greatly increase its capabilities
seem exaggerated. While the institution's official name and its powers are
important, they are important chiefly from the point of view of the
relations between the community institutions and the member states. What
matters for the third parties is the political mandate, i.e. the ability to
make and fulfil pledges on behalf of the whole EU.
In this sense, a minister would have a far better situation in the EU. From
its present role of a petitioner he or she would become a partner able to
co-determine the community's policies. But the policy guidelines and the
modes of action would be decided by the states, and it would be their
attitude that would determine the minister's actual position.
The same applies to defence policy whether the EU has one will be
determined by the member states, not by the constitution. The latter,
paradoxically, has already produced a desired effect. The inclusion to the
treaty of provisions on permanent military cooperation between interested
countries, and making participation in it conditional on involvement in
establishing combat units had a mobilising effect.
Fearing they would be left outside, most EU countries declared their
participation in the organisation of the combat units, and neither the
French "non" nor the Dutch "nee" can change that. Also the European Arms
Agency will continue to operate, and its future depends on Europe's arms
policy rather than on the social frustrations.
The EU member states face precisely the same challenges today as they
had before the fatal Sunday. The failure of the constitution and its
provisions on enlargement and foreign policy will not bring peace to
Darfour, nor cause the problems of the Dnestr enclave or Belarus to
disappear, let alone solving the still open Balkan question.
Putting a stop to uncontrolled daydreaming and visionaries, it can and
should direct attention to the mounting problems.
How to persuade Serbia to accept Kosovo's independence without a
prospect of membership for Belgrade? How to secure Ukraine's cooperation
in solving the problem of the Dnestr enclave and Moldova before Romania
becomes the EU's 26th member?
With the constitution or without it, there is no break from geopolitics. It
is worth to retain moderation and common sense when writing down a
catalogue of wasted opportunities. -30-
[The Action Ukraine Report (AUR) Monitoring Service]
=============================================================
2. "POLAND AND RUSSIA HAVE CONFLICTING STRATEGIC INTERESTS
AND THE SOONER BRUSSELS UNDERSTANDS IT, THE BETTER"
Russia wants to keep Ukraine in its exclusive zone of influence
and Poland perceives Ukraine as a EU member in the near future.
Those two strategies are irreconcilable.
COMMENTARY: By Joanna Strzelczyk
Chief of Staff of Warsaw Mayor Lech Kaczynski
Former Foreign Ministry Official (1990-1996)
Article published in Rzeczpospolita
Polish News Bulletin, Warsaw, Poland, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
Since 1989, with a short break in the late 1990s, the Russian question has
been one of the most important ones in Poland's foreign policy, writes
Joanna Strzelczyk, chief of staff of Warsaw mayor Lech Kaczynski, former
foreign ministry official (1990-1996), in Rzeczpospolita.
Today, the question's significance has been rapidly growing, due chiefly to
mounting Polish-Russian disputes and conflicts. That has been a result, on
the one hand, of the neo-imperialism of Vladimir Putin, who has exploited
historical issues to make short-term political gains, and, on the other, of
controversies, present since the early 1990s, in Polish-Russian relations.
In the recent years, those controversies had been hushed for various
reasons, so as soon as they became public knowledge, the situation
intensified.
That was reflected in historical disputes, stimulated by the Moscow
celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the end of world war II, which
brought back into the spotlight issues such as the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact,
the Katyn massacre, or Poland's post-war enslavement. Those are hot
media topics, but also issues important for Poland's image in Europe.
They are not, however, first-rate issues.
The anniversary celebrations are over and the real problem has now emerged,
hidden so far under the historical and hysterical rhetoric: are we doomed to
conflict in Polish-Russian relations? The answer is affirmative, and the
issue is not new.
It is a consequence of the processes occurring in Europe following the
collapse of the bipolar world. This means that Poland and Russia have
increasingly divergent interests, and that this process will continue.
What are Poland's interests in Russia? In principle, there are only THREE:
[1] regulating the historical issues, [2] access to the Russian markets, and
[3] supplies of Russian energy commodities.
And what are Russia's interests in Poland? Only ONE: dominating Poland's
energy and fuel markets.
A strategic goal inconsistent with Poland's national interests. And vice
versa, as Poland's interests in Russia, with the exception of fuel imports,
are inconvenient for Russia.
What are the controversial issues between the two countries? There are
several, and all of fundamental significance for Poland and Russia.
The FIRST issue, Ukraine today and Belarus in the future. Russia wants
to keep those countries in its exclusive zone of influence.
Poland, in turn, perceives Ukraine as an EU member in a relatively near
future, and the other post-Soviet states Georgia, perhaps with time Moldova,
and certainly post-Lukashenka Belarus in close relations with Europe.
Those two strategies are irreconcilable.
The SECOND issue: energy commodities and the Polish fuel market. Russia
is interested in monopolising supplies and promoting Russian investment in
the broadly meant energy sector. Russian companies are an instrument of
Moscow's foreign policy. That policy concerns all of Europe, but Poland in
particular.
Given the above, it has to be admitted that Russia has reasons to feel
irritated. The prospect of the moderate right winning the upcoming
elections means that the controversial issues will further intensify.
The PO-PiS coalition, if it is successfully formed, will certainly attach
great significance to close and friendly relations with Ukraine. It will
also try to diversify oil and gas supplies, partly with transit through
Ukraine something that Russia has so far managed to prevent.
The new government will also subject the Polish fuel market and all the
related issues to closer scrutiny. The parliamentary committee of inquiry
into PKN Orlen has already revealed such a strong involvement of official
and unofficial Russian factors in this area that new regulations will need
to be urgently passed. The very exposing of the mechanisms used by
Russia to gain influence has to be irritating enough for the Kremlin.
In this situation, the various Russian secret services can be expected to
carry out operations aimed at discrediting the centre-right parties, such as
the PO and the PiS, to strengthen the position of not only leftwing
formations but also those rightwing ones that Russia perceives as friendly.
Using historical issues to tarnish Poland's image in the EU is an even more
tangible threat. As a result of such efforts, Poland appears as an
irrational, quarrelsome country that lives in the past and thus attacks all
its neighbours.
It is impossible, writes Strzelczyk, to talk about history in an honest and
adequate way without remembering the Russians and the Germans who
started world war II, who was its victim, and what are the moral and
political consequences of that.
This, however, again puts Poland in the face of a propaganda war with two
enemies. And weakens its position in the EU. For while it is clear that
Poland's eastern policy should be part of the EU's policy towards Russia,
respecting Poland's interests in the EU policy is a different matter
altogether. Warsaw has few arguments convincing for Brussels and
formulating them is what it should focus on.
The anniversaries pass and very well, let the atmosphere around them calm
down. This does not mean that we should forget about history, but rather
that we should look at it anew.
The shifting of stress in presenting historical issues such as the
Ribbentrop-Molotov pact or Katyn should consist in remembering what has
already been achieved and going forward, rather than stubbornly returning
to the starting point.
