NEWSBRIEFS (02/21/99)

NEWSBRIEFS

Pope officially invited to Ukraine

KYIV An official invitation to visit Ukraine in 1999 has been extended to Pope John Paul II, as head of state of the Vatican, by Ukrainian government officials. The chairman of the State Committee on Religious Affairs, Viktor Bondarenko, said at a press conference that the visit is possible in November or December, after the presidential election is over. This would be the first visit to Ukraine by the head of the Catholic Church. (RFE/RL Newsline, UNIAR)

Kuchma vetoes election bill ...

KYIV President Leonid Kuchma has returned the law on presidential elections to the Verkhovna Rada for revision, Ukrainian Television reported on February 15. According to the president, many provisions of the bill do not conform with the Constitution of Ukraine and other laws. He has proposed several amendments to the bill, including granting the right to nominate presidential candidates not only to political parties and groups of voters but also to public organizations. He also proposes shortening the presidential election campaign from the 180 days stipulated by the bill to 120 days. And he has suggested including a provision stipulating that a vote can back only one presidential candidate with his/her signature. (RFE/RL Newsline)

...denies persecuting Lazarenko

KYIV President Leonid Kuchma has rejected former Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko's statement in The New York Times on February 15 that he is being politically persecuted in Ukraine, Ukrainian Television reported. President Kuchma said that Mr. Lazarenko who is charged with misappropriating state funds can freely express his ideas, travel across Ukraine and leave the country. According to Ukrainian Television, Mr. Lazarenko departed for Greece on February 15. The Verkhovna Rada was scheduled later this week to discuss lifting Mr. Lazarenko's parliamentary immunity in order to allow criminal proceedings against him. Mr. Lazarenko has announced his intention to run in the 1999 presidential elections. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Heavy snows hit Zakarpattia

KYIV The Emergency Ministry on February 11 sent 260 relief workers to Zakarpattia to evacuate people from certain areas of the region. In some districts snowfall has exceeded three meters. The next day news media reported that over 300 military servicemen were working to clear the heavy snows. Soldiers were clearing over two meters of snow from the cities of Mukachiv, Uzhhorod and Perechyn, and from railroad tracks. By February 16, 1,100 servicemen were working to clear the snows that have disrupted communications; they had cleared over 30 kilometers of roads and uncovered over 500 cars in the region. (Eastern Economist)

NATO officials eye training ground

KYIV Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksander Kuzmuk on February 12 gave a NATO delegation a tour of the Yavoriv military training ground near Lviv, ITAR-TASS reported. The delegation, which is from the alliance's Political Committee, is studying the use of the complex as a NATO Partnership for Peace training base. Yavoriv is 50 kilometers west of Lviv and just 20 miles from the Polish border. Covering 42,000 hectares, it is reportedly the largest military training ground in Europe. A NATO spokesman said the base would be used strictly for training peacekeeping troops. He added that NATO is also considering sites in Slovenia and Macedonia. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Youth groups denounce Tkachenko

KYIV The head of the All-Ukrainian Union Molod Nadiia Ukrainy (Youth The Hope of Ukraine), Vadym Hladchuk, announced on February 15 that "Ukrainian youth organizations have expressed a vote of no-confidence in Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksander Tkachenko and are calling for Rada deputies to remove Mr. Tkachenko from his post." The statement, signed by representatives of the union, the Ukrainian Student League, Young Rukh and the Youth Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists, notes that the organizations made the decision after Mr. Tkachenko's statements on the necessity of Ukraine's membership in the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly and on the union of Russia and Belarus. (Eastern Economist)

Leftists reject land sale bill

KYIV On the initiative of its left-wing factions, the Verkhovna Rada on February 16 rejected the presidential draft bill on the sale of land plots of non-agricultural application. Those who opposed the draft law said they believe it was imposed by the International Monetary Fund and, if approved, would launch a large-scale process of land trade in Ukraine. President Leonid Kuchma on February 12 had signed a decree that permitted the purchase/sale of non-agricultural land plots and submitted a corresponding draft law to the Parliament for approval. The decree permitted the sale of state-owned land plots of non-agricultural application to local state administrations and municipal land plots to corresponding local councils. Implementation of the decree was to bring in more than 1 billion hrv annually in additional revenues. (Eastern Economist)

