NEWSBRIEFS

Comments on Black Sea Fleet talks

KYIV - Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has said that Ukraine should have a clear strategy for defending its national interests in talks with Moscow on terms for Russia's Black Sea Fleet, Interfax reported on February 14. "All lease terms should be guided by the appropriate international agreements and take account of international experience and today's trends on the real estate market," he said. Hryhorii Lutsai, a representative of the Sevastopol administration, suggested on February 14 that the annual rent for the naval base in Crimea should be raised to $200 million from $97 million, as set by a 1997 agreement. However, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said on that same day, after meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Ohryzko, that Ukraine should stop "speculation" on the issue and comply with the 1997 agreement. "There will be no speculation, there will be pragmatic relations," Mr. Ohryzko. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Talks begin on fleet's stationing

KYIV - The Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry will insist on withdrawal of judicial establishments, the prosecutor's office and military patrols of the Russian Black Sea Fleet (RBSF) from the territory of Ukraine, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Volodymyr Ohryzko told a government session on February 15. He said the stationing of these establishments in Ukraine violates the Constitution of Ukraine. Mr. Ohryzko expressed his hope that the matter will be settled in several months at meetings of the subcommission of the Yushchenko-Putin Commission. He added that Ukraine intends to complete an inventory of the RBSF assets and facilities in Crimea in two months' time. A session of the Ukrainian-Russian subcommission on the Russian Black Sea Fleet temporary stationed in Ukraine was held in Kyiv on February 14. (Ukrinform)

Yushchenko wants clarity in gas sector

KYIV - President Yushchenko said on February 14 that Ukraine will not allow non-transparent activities in its gas sector, Interfax reported, citing the presidential press service. Mr. Yushchenko also said that he shares the concern expressed by the NGOs, political and business groups, and international organizations, including the European Union, over the lack of information on the Swiss-based company RosUkrEnergo, which holds a monopoly on gas supplies to Ukraine through Russia. The government, if necessary, will look for alternative approaches to the gas sector and cooperation with Russia, Mr. Yushchenko added. He also ordered the government to gather complete information on RosUkrEnergo and to make it public in order to ensure transparency in Ukraine's gas supplies. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Investors sought for gas pipelines

KYIV - Ukrainian Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov said on February 11 that the government will propose to the European Union and other foreign investors that they take part in the construction of new gas pipelines in Ukraine, Interfax reported. Mr. Yekhanurov also said that the pipelines will subsequently be privatized. Ukraine is currently building a 240-kilometer section of the Bohorodchany-Uzhhorod pipeline, which is part of Novopskov (Russia)-Uzhhorod pipeline. The expected annual capacity of this pipeline, which will cost around $560 million, is 19 billion cubic meters. The tender to select the main contractor for the project is set for March 31. (RFE/RL Newsline)

President calls for energy efficiency

KYIV - Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko promised on February 11 to set up a national energy-saving agency and outlined a program to improve energy efficiency in Ukraine, Interfax reported. The proposed program includes cutting energy consumption by half, diversifying energy supplies and using local energy resources. Mr. Yushchenko said that "it's time to introduce new energy technologies and replace outdated equipment. The government will support entrepreneurs' intentions to invest in energy efficiency by cutting taxes and tariffs." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Rice has doubts on Russia's democracy

WASHINGTON - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in Washington on February 12 that she is skeptical about the future of democracy in Russia, mosnews.com reported. "We are very concerned, particularly about some of the elements of democratization that seem to be going in the wrong direction," she said. Dr. Rice recalled what was widely seen as Russia's recent use of gas supplies as a political tool against Ukraine, as well as new legislation to establish greater control over non-governmental organizations. She added that "the question is open as to where Russia's future development is going." The secretary of state nonetheless stressed that the overall state of U.S.-Russia relations is "very good" and that today's Russia "is not the Soviet Union." She added, "Let's not overstate the case" for critical observations. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Rada bans privatization of Nikopol