And quite a lot has been achieved: Russia, formerly the Soviet Union,
admitted officially that the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact had been invalid from
the point of view of international law. It also admitted that Katyn was a
work of the Russians. Discussing those issues anew could tempt Russia to
backtrack on its earlier statements. Poland should adopt the principle that
issues once agreed will not be discussed again.
An issue that needs to be taken up are war reparations, especially
compensations for Poles sent to forced labour and exile in the Soviet Union.
The issue, present in Polish-Russian talks for a decade now, has been
progressing at a very slow pace. Efforts must be made to bring it to
completion, Forced labour compensations already have a precedent, and
it is time they became a European standard.
Russia has been loathe to pay the compensations, and has deliberately
kept the dispute at an early stage, arguing that it lacks the funds and its
own victims of Stalinism were paid only pennies.
Those are unacceptable arguments. As the Soviet Union's continuator,
Russia has been paying the Soviet debts without protest. It is therefore
time it started paying out compensations. It is the only historical issue
that should be Poland's priority today. Warsaw should make all it can for
the Polish claims to be understood and supported by Brussels.
As far as economic issues are concerned, the first-rate issue is the planned
Baltic gas pipeline linking Russian gas deposits with western Europe. The
pipeline will be an alternative for the Yamal pipeline crossing through
Poland.
Perhaps it would be worth reminding the Russians that they are bound by a
contract under which two lines of the Yamal were supposed to be developed,
whereas only one has been developed and that is supposed to be it.
For that reason, Poland will incur substantial financial losses, and it
would make sense to demand damages or start talks on alternative solutions
offsetting them. Contracts should be kept. Russia does not stand above the
law.
The Polish-Russian conflict, political, not historical, is therefore a fact.
It cannot be avoided. Too much sets the two countries apart.
In fact, those divisions are inevitable if Poland is to retain its identity
and not return from the European and euroatlantic path it has chosen. In
its own interest, but also in Europe's. It is worth making sure that
Brussels understands this. -30--
[The Action Ukraine Report (AUR) Monitoring Service]
=============================================================
3. "PINNING HOPES ON AUSTRIA"
Ukrainian president asks for Austrian support for EU entry bid
By B. B., Die Presse, Vienna, Austria, in German 13 Jul 05 p 4
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
VIENNA, Austria - "We are pinning great hopes on Austria's EU presidency."
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, who has been paying a working
visit to Austria since Tuesday [12 July], did not want to rule out at a news
conference that his country would formally apply for EU membership during
Austria's presidency.
Ukraine was aware that that the path into the EU would be stony and tedious,
and Kiev still had a sizeable amount of homework to do. He also said: "We
know about the present internal problems of the EU, and we do not want to
create any new difficulties." But Yushchenko said he was convinced that
Austria would support Ukraine's desire to join the EU in a competent manner.
During his talks with President Heinz Fischer, Chancellor Wolfgang
Schuessel and parliament Speaker Andreas Khol, Yushchenko outlined the
four following requests for Austria:
[1] relaxation of visa requirements for Ukrainian students,
scientists, artists, politicians and businessmen;
[2] technical aid to improve border protection;
[3] support in legal matters, particularly in drawing up a land
register;
[4] intensification of bilateral cooperation in the fight against
organized crime and money laundering.
President Fischer promised Yushchenko that Austria would be a fair partner
in shaping Ukraine's relations with the EU. -30-
=============================================================
4. YUSHCHENKO ASKING UKRAINE"S AUSTRIAN DIASPORA TO
DRAW ATTENTION TO UKRAINE
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wed, July 13, 2005
KYIV - President Viktor Yuschenko is asking members of the Ukrainian
diaspora in Austria to draw attention to Ukraine. The presidential press
service disclosed this to Ukrainian News.
"For years, nobody traveled to us: not representatives of serious
businesses, not investors. It is necessary to ensure that the next few
months are dedicated to Ukrainian contacts with the world," Yuschenko
said. He said that this was also an important task for him.
"For me, the most important task today is to open Ukraine to the world,"
Yuschenko said. He informed them about the Ukrainian government's
solution of the problems preventing that are obstructing investors,
particularly the closure of special economic zones, for which compensation
will be paid.
He noted the flow of Austrian investment to Ukraine, particularly the
transport industry. As Ukrainian News earlier reported, Yuschenko
traveled to Austria on Tuesday for a two-day visit. -30-
=============================================================
5. "EUROPEAN UNION WILL OPEN ITSELF TO UKRAINE"
"In the coming days we will announce the decision that, after
September and for an indefinite period, EU citizens and
Swiss nationals will not need visas to enter Ukraine."
INTERVIEW: With Borys Tarasyuk, Ukrainian Foreign Minister
By Adelhaid Woelfl, Austrian newspaper Der Standard
Der Standard website, Vienna, Austria in German 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
VIENNA, Austria - In an interview with Adelheid Woelfl, [Ukrainian Foreign
Minister] Tarasyuk expressed his hope that the new EU member states
would support his country on its way into the EU.
[Woelfl] The Ukrainian attempts to become an EU member have so far
been rejected. What is your strategy now?
[Tarasyuk] Of course we are not so naive to think that, after the victory of
democracy, the European Union will immediately be open to us. The EU
expects convincing arguments from Ukraine. We are patient.
[Woelfl] Is there no plan B?
[Tarasyuk] My idea is to start discussions next year and to work out a new
Association Agreement that clearly holds out the prospect of membership.
We will start the year 2008 with this new agreement. This view does not
necessarily correspond to that of our partners in the EU.
But I think that the EU will change its approach towards Ukraine, either by
the end of this year or perhaps next year, but hopefully, during the
Austrian EU presidency. I think that the new EU members will eventually
change the EU's conservative concepts with regard to Ukraine.
[Woelfl] In the next parliamentary elections in March, former President
Victor Yanukovych will be supported by a Russian party.
[Tarasyuk] With all due respect to Russia - my mother is an ethnic Russian
from Siberia - I still think that the Russian political elites make the
wrong decisions. This was the case during the elections in 2004, and they
lost. Now the same mistake is happening again.
[Woelfl] Will there be a joint candidacy by the revolutionary block?
[Tarasyuk] It is too early to say that. But I can predict that a broad
spectrum of forces will support Yushchenko. I do not rule out that the
Socialists will be part of it, either.
[Woelfl] There have always been frictions between Prime Minister
Tymoshenko and President Yushchenko.
[Tarasyuk] When the government takes the wrong steps, Yushchenko
corrects them. And Yulia Tymoshenko has accepted these corrections.
[Woelfl] There are analyses stating that in Ukraine there has been a
change of elites, but not a change of system.
[Tarasyuk] The principles and moral values are completely different from
those in the Kuchma era. We have initiated reforms of the administration
and the tax system. But we need time. After all, Kuchma ruled the country
for 10 years.
[Woelfl] What will the visa policy towards the EU be like in the future?
