NEWSBRIEFS (10/18/98)

NEWSBRIEFS

Rumors reported of Yuschenko's ouster

KYIV - Following President Leonid Kuchma's criticism last week of National Bank of Ukraine policies, some Ukrainian newspapers have suggested that NBU Chairman Viktor Yuschenko may be dismissed as a scapegoat for the current financial crisis. Those rumors appear to be corroborated by Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksander Tkachenko's proposal that Mr. Yuschenko explain to the Parliament "why the hryvnia exchange rate is still changing with regard to that damned dollar," the newspaper Segodnia reported on October 10. "I think it is enough for the National Bank to work without supervision," Mr. Tkachenko added. Den suggested on October 10 that if Mr. Yuschenko were dismissed, the Verkhovna Rada would likely order the printing presses switched on to deal with the current lack of cash in Ukraine. (RFE/RL Newsline)

... but Kuchma praises National Bank

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma told the Cabinet of Ministers meeting on October 12 that the National Bank of Ukraine took "very professional" measures to deal with the financial crisis, Ukrainian News reported. National Bank Chairman Viktor Yuschenko, who also addressed the meeting, rejected recent criticism that the bank unjustifiably supported the hryvnia. Criticism of Mr. Yuschenko's policies has sparked rumors about his imminent dismissal. Commenting on the current crisis in Ukraine, at an October 8 meeting with raion administration leaders, Mr. Kuchma had said the primary reason for the crisis is the attempt by the National Bank of Ukraine to artificially maintain the hryvnia exchange rate. "Boasting of the fact that the hryvnia is more stable than the dollar, the mark, or the yen is a pleasant thing. But artificially curbing inflation is not protecting" the country from inflationary trends, he commented. (RFE/RL Newsline)

U.N. session focuses on peacekeepers

KYIV - The Ukrainian delegation to the United Nations on October 8 participated in a special session of the General Assembly dedicated to the 50th anniversary of U.N. peacekeeping operations. More than 100 veterans and current members of the international organization's peacekeeping forces were present for the session, as were other U.N. officials, including former Secretary-General Perez De Cuellar, who were involved in peacekeeping around the globe. Speakers noted the significance of the United Nations efforts in maintaining peace, and the continuing need for such activity. Since 1948 there have been 49 peacekeeping operations - 36 of them in the past 10 years. More than 1,500 men and women have died while serving as U.N. peacekeepers, among them 17 Ukrainian citizens. (UNIAN)

Ukraine offers mediation in Kosovo

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma said at a meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Borys Tarasyuk on October 8 that Ukraine is ready to mediate in the Kosovo crisis, Interfax reported. "The only way to defuse the crisis is to start peace talks immediately and resolve all issues by political means," Mr. Kuchma's press service quoted him as saying. He added that Ukraine supports the territorial integrity of Yugoslavia and broad autonomy for Kosovo. (RFE/RL Newsline)

PM reports on Cabinet's performance

KYIV - At a Cabinet of Ministers session on October 12, Prime Minister Valerii Pustovoitenko reported on the country's economic performance in the first nine months of this year, Interfax reported. Mr. Pustovoitenko said prices of manufactured goods in September jumped by 150 percent compared with August. The same month, the hryvnia was devalued by 51 percent, compared with the official exchange rate in August, and by 79 percent since the beginning of the year. The prime minister said production continues to grow in most branches of the economy, except for ferrous metallurgy and engineering, which in effect account for a 0.3 percent decline in industrial production from January through September 1998. Commenting on prospects for the Ukrainian economy, Mr. Pustovoitenko said he is "scared about the avalanche of the world financial crisis approaching Ukraine." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Brain drain discussed at seminar

KYIV - Viktor Trefylov, director of the Frantsevych Scientific Institute, said on October 5 at the international seminar "Intellectual Property: Licensing Issues" that during the last seven years 5,600 scientists have left Ukraine, including 500 professors. Mr. Trefylov said the brain drain is a problem common to all former Soviet republics. Russia's Foreign Affairs Ministry said more than 3,000 scientists worked abroad in 1993, and another 5,000 to 6,000 scientists leave Russia every two years. In Ukraine, 2.5 percent of the gross domestic product was spent on basic research in 1991; by 1996 this figure was cut to 0.7 percent. On the same day, National Academy of Sciences President Borys Paton was awarded the gold medal of the World Organization of Intellectual Property for his efforts to protect intellectual property. (Eastern Economist)

UNICEF chief pays visit to Ukraine

KYIV - United Nations Under-Secretary-General and UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy made her first official visit to Ukraine on October 8-11 to discuss children's rights and the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, signed and ratified by Ukraine in 1991. Other issues included assistance to child victims of the Chornobyl catastrophe, handicapped children and orphans, and eliminating iodine-deficiency diseases in Ukraine by the year 2000. Ms. Bellamy stressed that Ukraine must urgently address the AIDS problem in Ukraine, which is the fastest-growing in Europe. HIV cases grew from under 500 in 1994 to 36,000 as of mid-1998. Ms. Bellamy also said that UNICEF is concerned about the fate of Ukraine's estimated 160,000 children in state orphanages. UNICEF pledges to raise $500,000 to improve conditions for children in institutional care and another $500,000 for children and mothers affected by the 1986 Chornobyl nuclear disaster. (Eastern Economist, RFE/RL Newsline)

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