NEWSBRIEFS (12/01/96)

NEWSBRIEFS

Ukrainian president meets Arafat

KYIV - Leonid Kuchma met with Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat in Bethlehem on November 26, international news agencies reported. The two discussed the situation in the Palestinian territories and Ukrainian-Palestinian cooperation. Mr. Kuchma said Ukraine supports self-determination for the Palestinian people in their negotiations with Israel. Mr. Arafat announced that agreement had been reached on opening a Palestinian Embassy in Kyiv. It was the first time Mr. Arafat has received a foreign head of state in Bethlehem, which was transferred to Palestinian rule as part of the Israeli-Palestinian autonomy agreements. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Kuchma signs agreements with Israel

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma on November 25 signed several economic agreements with Israel, AFP and Ukrainian Radio reported. The accords cover maritime trade, protection of resources and cooperation on customs issues. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he received assurances from President Kuchma that Ukraine is not signing any arms deals with Iran and that it has decided not to sell tanks to Baghdad. He stressed that Ukraine is not seeking any compensation from Israel for this, nor was Israel offering any to Kyiv. Mr. Netanyahu also said Israel hoped Ukraine's government would work to reduce the risks for foreign investors in Ukraine. He added that he had accepted an invitation to visit Ukraine, and would come along with a delegation of businessmen. (OMRI Daily Digest)

President denies pressing for early vote

KYIV - Leonid Kuchma has denied accusations by lawmakers that he is leading a campaign to dissolve the Verkhovna Rada and hold early elections, the Ukrainian media reported on November 22. Legislators have drawn that conclusion from his recent appeal to the Constitutional Court to review two parliamentary decisions that he believes violate the country's basic law. The next parliamentary elections are not due until the spring of 1998. President Kuchma said an early vote would be too costly and could destabilize the country. Deputies have postponed until April a second reading of a new election bill that would transform Ukraine's electoral system. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Air force officials survived hijack crash

KYIV - Three members of a Ukrainian Defense Ministry mission survived the hijack crash of the Boeing-767 on November 23 in the Comoro Islands, it was reported on November 25. They are Deputy Commander of the Ukrainian Air Force Lt. Gen. Viktor Strelnikov and two other high Ukrainian military officials who were in Adis Abeba (Addis Ababa) to negotiate modernizing MiG-21s belonging to the Ethiopian Air Force. The fate of the fourth member of the mission is still unknown. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Kyiv against Russian presence in Moldova

BUCHAREST - Radio Bucharest reported on November 25 that Ukraine has expressed opposition to a recent Russian State Duma resolution calling for a permanent status for the Russian contingent in Moldova. The Foreign Ministry said Ukraine is opposed because it respects Moldova's territorial integrity. (OMRI Daily Digest)

National Bank to prevent hryvnia's slide

KYIV - National Bank of Ukraine Chairman Viktor Yushchenko has said the devaluation of the national currency has ended, it was reported on November 19. He noted that the NBU will intervene to support the exchange rate against the dollar because if the hryvnia falls below 1.9 to $1, inflation will soar. The new currency, introduced in early September, had devalued by 7 percentage points at the end of October, following nearly two months of stability. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Privatization of strategic enterprises halted

KYIV - Lawmakers on November 22 voted to suspend the privatization of 208 state-owned enterprises deemed "strategically important" until laws governing investments in such businesses are adopted. They also decided to investigate how the State Property Fund has so far conducted the privatization of such companies and to increase the number of state-owned enterprises barred from privatization from 1,475 to 7,111. (OMRI Daily Digest)

PM presents draft budget to Parliament

KYIV - Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko submitted the 1997 draft budget to lawmakers on November 22. The draft calls for a budget deficit of 5.8 percent. It also foresees payment in full of the government's debt for public sector wages and pensions by the end of the first quarter as well as increased credits to the agricultural sector. The draft incorporates deep cuts in spending on government and social benefits, including the elimination of all subsidies to residents for rents and utilities. Vice Prime Minister Viktor Pynzenyk said the plan cuts the total tax burden on enterprises by 7.3 percent and simplifies the tax system, although more tax reforms are still needed. (OMRI Daily Digest)