[Tarasyuk] In the coming days we will announce the decision that, after
September and for an indefinite period, EU citizens and Swiss nationals
will not need visas to enter Ukraine. -30-
=============================================================
6. PRO-NATO POLICIES OF "ORANGE" LEADERS IN UKRAINE CREATING
INSURMOUNTABLE ABYSSES REGARDING RUSSIA'S BLACK SEA FLEET
NEWS CONFERENCE: By Col-Gen Leonid Ivashov
Vice-President, Academy of Geopolitical Problems
RIA news agency, Moscow, in Russian 1106 gmt 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
MOSCOW, Russia - The situation in Russia's Black Sea Fleet may become
exacerbated if Ukraine continues its "pro-NATO course".
This view was expressed on Wednesday [13 July] at a news conference in
RIA-Novosti [news agency] by Col-Gen Leonid Ivashov, vice-president of the
Academy of Geopolitical Problems, in connection with the Peace Shield-
2005 military exercise which has begun in Crimea. It is being conducted
within the framework of NATO's Partnership for Peace programme.
Commenting on Ukraine's striving to cooperate with the North Atlantic
alliance, Ivashov stressed that "this is the orange nature of the political
class which is in power in Ukraine".
As for the status of the Black Sea Fleet, Ivashov noted, "there are
complicated relations there but they are legally regulated". "But there are
also unregulated issues which can be settled with [enough] goodwill or in
the opposite case, they can be turned into fracture lines. Today the
Ukrainian political leadership is taking a line for these cracks to be
turned into insurmountable abysses," Ivashov stressed.
In his words, "the situation de jure up to 2017 is such that the Black Sea
Fleet can stay there (in Ukraine), but de facto such conditions may take
shape that its stay there will become impossible".
"But if the Ukrainian leadership's `pro-NATO course' continues, the
situation around the Black Sea Fleet will become more complicated since
they will not accept [Ukraine] into NATO while the Russian Federation's
fleet is based in the country," the political scientist pointed out.
In his view, the situation in relations between Russia and NATO "may
become strained if the anti-Russian course continues and if Russia plays
this up with extraordinary actions". "But there is the potential, there is a
chance to straighten the situation out - economic cooperation with Ukraine,
common threats and common military-political actions against extremist
forces. There are possibilities for technical and cultural cooperation,"
Leonid Ivashov suggests. -30-
=============================================================
7. BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT TELLS HEAD OF COMMUNIST PARTY
OF UKRAINE THERE IS AN ABRUPT SPLIT AND DIVISION IN
RELATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO NATIONS
Lukashenka said the split is absolutely unacceptable and
that he counts on the Ukrainian Communist Party's support
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, in Ukrainian 0708 gmt 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
MINSK, Belarus - The level of misunderstanding in political relations
between Belarus and Ukraine is growing, Belarusian President Alyaksandr
Lukashenka has said at a meeting with the head of the Communist Party of
Ukraine, Petro Symonenko, the presidential press service said.
"There is an abrupt split and division in our relations," Lukashenka said.
He added that he considers the split between the two countries absolutely
unacceptable. "Belarusians and Ukrainians are very close peoples. And
whatever the situation in Ukraine is, it would be a crime to dig a trench on
the border between our countries. This is unacceptable," Lukashenka said.
Lukashenka said that Belarus is "tolerating, rather than reacting" to
negative advances from certain forces in Ukraine. He is convinced that the
people in Ukraine get distorted information about the life in Belarus. "Real
friends try to look for better things in relations, but here, unfortunately,
we have the opposite," Lukashenka said.
Lukashenka said he counts on the Ukrainian Communist Party's support on
this matter. "I would like the people to know the truth about each other.
Who else, except you, can we rely on in order to prevent a split between
our states," Lukashenka said.
Symonenko said that "someone is deliberately" trying to erect barriers
between Belarus and Ukraine. "We are very concerned about unjust things
being done in the name of democracy," Symonenko said. -30-
=============================================================
8. UKRAINE PRESIDENT SPEAKING IN AUSTRIA SAYS ABOLISHING
FREE ECONOMIC ZONES WAS A MISTAKE
Honest businesses were put in new and unexpected conditions
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 1032 gmt 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed, Jul 13, 2005
VIENNA, Austria - Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko believes that the
decision to abolish special economic zones was a technical error and does
not rule out that by September, changes would be made regarding a number
of such zones, i.e. they will be restored. Yushchenko was speaking at a
meeting with business circles in Vienna, Austria today.
He said that the decision to abolish 24 free economic zones could be
viewed in several dimensions. "On the one hand, they were 'black holes',
where capital was going into the shadow sector, and 75 per cent of
export-designated produce was ending up on the domestic market,"
Yushchenko said.
"Out of the 500 projects we had, only 15 corresponded to the initial
concept, but on the other hand every [free economic zone] has decent
investors as well as frauds." "When parliament abolished economic zones,
I think it was a mistake, because honest businesses were put in new and
unexpected conditions, which changed the whole nature of their business,"
Yushchenko said.
He added that by September, the government will complete the analysis of
each individual free economic zone in order to implement a compensation
mechanism. He also said he could not rule out that a number of free
economic zones could be restored, but only after individual projects are
reviewed. "In other words, we will correct the situation," Yushchenko told
Austrian businessmen.
In 1998, the first two free economic zones and 33 territories of priority
development were created in Ukraine in order to attract investment and
stimulate job creation. The zones enjoyed special taxation and customs
benefits. In March 2005, benefits for companies operating in free economic
zones and territories of priority development were abolished. -30-
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9. ENERGY, IMAGINATION AND EMOTION AT PARIS HAUTE COUTURE
Gaultier even offered emotion, as Kateryna Yushchenko, the wife
of the popular Ukrainian leader, sat with her daughter Sophia and
watched the collection of velvet tops, sable trims, exotic peasant
blouses and colorful skirts unfold.
FASHION: By Suzy Menkes, International Herald Tribune (IHT)
Paris, France, Tuesday, July 12, 2005
PARIS - How fine is the line that separates haute couture from high-end
fashion? It is as thin as the threads embroidered on Slavic skirts and the
tresses wound into braids at Jean Paul Gaultier's show.
Can handwork itself - such as the flowers painted by eight artists on silk
dresses at Imitation of Christ - count as "couture"? And how to judge
Givenchy's workmanship in the crowded chaos of Riccardo Tisci's debut
still-life presentation?
Yet in spite of its vague definition and the shrinking number of houses,
last week's brief haute-couture season showed imagination and creative
energy.
Gaultier even offered emotion, as Kateryna Yushchenko, the wife of the
popular Ukrainian leader, sat with her daughter Sophia and watched the
collection of velvet tops, sable trims, exotic peasant blouses and colorful
skirts unfold.
"Some were so Ukrainian, they brought tears to my eyes," said Yushchenko
as she saw the French designer's trip to Ukraine become a fashion tour de
force.
The theme idea - especially one including ethnic costumes - seems more
appropriate to ready-to-wear than to couture. But Gaultier did his
collection with dash, style and sophisticated detail. From the fitted coats,
especially in a paisley pattern, through strict black Parisian suits to
Slavic trousers and folkloric skirts, the designer subsumed his ethnic
theme into a glamorous winter collection.
It may not have had the high sobriety that was typical of the season, but it
showed Gaultier beautifully in control. Even the kokoshniks, or peasant
headpieces made out of braids, were superbly realized.
