NEWSBRIEFS (11/17/96)

NEWSBRIEFS

Surprise: Chernomyrdin postpones visit

MOSCOW - Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin has postoned a mid-November visit to Ukraine, until " the documents that must be prepared for his visit are ready," ITAR-TASS reported. The postponement continues a well-established pattern in which Ukrainian and Russian leaders publicly announce the resolution of the fleet dispute, but disputed details block the final agreement. At this time, the dispute concerns the terms under which the Russian portion of the Black Sea Fleet will lease facilities in the Ukrainian port of Sevastopol. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Black Sea Fleet talks stalled again

KYIV - First Deputy Defense Minister Ivan Bizhan in an interview with Ukrainian Radio on November 11 said that Sevastopol cannot be an exclusive military base for the Russian Black Sea Fleet. He said Russian ground forces should be removed from Ukraine's territory and Russia should give an exact count of the ships and troops it wants to keep based temporarily in Ukraine. He added that the location of Ukraine's Navy command is an internal Ukrainian affair and not a subject for discussion. Gen. Bizhan said the stumbling block in the latest round of talks was the Sevastopol issue as Russia is "categorically opposed" to having Ukraine's Navy command based there. (OMRI Daily Digest).

Battle of the busts: Lenin vs. Hitler

KYIV - Ukrainian nationalists, incensed by the unveiling of a new bust of Vladimir Lenin in the town of Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky (Odesa region), have threatened to retaliate by putting up a monument of their own - of Adolf Hitler. Hitler and Lenin had performed "similar services" to the people of Ukraine, according to a statement issued by members of the political party State Independence of Ukraine. The mayor of Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky paid for the new bust of Lenin for the town, but many citizens have protested this move, saying that millions of Ukrainians were murdered and tortured by Lenin, and millions more were assassinated or starved to death by Lenin's successor, Josef Stalin. About 8 million people were estimated to have been killed when Hitler's forces overran Ukraine during the second world war. The nationalists have said that President Leonid Kuchma should order the destruction this year of thousands of Lenin monuments still standing since Ukraine declared independence in 1991. "A decision by President Kuchma to take down all remaining Lenin statues and other symbols of the Russian occupying powers could avert such an international scandal," the statement sent out by the party said. Communists, many older people and traditionalists are very reluctant to part with the symbols of their Soviet past. When Odesa Mayor Eduard Gurvitz ordered the removal of all Lenin statues earlier this year, some residents mounted a round-the-clock guard to stop him. (Reuters)

Motorola has big plans for Ukraine

KYIV - Motorola Ukrainian Investments Inc. and Ukrainian Radio Systems on November 7 announced a joint investment of $500 million (US) to provide Ukraine with GSM 900 communications service for mobile telephones. The firms said they intend to develop a so-called "Flash network" in Ukraine over the next few years. The investment, if it comes through, would amount to about half of the approximately $1 billion (US) in total foreign investment Ukraine has received to date. URS, the Ukrainian branch of Motorola, has already invested about $2 million (US) in technological research to balance the traditional military use of the 900 Mhz frequency in Ukraine with use by mobile telephones, but it is still waiting for a state license to operate on the frequency. If all goes well, Motorola officials said the Flash network could be operating in Kyiv by the end of the year. The venture would immediately create 2,000 jobs. (Eastern Economist)

Kuchma warns against ethnic hatred

KYIV - In a weekly radio address, President Leonid Kuchma warned that his administration would use "every available legal means" against any group found guilty of stirring up ethnic hatred and discord in the country, reported Radio Ukraine on November 10. President Kuchma said he was not referring to any specific incident, but that "national chauvinism, Ukrainophobia, anti-Semitism and Russophobia are great dangers." He also underscored that the newly adopted constitution guarantees equal rights for all of Ukraine's more than 100 national minorities and added that he regularly holds meetings with representatives of minority groups. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Hryvnia slips in October

KYIV - The value of the hryvnia slipped by 3.5 percent in trading against the dollar in October, the first such depreciation of a Ukrainian tender in three months, reported Ukrainian TV on November 5. The decrease - from 1.76 to 1.82 hryvni to the dollar - has been attributed to a printing of unbacked hryvni by the National Bank to pay for energy supplies for the winter because of a huge shortfall in government revenues. National Bank Governor Viktor Yushchenko said he expected the hryvnia would remain within a corridor of 1.82 to 1.87 hryvnias to the dollar by the end of the year. The government revealed that its total debt in public sector wages and pensions mow amounts to 3 billion hryvni, the equivalent of $1.7 billion (U.S.) . (OMRI Daily Digest).

October Revolution anniversary marked

KYIV - Thousands of leftists throughout Ukraine marked the 79th anniversary of the October revolution by protesting government policies they say have impoverished millions of citizens, Ukrainian media reported on November 7. Nationalists and national democrats held alternative gatherings to commemorate those repressed by the Soviet regime and called for a symbolic trial of the Communist Party. The largest Communist rallies took place in Kyiv and Donetsk, where demonstrators called on President Leonid Kuchma to resign. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Crime down, corruption on the rise

KYIV - Crime has fallen by 5 percent in Ukraine this year, but corruption has skyrocketed, according to the chiefs of Ukraine's top law enforcement bodies, reported Ukrainian TV on November 5. Interior Minister Yurii Kravchenko told Parliament that violent crime had decreased by 7 percent, although Security Service Chief Volodymyr Radchenko said the number of investigations of government officials for corruption had jumped 32 percent. Mr. Radchenko recommended that the Parliament retain capital punishment for violent crimes at least through the next expected wave of privatization of some of the country's most coveted firms. He claimed to have evidence that foreign criminal groups have planned to wrest control of some of these highly profitable companies. Supreme Court Chief Justice Vitalii Boyko said 754 individuals were convicted of murder in 1995 and 125 of those were sentenced to death. Ukraine, which became a member of the Council of Europe one year ago, has promised to abolish the death penalty by 1998. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Kyiv's rating goes up one notch in survey

KYIV - Kyiv has crept up one notch on the Corporate Resources Group survey of best cities in the world, coming in at 159 out of the 161 cities on the list. Only Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and Sarajevo (Bosnia) ranked below Kyiv. Moscow came in at 158, because of its soaring crime rate and flourishing gangs. Last year, Kyiv was ranked 160 out of 161 by the Geneva-based group, whose data is used by governments and international firms in assessing how to pay staff they send abroad. Two Canadian cities -Vancouver and Toronto - captured first and second place in the poll, which focuses on quality-of-life issues, such as political and economic stability, crime, pollution, health, environment and education. European cities ranked in the top 10 include Geneva, Zurich and Helsinki; best U.S. cities to live in include Atlanta, San Francisco and Honolulu. (Reuters)