NEWSBRIEFS (09/19/04)

NEWSBRIEFS

Melnychenko tapes discredited by 'experts'

KYIV - Oleksander Krut, chief forensics expert of the Ukrainian Justice Ministry, told journalists on September 10 that an outside commission of "international experts" has examined some 36 hours of the so-called Melnychenko tapes it received from the Procurator General's Office, Ukrainian news agencies reported. Mr. Krut said the commission came to the conclusion that the tapes it examined had been altered and that voices recorded on them cannot be identified. Mr. Krut did not clarify who passed the tapes to the Procurator General's Office. Early this year the Ukrainian government allocated 850,000 hrv ($160,000) to determine the authenticity of the tapes allegedly made by former presidential security officer Mykola Melnychenko, which implicate President Leonid Kuchma and other senior Ukrainian officials in the 2000 killing of Internet journalist Heorhii Gongadze. The commission consists of two Ukrainians, two Russians and one Lithuanian. The Ukrainian government did not heed requests by the international human rights watchdog Reporters Without Borders and other non-governmental organizations earlier this year to be allowed to take part in the examination of the audiotapes. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Tatars warn of Muslim party's proselytizing

SYMFEROPOL - The secular National Assembly of Crimean Tatars issued a statement on September 13 expressing concern about the recent arrival in Crimea of activists from the banned Islamic Hizb ut-Tahrir party, Interfax reported. The statement claimed that Hizb activists are attempting to spread among local Muslims "false teachings and objectives rejected by Islam." Hizb ut-Tahrir is known to be active in Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, where hundreds of its activists have been arrested and sentenced for seeking to overthrow the constitutional order. The party's proclaimed objective is to bring about the downfall of the present secular leaderships in Central Asia and create an Islamic caliphate in their place. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Kuchma sends letter on 9/11 anniversary

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma sent a letter to President George W. Bush on the occasion of the third anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks on the United States. The letter noted: "Today, when the third anniversary of the terrible terrorist attack on the U.S.A. is being mourned, the people of Ukraine once again commemorate with your nation and with the families of the tragedy's victims." The letter recalled "the American people's courage" in the face of the terror attacks. "The cruel terror attacks on the U.S.A. were a challenge not only to your country, but also to the entire civilized global community. The recent tragic events in the Russian town of Beslan have once again underscored the dire need for consolidating the international community and mustering its effort in combating against this global evil, with a view of eliminating threats, which terrorism poses," wrote Mr. Kuchma. "Our state will continue making its weighty contribution to strengthening international security for the sake of preserving our civilization and peace on the planet, for the sake of securing the supremacy of law and respect for human rights. Ukraine will remain true to its commitments as an active participant in the anti-terrorism coalition and will do its best to counter terrorism." (Action Ukraine Report)

PM signals change of tack toward EU

KYIV - Prime Minister and presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovych told the Financial Times on September 10 that Kyiv has ceased urging Brussels to pledge unambiguously that Ukraine will become a member of the European Union and has proposed instead developing relations through two- or three-year agreements covering specific issues like trade or the free movement of labor. Mr. Yanukovych said he hopes this new step-by-step approach will still lead to Ukraine "one day becoming a European Union member." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Yushchenko warns of 'neo-Soviet revival'

KYIV - Opposition presidential candidate and Our Ukraine bloc leader Viktor Yushchenko wrote in the International Herald Tribune on September 10 that Ukrainians are anxious about Brussels drawing a new division line between European Union member-states and non-EU countries and thus creating "a bipolar Europe." According to Mr. Yushchenko's piece, titled "Plotting Europe's Eastern Border," non-EU countries in Eastern Europe are witnessing the emergence of "rampant capitalism, Soviet authoritarianism and even a dose of medieval feudalism." Specifically Ukraine is seeing "ominous signs of a neo-Soviet revival," Mr. Yushchenko asserted. He said such threatening phenomena in his country can be warded off by the West by proposing full EU membership to Ukraine "on the basis of established criteria for membership." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Is majority coalition disintegrating?

KYIV - The parliamentary caucus of the Popular Agrarian Party of Ukraine (known by its Ukrainian acronym as NAPU) has relieved itself of "coalition obligations" and suspended its membership in the parliamentary majority that supports the Cabinet of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, UNIAN reported on September 10. The NAPU, which has 21 deputies in the Verkhovna Rada, is headed by Rada Chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn. Moreover, 11 lawmakers from the 16-strong Center group in the Verkhovna Rada said the same day that they are leaving the pro-government majority. The previous day, the Democratic Initiatives-People's Power caucus, which has 15 deputies, also announced its pullout from the pro-government parliamentary coalition. Both the NAPU and the Democratic Initiatives - People's Power caucuses cited a lack of coordination and communication between the government and people's deputies as the main reasons for their withdrawal. (RFE/RL Newsline)

U.S. official urges democratic election

KYIV - U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs John Tefft told journalists in Kyiv on September 8 that the United States hopes that the upcoming presidential election in Ukraine is democratic, Interfax reported. Mr. Tefft said Washington has received reports that not all of Ukraine's presidential candidates enjoy equal access to regional media and that there have been cases of intimidation of voters in Ukraine. Mr. Tefft added, however, that Washington does not think that the election process in Ukraine is "doomed." Mr. Tefft also expressed hope that Ukraine does not withdraw its contingent from Iraq. Mr. Tefft held a press conference following a meeting with President Leonid Kuchma. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Feud over Danube project continues...

BUCHAREST - Romanian Foreign Ministry spokesman Catalin Ionita on September 13 again called on Ukraine to respect its international commitments and supply relevant information on the construction of a controversial deep-water shipping canal in the Danube Delta, Mediafax reported. Mr. Ionita added that a field trip Ukraine organized for diplomats and journalists to visit the canal cannot replace an environmental-impact study on the issue. Mr. Ionita's comments came following statements made the same day in Bucharest by Ukraine's Ambassador to Romania Teofil Bauer, who argued that Ukraine is no less interested than Romania in preserving the Danube Delta's ecological diversity. Mr. Bauer said he participated in the recent field trip, and claimed that most of the ambassadors and journalists on the trip agreed that "there were no serious reasons to worry about possible negative effects the canal would have on the Ukrainian section [of the delta], let alone cross-border impact." The greater part of the delta lies in Romania. The European Union and the United States have both asked Ukraine to halt construction until a more comprehensive environmental-impact assessment can be completed. (RFE/RL Newsline)

...Norwegian PM urges impact study

BUCHAREST - After discussions with his Romanian counterpart, Adrian Nastase, on September 13 in Bucharest, Norwegian Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik said the construction of the deep-water canal should be halted until an extensive environmental-impact study can be conducted, Mediafax reported. He said that Norway "fully understands" Romania's concern over the issue. Messrs. Bondevik and Nastase also discussed bilateral relations and cooperation within NATO. Mr. Bondevik said Romania is considered an important military partner, and that beginning in 2005 the Norwegian Embassy in Bucharest will have a permanent military attaché. (RFE/RL Newsline)

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