Tatiana Sorokko, a former model from Russia, praised Gaultier's light
hand and ability to turn Slavic style into couture chic. "I felt very
moved," Sorokko said. "There is a thin line when you do something inspired
by ethnic clothes. It can be so cheesy - but Gaultier's take was so
refined."
Tisci is a romantic with a dark side, which fits beautifully with the
current fashion mood. The Givenchy collection that the Italian designer had
put together in the three months since his appointment - as the house's
fourth new designer in a row - was elegant and graceful, even if the chaotic
flow of people made it difficult to absorb the black clothes set off by snow
white, ivory and parchment colors. They came in mink, shearling, pashmina
and cotton poplin for a retake on Hubert de Givenchy's signature white
blouse.
Tisci's show seemed in harmony with modern times, quiet and gentle, the
antithesis of vulgarity and display. Evening clothes included black tulle
dresses, pleated tulle in violet and the designer's black and ivory color
scheme worn in layers by his muse, Maria Carla Boscono.
"I wanted to do something relaxed, something really severe with a touch of
romanticism," Tisci said. "There was so much emotion - I let myself go."
For Tara Subkoff, her Imitation of Christ "haute couture" show in the
deserted former school playground was far more complex than a parade
of clothes - although they were pretty in their light structures and painted
fabrics. Patterned parasols gave a delicate retro touch as the models
walked by an old stone wall.
A movie camera recorded them as a show within a show, with the film
designed to raise awareness of child sex trafficking in the Far East. If the
message was complicated, the effect was charming as a singer re-created
Edith Piaf songs for the parade of summer dresses in watercolor effects of
turquoise, primrose yellow and coral. And as Subkoff said: "All my friends
have painted them, they are all one of a kind and there is no way to
re-create them - so I guess that really is couture."
Dominique Sirop is a couturier with a genuine client following. His
collection of leather coats, sleek pantsuits, pinstriped blazers and satin
dresses were shown on models with ironed-flat hair and a polite stance.
Sirop's forte is the cut of his liquid evening dresses, draped on the bias
across the body.
Michel Klein is also client-friendly but he creates ready-to-wear, some of
which can be treated as one-off pieces, made to order in his shop/atelier at
332 Rue Saint-Honoré. Some pieces had a perfume of Saint Tropez in the
1960s, such as raffia decoration on graphic dresses that, as Klein says,
can "be worn with flat shoes." Other inspirations were industrial-size
fastenings and the Japanese obi belt built into dresses and jackets.
Michèle and Olivier Chatenet worked with couture toiles to create outfits
for which the client can choose the fabric. Some of the clothes morphed into
different garments, so that a dress could be upended and turned into a
peasant top. Using their favorite metal eyelets as well as pleated effects,
E2 , as the label is known, offers outfits that no longer seem like
makeovers of vintage designs but have a fashion life of their own.
Does Elie Saab do haute couture? The Mercedes limousines lined up
outside the Beaux-Arts venue and the dressed-to-the-nines front-row guests
proved that the designer has a big following. And if it is by paillettes and
pizazz that you reckon your role in couture, then Saab is in pole position.
His clothes are all about cocktail and red-carpet moments, and the outfits
showed variations on the theme of the dressed-up sexpot. Where, outside of
award ceremonies or grand weddings, would you wear dresses that required
the models to stand, pout and pose under the spotlight?
Saab had some ideas to give richness without eye-popping dazzle. He used
fur as dress straps, as in a Flemish portrait, and he tried some quieter
colors such as shades of bronze, taupe, sludge green and oxblood. Creating
volume in layers of tulle should have calmed the sex quotient. But the
effect was far from the elegant restraint that was the strongest theme of
the Paris couture season. -30-
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http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/11/reports/FASH12.php
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10. UKRAINE'S FIRST LADY MEETS WITH UNESCO DIRECTOR-GENERAL
Discussed possibility to open a Trypillyan exhibition in Paris
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, 8 JULY 2005
KYIV - In France, Kateryna Yushchenko met with Koichiro Matsuura,
UNESCO Director-General. During the meeting, which was held at the
UNESCO headquarters, the parties discussed possibilities to open an
exhibition of the Trypillyan civilization in Paris under the aegis of
UNESCO.
This idea, which belongs to President Yushchenko, was supported by
French President Jacque Chirac. The subject had already been broached
in Kyiv at a meeting of Victor Yushchenko with Munir Bushnaki, UNESCO
Director-General’s Assistant in Ukraine.
The parties also discussed the initiative to organize a concert of young
laureates of the Volodymyr Gorovyts International Piano Contest to
celebrate the 60th UNESCO Anniversary.
They also considered cooperation in the framework of the UNESCO
Connecting through Culture – Celebrating Diversity Program to hold art
festivals and conferences dedicated to Ukrainian culture and cultures of
other peoples that live in Ukraine.
Mrs. Yushchenko and Mr. Matsuura discussed a probable joint plan to
commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the Chornobyl blast.
Mr. Matsuura confirmed his intention to visit Ukraine. Yuriy Sergeev,
Ukraine’s Ambassador to France, and Ukrainian diplomats attended
the meeting. -30- [The Action Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
=============================================================
11. PRESIDENT VICTOR YUSHCHENKO AND FAMILY ATTENDED
KRAIINA MRIY INTERNATIONAL FOLK FESTIVAL
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, 10 July 2005
KYIV - Accompanied by his wife and children, who were wearing
traditional embroidered shirts, Victor Yushchenko attended the
Kraiina Mriy International Folk Festival, which is being held at the
Spivoche Pole in Kyiv.
The family walked around the Spivoche Pole, listening to performances
of various folk groups. The President seemed particularly interested in
craftsmen’s work, as he spoke with the weavers, carvers, and artists
who ornament Easter eggs.
Speaking with people, Yushchenko told them he loved to attend such
festivals, occasionally buying some ethnic items for his own collection,
for example, a Hutsul leather wallet, which he purchased recently. -30-
=============================================================
12. PRESIDENT VICTOR YUSHCHENKO PARTICIPATED IN MEMORIAL
EVENING DEDICATED TO VADYM HETMAN
Extraordinary person, development of Ukrainian banking
His murder has not been solved
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, 13 July 2005
KYIV - Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko participated in a memorial
evening dedicated to Vadym Hetman. The evening was held at the Ukrainian
National Opera House under the motto “With kindness in the heart.”
“It is a pity this person is no longer among us. It is a pity that he left a
lot of unfinished matters behind,” said the President. He thinks that Vadym
Hetman was an extraordinary person who did a lot for the development of
Ukrainian banking among other things. “He had only one standard – being
number one.
He never accepted the possibility of his students [playing second fiddle],”
said Victor Yushchenko.
In the speech Victor Yushchenko also noted “the extraordinary abilities of
Vadym Hetman – he became the leader of market economy despite
working many years as the head of institutions of the administrative model.”
The President thinks that Vadym Hetman was “a unique person in solving
numerous problems Ukraine faced several years ago.” “I know that some
of the ideas of this gray-haired person remain unattainable even to many
people of my generation,” said the President.