Sabodan's Church works with conscripts

KYIV Metropolitan Volodymyr Sabodan of the Ukrainian Orthodox ChurchMoscow Patriarchate and the commander of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on February 11 concluded an agreement of cooperation that provides for a program of cooperation in ecclesiastical, cultural and moral development of young conscripts undergoing preparatory military training. The UOC-MP will provide the Internal Affairs Ministry's military libraries with ecclesiastical literature and ecclesiastical video and audio materials. (Eastern Economist)

Coal miners continue protests

KYIV Workers from at least 78 coal mines protested to demand back wages for several months, the DPA news agency reported on February 11. Miners threatened blockades and mass demonstrations in Kyiv if their demands are not met. Timur Litovchenko, an analyst for the Coal Ministry, said "The coffers are empty. What we could give to the miners, we would have to take away from teachers and pensioners." The Independent Miners' Union said the same day that two miners were killed in Horlivka and Donetsk, bringing the total number of Ukrainian miners killed this year to 28. (RFE/RL Newsline)

President sacks energy minister

KYIV President Leonid Kuchma signed a decree on February 10 firing Energy Minister Oleksii Sheberstov for "serious faults in his work," ITAR-TASS reported. Mr. Kuchma announced at a national meeting of farmers the previous day that he intended to replace Mr. Sheberstov because of continued power cuts to rural areas in Ukraine. A successor was not named. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Peace Corps murder trial under way

CHERNIHIV The trial for the grisly murder of a Peace Corps volunteer on September 14, 1998, began on February 15 in Chernihiv, about 150 kilometers northeast of Kyiv. Victor Verloo, a native of Sacramento, Calif., was found stabbed to death in his apartment. Within a week police had a suspect and five accomplices in custody, but paperwork has apparently delayed the trial until now. The confessed murderer, a local man in his 30s who has spent some 16 years in jail, had been given amnesty by President Leonid Kuchma just a few weeks earlier, in honor of Ukrainian Independence Day, August 24. Under Ukrainian law, the family of the victim has the right to participate in the prosecution. The trial is not expected to take very long, and the court will probably press for the death penalty. (Eastern Economist)

Russia to name new ambassador

MOSCOW President Boris Yeltsin on February 12 accepted the resignation of Yuri Dubinin, Russia's ambassador to Ukraine. Mr. Dubinin, who is retiring, is expected to be replaced by Ivan Aboimov, currently Russia's ambassador to Finland. (Eastern Economist)

Russian language continues to dominate

KYIV First Vice Minister of Information Minister Oleh Bai told Verkhovna Rada deputies on February 9, during a report on the information sector in Ukraine, that two-thirds of all publications in Ukraine are still in the Russian language. Mr. Bai informed deputies that as of the end of 1998 more than 8,300 periodicals were registered in Ukraine; 3,311 of these were available beyond the borders of Ukraine, while about 5,000 were available in most Ukrainian cities. Mr. Bai added that recently a "bold expansion" of foreign publications has occurred on the domestic market. Deputies spoke of the need to increase domestic TV production levels and reduce the number of soap operas on the air. (Eastern Economist)

NATO envoy looks to strengthen ties ...

KYIV US envoy to NATO Alexander Vershbow said on February 8 that the main aim of his visit to Ukraine was to discuss questions prior to the forthcoming April NATO summit in Washington. Ukraine "is an important player in the new common security system in Europe," he said. Mr. Vershbow also stressed the importance of the reform of Ukraine's defense system and of deepening Ukraine's program of cooperation with NATO. Also discussed during the visit were questions of bilateral cooperation between Ukraine and NATO, including participation in joint programs and projects, and the possibility of training for the Ukrainian military at NATO establishments. Mr. Vershbow noted that NATO gave $2 million (U.S.) in aid to Ukraine in 1998, adding that Ukraine receives the most financial aid of all of NATO's partners. (Eastern Economist)

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