“We must remain optimistic because he had left behind the dearest of what
he had – his system of values,” said Victor Yushchenko. He also noted that
the criminal case in the murder of Vadym Hetman remains open and that
the Ukrainians still do not know the people behind this crime.
The President informed that he had signed a Decree to grant the title of
the Hero of Ukraine to Vadym Hetman with conferring the State honor upon
him posthumously. “I am convinced that he is a true Ukrainian hero. What I
did as a President is just a formality,” said Victor Yushchenko.
The aforementioned Presidential Decree was made public after the
President’s speech. Vadym Hetman’s widow Valentyna Opanasivna
came up to the stage and received the order and flowers from the
President. -30- [The Action Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
=============================================================
13. INTERNATIONAL RECORDING INDUSTRY WELCOMES UKRAINE'S
NEW CD PLANT LAW, A DECISIVE STEP AGAINST PIRACY
Computer Crime Research Center (CCRC)
Zaporozhye, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 13, 2005
The international recording industry today welcomed the adoption by
Ukraine of a landmark CD plant law that is a decisive step in the fight
against the country's unacceptably high levels of piracy. Ukraine's
Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) passed the long-awaited Bill of amendments
to Ukraine's Law on Laser-readable Discs which is essential to tackle
ongoing pirate CD production and illegal exports from Ukraine.
IFPI, representing 1,450 record companies worldwide, estimates that
Ukraine's piracy level is 65-70% of the music market. The pirate market
in Ukraine is worth an estimated US$42 million, but actual losses to the
legitimate industry are far greater.
Ukraine's CD plant capacity of around 50 million discs a year is three times
its legitimate demand. The adoption of the law follows sustained pressure
from the recording industry and Ukraine's trading partners.
John Kennedy, Chairman and CEO of IFPI, said: "The massive scale of
piracy in Ukraine has seriously deterred international investment in this
country's copyright sector. We warmly welcome today's decision by the
Ukrainian Parliament to reinforce the CD Plant Law and tackle the country's
piracy epidemic. This law and its enforcement are likely to have a positive
impact on Ukraine's WTO accession bid."
IFPI has kept a regular presence in Kiev in the last five years to offer
expert technical and legal assistance to the Ukraine government. Most
recently, IFPI met with President Yuschenko in the context of the Eurovision
Song Contest Finale in Kiev in May to call on his personal support for the
adoption of the bill of amendments.
Stefan Krawczyk, IFPI Deputy Regional Director, Europe, said: "This is
great news for the music industry in Ukraine and internationally. Ukrainian
and foreign artists, songwriters, record labels and retailers have been
losing millions of dollars due to rampant piracy. The passing of the bill
today shows that President Yuschenko and his administration are serious
about eradicating piracy and supporting the growth of a legitimate
industry."
Ukraine's Law on Laser-Readable Discs was first adopted in 2002 as part
of the US-Ukraine Joint Action Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement.
Due to its serious shortcomings, this Law became the focus of current US
trade sanctions against Ukraine. The Bill adopted today contains the
necessary provisions to bring Ukrainian law up to the required level.
Attempts to amend the CD Plant Law have up until now ended in failure,
resulting in continued US trade sanctions against Ukraine. This has also
had a negative impact on the country's WTO accession process.
Pressure on Ukraine has also stepped up in Europe in recent years. The
European Union has made intellectual property protection a top priority of
its bilateral trade agenda with Ukraine. Under the EU-Ukraine Partnership
and Cooperation Agreement Ukraine was obliged to bring its intellectual
property laws and enforcement into line with the EU by the end of 2001. In
recent meetings in Brussels, Geneva and Kiev the EU has been highly
critical of the lack of progress towards this goal.
Ukraine was recently cited in IFPI's Commercial Piracy Report (June 2005)
as one of the recording industry's Top Ten Priority Countries.
BACKGROUND:
Ukraine was made a Priority Foreign Country (PFC) in 2002, the highest in
a league of categories used by the US government in assessing the
effectiveness of countries' protection of intellectual property. Under the
Special 301 legislation, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has
the authority to impose economic sanctions on countries designated PFC.
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LINK: http://www.crime-research.org/news/13.07.2005/1358/
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14. TURKISH FINANSBANK TO OPERATE IN UKRAINE
Turkish Daily News, Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, July 13, 2005
ISTANBUL - Turkish Finansbank intends to start banking operations in
Ukraine, the bank's General Manager Sinan Sahinbas announced.
He also said that Finansbank aims to increase the number of its branches
and become the number one lender to SMEs, Turkish Daily News reports.
Indeed, Finansbanks aims to increase the number of branches from 185
currently to 300 by 2007.
In 2003, the bank started lending to small and medium-scale enterprises
(SMEs) under a specific programme and has since approved about 1
billion USD in loans for approximately 155,000 clients.
By the end of the current year, Finansbank aims to reach 1.5 million USD
in terms of the volume of lending to SMEs. "We want to be number one
lender to SMEs by 2007 at the latest", Sahinbas said.
Finansbank has already set up affiliates in several European countries,
such as Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Romania and Russia, while
it has branches in Germany and Belgium. Finansbank is mainly owned by
Fiba Holding and its subsidiaries and is listed on the Istanbul Stock
Exchange. -30- [The Action Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
=============================================================
15. KRAFT FOODS UKRAINE TO RESUME POTATO CHIP
EXPORTS TO RUSSIA IN AUGUST
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, July 12, 2005
KYIV - The Kraft Foods Ukraine company, known on the Ukrainian market
for its potato chip brands Lux and Estrella produced at the chips factory in
Stari Petrivtsi of Kyiv region, is going to resume export of chips to Russia
in August this year. The manager for public relations of the Kraft Foods
Ukraine Volodymyr Tkachenko made the statement at a press conference.
He noted that this year Kraft Foods Ukraine had to suspend chips export to
Russia because of sharp growth of domestic market of chips (40% up on the
last year). "The domestic market grew, raw materials trends in Russia,"
Tkachenko named the causes that caused the export of chips to Russia to
halt.
According to Kraft Foods Ukraine experts the growth of the domestic market
is probably connected with the fact that after the sharp growth the market
of rusks reached its top level last year and now the consumer again returned
to traditional chips.
According to director of Vyshhorod affiliate of Kraft Foods Ukraine, now the
chips and snack factory is loaded at 100%.
As Ukrainian News reported earlier, Kraft Foods Ukraine company expects the
salty snacks market to grow by 8.2% and the potato chips market by 10% this
year. Kraft Foods Ukraine owns the Trostianets chocolate factory Ukraina
(Sumy region).
Vyshhorod affiliate of Kraft Foods Ukraine in Stari Petrivtsi of Kyiv region
includes the potato chips and snack factory (Lux, Estrella, Cerezos brands)
and an instant coffee packing factory. The company sells the popular Jacobs,
Maxwell House, and Carte Noir coffee brands on the Ukrainian market.
Kraft Foods Ukraine is a division of Kraft Foods, the world's second largest
food producer. -30- [The Action Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
=============================================================
16. AIRCRAFT CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION CREATED IN UKRAINE
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 1209 gmt 12 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Tue, Jul 12, 2005
KIEV - The Cabinet of Minister of Ukraine adopted a resolution on Monday
[11 July] on creating a state [aircraft construction] corporation Antonov,
Industrial Policy Minister Volodymyr Shandra has told journalists.
He said that under the resolution, the corporation comprises the Antonov
Aviation Scientific and Technical Complex (Kiev) [ASTC], the Kiev state
Aviant plant, the Kharkiv State Aviation Production Enterprise [KSAPE], the
Kiev civil aviation plant No 410 and the open joint-stock company Ukrainian
Research and Development Institute for Aviation Technologies (URDIAT,
Kiev), in which the state owns a majority stake.
On 27 May, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko tasked the Cabinet of
Ministers with creating the vertically-integrated Antonov corporation that
would include the ASTC, the Aviant plant and the KSAPE in two weeks' time.
The minister said that under the current Economic Code, creating a state
corporation was the only feasible way to unite them. "There is no other
way," he said. He added that under the cabinet's resolution the
corporation's statute would be produced within a month. -30--
=============================================================
17. BUNGE UKRAINE BUYS GRAIN ELEVATORS IN CRIMEA
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wed, July 13, 2005
KYIV - Bunge Ukraine company, an owner of the Oleina trademark and part
of the namesake agricultural and food company, which is the world's leader
in processing of oil-bearing crops and sale of bottled vegetable oil, has
bought the Elita grain elevators in Krasnohvardiiske district of the Crimea.
The PR manager of Bunge company, Liudmyla Petryha, disclosed this to
Ukrainian News.
The new acquisition brought the total number of the company's grain
evaluators to 5, and their combined storage capacity increased by 50,000
tons. Bunge pursues the strategy of becoming a leader on the agricultural
and food markets in developing countries.
Hence, it is seeking to develop the infrastructure to transport and store
grain and oil-bearing crops under as much flexible and economic scheme
as possible, which is its top priority with regards to Ukraine. Therefore,
acquisition of Elita, an elevator strategically located and well known among
the local producers, will significantly strengthen its position on the
Ukrainian grain market.
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, in May 2004, the European affiliate
branch of the Bunge corporation (USA) - Bunge Europe company - created
a joint venture enterprise with Estron Corporation (Cyprus) to build an
oil-extracting plant in Illichivsk merchant seaport (Odesa region) with
annual output of 600,000 tons of raw material.
The Bunge corporation acquired the Cereol group in late 2002, of which
the Dnipropetrovsk oil-extracting plant was a part, and is one of the three
largest producers of vegetable oil. In 2004, Bunge had planned to invest
EUR 11 million in modernizing the production operations of the
Dnipropetrovsk oil-extracting plant.
Bunge is a large company on the world market that deals with production
of fertilizers and food products, and it has 450 enterprises in 28 countries
worldwide, where 25,000 persons are employed. -30-
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18. INTERIOR MINISTRY SUMMONS UKRAINE MAGNATE
By Tom Warner in Kiev, Financial Times, London, UK, Thu, July 14 2005
Rinat Akhmetov, reputed to be Ukraine's richest man, has been
summoned to give testimony in a criminal investigation, the interior
ministry announced yesterday.
The ministry said it wanted to question Mr Akhmetov about "events that
happened in Donetsk", the industrial eastern city where he and his
companies are based, and gave no other details.
Mr Akhmetov could not be contacted and made no immediate public
reaction to the summons, which comes six months after Viktor
Yanukovich, his former political ally, lost a presidential election and
three months after Boris Kolesnikov, a business partner, was jailed on
extortion charges.
Mr Akhmetov is involved in Ukraine's steel, coal, beer and mobile
telephony markets. -30- [Action Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
=============================================================
19. LAWYERS FOR UKRAINE TYCOON VIKTOR PINCHUK
CHALLENGE RESALE OF KRYVORIZHSTAL STEEL MILL
Associated Press (AP), Kiev, Ukraine, Wed, July 13, 2005
KIEV - Lawyers for one of Ukraine's wealthiest men said Wednesday
that they were challenging the government's re-privatization of the
country's biggest steel mill, citing what they said were violations in
court procedures.
The government reclaimed a 93% stake in the Kryvorizhstal plant last
month, after a court upheld an earlier ruling voiding Viktor Pinchuk and
another tycoon's acquisition of the mill at an auction last year.
Pinchuk's lawyer Serhiy Vlasenko told a news conference that the courts had
ignored several motions for what he said were violations of property laws
and court procedure. "We have all grounds to say that (Kryvorizhstal) was
seized by government against the law," Vlasenko said.
The mill - Ukraine's most profitable - was sold last year to a consortium
owned by Pinchuk and another tycoon, Rinat Akhmetov, for $800 million
despite reportedly higher offers from major steel bidders in the U.S. and
Russia. After coming to power in January, President Viktor Yushchenko
called the sale a theft, and vowed to undo it.
Vlasenko claimed that previous court rulings about Kryvorizhstal's ownership
included "many violations." He also warned any interested parties against
participating in the government's re-auction of the mill, scheduled for late
October. "Whoever wants to buy it must know that this is a contested
property," he said. Pinchuk and Akhmetov's consortium also filed a lawsuit
in the European Court of Human Rights. -30-
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20. UNITED STATES EMBASSY CALLS ON UKRAINIANS NOT TO
USE INTERMEDIARIES' WHEN APPLYING FOR AMERICAN VISAS
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, July 13, 2005
KYIV - The consular division of the United States embassy in Ukraine is
calling on Ukrainians not to use the services of intermediaries when
applying for American visas. The United States' General Consul in Ukraine
Mary-Kay Carlson announced this to journalists. "Please, do not use these
intermediaries," Carlson said.
According to her, the consulate's employees easily recognize the standard
package of documents issued by such fraudulent intermediaries.
According to her, such packages frequently include fake invitations to the
United States, which in it self is a basis for rejection of a visa
application.
For example, Carlson said that tourist forms could schedule interviews for
people seeking to obtain visas or provide information services to clients.
However, she stressed that there are no visa quotas for any organizations
and that all decisions regarding issuance of visas are made by employees
of the embassy's consular department.
Carlson said that anyone who promises to simplify the procedures for
obtaining American visas for a fee is a fraudster. Carlson further said that
the United States embassy in Ukraine sends information about such
fraudsters to the Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry and law enforcement
agencies.
"However, it is the duty of the Ukrainian authorities to persecute these
'bad guys,'" Carlson said. According to her, three conditions are required
for securing American visas: [1] a clear aim of visit to the United States,
[2] proof of financial support for the visit, and, most difficultly, [3]
proof that an applicant will return to Ukraine after visiting the United
States.
According to Carlson, most of the people whose visa applications are
rejected are unable to meet the third condition. At the same time, Carlson
said that up to 70% of people applying for short-term visas obtain them.
As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the United States has reduced its visa
application fee from USD 165 to USD 100, the Congress-approved
application fee that applies in all countries. -30-
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21. CHIEF RABBI OF UKRAINE VISITS 'GAN ISRAEL" CAMP IN ODESSA
The Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS
Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, July 13, 2004
ODESSA, Ukraine - One week into the boy's summer camp season, the
'Gan Israel' site near Odessa hosted a visit by Chief Rabbi of Ukraine
Azriel Chaikin. Accompanied by Chief Rabbi of Odessa Avraham Wolf,
the campers gathered to welcome the Jewish leaders. This year's camp
is attended by 113 schoolchildren from Odessa and various other cities of
southern Ukraine.
Speaking to the campers, Rabbi Chaikin emphasized that 'Gan Israel'
camps are simultaneously hosting tens of thousands of Jewish children
throughout the world. "In such camps, the Torah unites all of these campers
together in one Jewish family", he stated. He expressed his hope that they
learn more about Jewish traditions. Rabbi Wolf then wished that the
campers develop themselves to the fullest during their stay at the camp.
This meeting took place in the summer theater, which the campers have
transformed into a synagogue. Some boys climbed on the stage in order
to receive the Chief Rabbi's personal blessing. He then spoke with the
children, who told him about their personal plans for the future. Following
the prayer, the campers received pens with a logo of the Chief Rabbinate
of Ukraine.
Afterwards, Rabbi Chaikin spoke with teachers and camp counselors,
inspected the campers' accommodation, and joined the campers and adults
for a meal. The Chief Rabbi then held a lesson for yeshiva students from the
cities of South Ukraine, who are serving as madrichim at the camp during
their summer vacation. -30-
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http://www.fjc.ru/news/newsArticle.asp?AID=149221
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22. UKRAINE WILL BECOME WTO MEMBER IN 2005, ECONOMICS
MINISTER SERHIY TEREKHIN IS CONFIDENT
Olena Kryvenko, Ukrinform, Kyiv, Ukraine, Tue, July 12, 2005
KYIV - Ukraine has all chances to join the WTO in 2005, Economics
Minister Serhiy Terekhin expressed such an opinion at a press
conference.
According to him, with participation of the Economics Ministry and other
executive power bodies completion of bipartite negotiations with the WTO
member countries continues in the normal regime. Thus, for today, six
bipartite protocols remained to be signed about access to the market of
goods and services, which are practically adjusted, and four protocols,
around which discussions continue.
This, in particular, concerns Japan, a protocol with which will be signed in
late July during an official visit by President Viktor Yushchenko to this
country, it also concerns China, Australia and the USA.
Adjustment of protocols with Australia is the most difficult, since it
demands that an export duty for Ukrainian sugar at the level of 10 percent
will be introduced. The same situation is with China, which insists that
Ukraine recognizes it to be a market economy country, like Russia did.
Serhiy Terekhin said that Ukraine has a special agreement with the EU,
which does not allow to do that.
Serhiy Terekhin also informed those present that the Verkhovna Rada
sessions on July 6-7 considered nine laws of Ukraine, which are necessary
for joining the WTO, seven of which were fully adopted, and two of the laws
were adopted in the first reading. The Minister also said that during its
next session the Parliament has to consider and adopt 19 bills.
Serhiy Terekhin is confident that the Government, the Parliament, respective
ministries and department will make all possible that an issue about
Ukraine's joining the WTO will be included into agenda of the WTO Ministries
Conference, which will be held in December 2005. -30-
===============================================================
23. PRESIDENT SAYS UKRAINE ON TRACK TO JOIN WTO THIS YEAR
Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 13 Jul 05
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Wed Jul 13, 2005
KIEV - Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has said Ukraine is on
track to joining the WTO in December 2005.
"We have signed 30 bilateral protocols on mutual access to markets. We
are on track to joining the WTO in December 2005," Yushchenko said at
a meeting with representatives of Austrian businesses in Vienna today
[the president is in Austria on a two-day official visit].
He also said that "the key laws" required for Ukraine's accession to the
WTO have been already adopted. [Ukrainian parliament passed eight
of 14 WTO-related laws in early July.] -30-
===============================================================
24. INTERNAL DIVISIONS MAY DEFEAT YUSHCHENKO'S WTO ASPIRATIONS
Kuzio writes that Ukraine's drive for WTO membership remains uncertain
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS: Taras Kuzio
Eurasia Daily Monitor, Volume 2, Issue 135
The Jamestown Foundation, Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
The Ukrainian parliament went into summer vacation this week after adopting
only six of the 14 legislative acts needed for possible WTO membership. Two
related laws were adopted earlier. The government had wanted parliament to
consider all 14 laws as a package, but parliament refused.
A key legislative act adopted on July 6 deals with intellectual property
rights. Ukraine has long been a major player in the worldwide market of
pirated CDs. The bill passed, although the Communists, Regions of Ukraine,
and Social Democratic Party-United (SDPUo) all opposed the law.
The Ukrainian government and World Bank believe that, although all 14 draft
laws were not adopted, a sufficient number passed to qualify Ukraine to be
considered for WTO membership at the WTO biannual conference in Hong
Kong on December 13-18 (AP, July 11). Ukraine will need to adopt a total of
26 laws for WTO membership.
According to Economics Minister Serhiy Teryokhin, Ukraine has now adopted
90% of the legislative acts required to join the WTO ahead of Russia later
this year. After gaining membership, Ukraine hopes to begin negotiating a
free-trade zone with the EU. President Viktor Yushchenko also sees WTO
membership as a key component of Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration.
Yushchenko and the government claimed that joining the WTO would lead to
an additional 1.9% annual growth of GDP, $300 million additional in exports,
and new markets would open to Ukrainian goods. Ukraine would also save
$1.6 billion that it currently loses due to laws that are not compatible
with those of the 148-member WTO.
The opposition argued that WTO membership would lead to price rises and
the collapse of Ukraine's agriculture, auto, and metallurgical industries.
Opposition centrists, such as Regions of Ukraine and the SDPUo, support
Ukraine's joint entry into the WTO alongside Russia. The Communists oppose
WTO membership, while the Socialists support joining in stages.
Attempts to force the laws through parliament ahead of the summer recess
were hampered by the lack of leadership on the part of Yushchenko and a lack
of unity in the Yushchenko coalition. Writing in Zerkalo Nedeli/Tyzhnia
(July 9-15), Serhiy Rakhmanin declared that the new political leadership had
flunked its first major test, because, "The entire political leadership
lacks potency, and the new system of political decision-making works too
poorly."
This "impotence of authority" has emerged because the new regime does not
use bribes, threats, and blackmail as was common under former president
Leonid Kuchma. The new opposition is not afraid of the authorities because,
Rakhmanin believes, Yushchenko's team has not adequately punished the
former regime for its past misdeeds.
Yushchenko made another strategic miscalculation when he did not order his
own governors and government ministers to relinquish their parliamentary
seats. Twenty parliamentary deputies held government or state administrative
positions, including National Security and Defense Council secretary Petro
Poroshenko. The Communist and centrist opposition seized on this issue to
demand that they give up their seats ahead of the parliamentary debate on
WTO membership.
While in opposition, Yushchenko had specifically criticized the authorities
for illegally holding parliamentary and government positions, now this issue
was used against him. Yushchenko finally ordered his team to vacate the
parliamentary seats on July 2, only six days before the summer recess.
Yushchenko's team did not present a united front on the WTO issue.
Although the Socialists supported Yushchenko in round two of the 2004
presidential election and have been rewarded with government and governor
positions, the SPU joined the Communists and centrists in opposing WTO
legislation. The SPU seems unclear on whether it is part of the opposition
or part of the governing coalition.
Socialist leader Oleksandr Moroz said, "We criticize constructively. We
should do this because these are our authorities" (Interfax-Ukraine, July
9). Yet just last month Moroz declared that the SPU would never go into
opposition to Yushchenko (Ukrayinska pravda, June 16).
Yushchenko's People's Union-Our Ukraine party and Prime Minister
Tymoshenko are divided on the usefulness of the SPU. After the SPU failed
to back the WTO legislation, Tymoshenko and Economics Minister Teryokhin
called for the replacement of SPU ministers, particular Agriculture Minister
Oleksandr Baranovskiy.
In contrast, Yushchenko and People's Union-Our Ukraine officials continue
to delude themselves that the SPU are useful and should be therefore be
invited to join their bloc in the March 2006 parliamentary election.
The SPU also differs with the government over privatization, including
whether to keep Kryvorizhstal in state hands or put it up for a new
privatization tender. The SPU is also hostile, like the Communist and
centrist opposition, to NATO membership.
Parliamentary bickering in the last week before the summer recess also
deepened the rift with parliamentary speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn, whose
People's Party is a potential member of the Yushchenko coalition in the
2006 election (see EDM, July 8).
Lytvyn accused the government of preparing flawed bills in great haste and
called for greater debate about the merits of joining the WTO. Lytvyn also
accused the government of being unwilling to cooperate with parliament
(Inter TV, July 10).
Tymoshenko retorted that Lytvyn and Moroz were, alongside the
Communist-centrist opposition, also her opponents (Ukrayinska pravda,
July 10). As for government work on WTO legislation, she said, "Don't listen
to these stupidities, when they say that the government submitted something
in haste, that it submitted half-baked documents, that something was not
agreed with MPs" (1+1 TV, July 10). In reality, "The government is being
obstructed from working," Tymoshenko alleged. -30-
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Taras Kuzio is a Visiting Professor at the Institute for European Russian
and Eurasian Studies, George Washington University, Washington, DC
tkuzio@gwu.edu, www.ieres.org, www.taraskuzio.net.
==============================================================
25. UKRAINE: WOULD HIKE IN RUSSIAN GAS PRICES
PROVE A BLESSING IN DISGUISE?
FEATURE ARTICLE: By Valentinas Mite
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)
Prague, Czech Republic, Wed, July 13, 2005
Russia's State Duma is urging the government to consider exporting natural
gas to Ukraine at world prices. The Duma's recommendation comes amidst
Russian accusations that Ukraine is stealing Russian gas transiting its
territory, a claim Kyiv strongly denies.
Ukraine is highly dependent on Russian energy resources, and higher prices
could seriously strain its economy. Others believe such a price hike might
serve as a blessing in disguise by pushing the Ukrainian government to
implement economic reforms that it wouldn't have adopted otherwise.
PRAGUE, 13 July 2005 (RFE/RL) -- The price hike, if it happens, would be
huge. Currently, Ukraine pays $50 per 1,000 cubic meters of gas. The world
price is around $160. Ukraine consumes 24 billion cubic meters of Russian
gas annually.
RFE/RL analyst Roman Kupchinsky says the proposed hike should be seen
as a blessing by Ukrainian reformers. "Ukraine, which wants to join the
European Union, has to learn that it has to pay European prices for energy,"
he said.
"The good part of that is it might finally force Ukraine to begin a program
of energy conservation. Ukraine is the sixth-largest user of natural gas in
the world, with a GDP [gross domestic product] which is No. 45 or 46 or
even worse."
Some are afraid any price hike could have a devastating impact on the
country's economy. Kupchinsky disagrees. He says market reforms could be
quickly introduced and that Kyiv would be forced to use the resources it has
more effectively. He believes the economic consequences of such a hike
would be mild, noting that much of Ukraine's economy is run on coal.
On the other hand, Ukraine also has the means to retaliate against the
Russian move by implementing its own market measures. Currently, Kyiv
is selling steel and electricity to Russia at well below world prices.
Russia also pays low prices for the transit of gas through Ukraine.
IMPETUS FOR REFORM OR THREAT?
Oleksiy Kolomiyets, the head of the Kyiv-based Center for European and
Trans-Atlantic Studies, says a sudden rise in the price of gas, with no time
to adjust, might indeed push Ukraine's economy to the brink of collapse.
But he agrees that a price hike could also act as an impetus for reforms.
"What I have in mind is at least trying to create a good climate for
investment, radical tax cuts, a clear policy of defending private
property." - Kolomiyets
"What I have in mind is at least trying to create a good climate for
investment, radical tax cuts, a clear policy of defending private property.
These three main points should be implemented and, of course, further
liberalization of Ukrainian economic policy," Kolomiyets said. He believes
the government that came to power after the Orange Revolution lacks the
commitment for such reforms.
SHIFT TO THE SOUTH?
The Orange Revolution has reoriented the direction of Ukrainian policy
toward the West. Observers say the Russian gas problem might trigger
another shift.
During a recent this week to Iran, Petro Poroshenko, the head of Ukraine's
National State Security and Defense Council, suggested that Tehran could
use Ukrainian pipelines to export its gas to Europe. Iranian officials
reportedly embraced the idea.
Kupchinsky says there is nothing new in the plan, as Ukraine has always
sought closer economic ties with Iran. "The main question there is the
question of constructing a gas pipeline from Iran to Ukraine and on to
Western Europe," he said. "This, of course, would probably be a suitable
alternative to Russia. Iran would, of course, also charge world prices for
its natural gas, as it does for its current customers."
He notes such a plan would likely be opposed by the United States, which
fears Iran could use any additional cash for its suspected nuclear-weapons
program.
Regardless of the price, both analysts point out that the Duma's appeal to
the Russian government doesn't mean the price of gas will actually be
raised. Kolomiyets says the Russian government makes decisions, not the
Duma, and that the Duma's recommendation may be nothing more than a
political declaration.
"In a sense, the Duma -- if you have in mind the Duma's composition -- is
a kind of trumpet for those ideas that the official Kremlin cannot allow
itself to say," he said. "If these declarations were to be followed by
concrete decisions by the Russian government, then it would indicate a
very serious policy."
Kolomiyets points out that Moscow might use the gas issue as a means
for influencing the political situation in Ukraine ahead of next spring's
parliamentary elections. -30-
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Valentinas Mite is a correspondent for RFE/RL in Prague. From 1992 to
1999, he covered Lithuanian political, social, and economic affairs as a
freelancer for the Lithuanian Service. Mite has reported from Chornobyl for
the Lithuanian Service and spent three months in Iraq last year covering the
post-Saddam situation. He also has served as an election monitor in
Bosnia-Herzegovina for the OSCE. (http://www.rferl.org/featurearticle)
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