KYIV - The Verkhovna Rada on February 9 voted to include the Nikopol Ferroalloys Plant on a list of enterprises that cannot be privatized, the Ukrayinska Pravda website reported. The measure was supported by 287 deputies. Last month the Supreme Court ruled that the 2003 sale of a 25 percent stake in Nikopol for some $80 million to Viktor Pinchuk, the son-in-law of former President Leonid Kuchma, was illegal and returned it to the state. The government intended to sell a 50 percent stake plus one share in Nikopol at an open auction later this year. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Six candidates for Kyiv mayor

KYIV - Six contenders have been formally registered to vie for the mayoralty of Kyiv, with the elections to be held on March 26, the day Ukrainian voters are to elect a new Parliament. The contenders are Verkhovna Rada First Vice-Chairman Adam Martyniuk; self-nominated candidate Eduard Kovalenko; the leader of the Kyiv City organization of the Ukrainian People's Party, Valerii Asadchev; the leader of the People's Democratic Party, Valerii Pustovoitenko; Valentyn Khaletskyi from the Public Council organization; and former boxing champion Vitalii Klitschko, No. 1 candidate of the Reforms and Order-Pora bloc. Registration documents were also filed by Verkhovna Rada National Deputy Leonid Chernovetskyi, a banker with PrivatBank. (Ukrinform)

No Ukrainian rep in RosUkrEnergo

KYIV - Naftohaz Ukrayiny head Oleksii Ivchenko told UNIAN on February 8 that "the Ukrainian side is not represented legally" in the obscure Swiss-based RosUkrEnergo company, which was made the monopolist of gas supplies to Ukraine via a controversial Russian-Ukrainian gas deal in January. Mr. Ivchenko was commenting on Russian President Vladimir Putin's statement to Spanish journalists the previous day, in which he said that a 50 percent share in RosUkrEnergo belongs to Ukraine. "RosUkrEnergo with its non-transparent 50 percent Ukrainian share is nothing compared to 15 years of gas cheating [by Ukraine]," ITAR-TASS quoted Mr. Putin as saying. "This is the share of Ukraine, so you should ask them the question." Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko said earlier this month that there are no Ukrainian government bodies among the owners of RosUkrEnergo. According to media reports, a 50 percent stake in RosUkrEnergo is owned by Gazprom, while the other half belongs to undisclosed owners represented by the Vienna-based Raiffeisen Investment AG. (Ukrinform)

Five-year price cap imposed on gas

KYIV - The Ukrainian government on February 8 decided that $110 per 1,000 cubic meters will be the maximum price at which the newly created joint venture UkrGazEnergo can sell gas in Ukraine within the next five years, Interfax-Ukraine and ITAR-TASS reported. "If any economic entity decides to sell gas at a price above $110, a fine will be imposed [on it] and the entire proceeds will be confiscated. This will also be a reason for annulling the entity's registration with the state," Economy Minister Arsenii Yatseniuk told journalists. UkrGazEnergo was created by the Swiss-based gas trader RosUkrEnergo and Naftohaz Ukrayiny. Under an agreement reached in January, RosUkrEnergo was made the monopolist of gas supplies to Ukraine in 2006-2010. Ukraine imports gas mostly for corporate consumers, while the population uses gas that is primarily extracted at home and is priced much lower than imported gas. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukraine's new envoy in Poland

KYIV - Ukraine's Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Poland Oleksander Motsyk presented his credentials to Polish President Lech Kaczynski, reported Ukrinform on February 7. In diplomatic circles Mr. Motsyk is known mainly for conducting complicated negotiations with Russia on the conflict around Tuzla Island and delimitation of the Azov-Kerch area. He also led a Ukrainian delegation to negotiations with Romania and participated in several rounds of negotiations on settlement of the Transdniester conflict. Before being appointed ambassador to Poland, Mr. Motsyk worked as vice minister of foreign affairs and deputy head of the Secretariat of President of Ukraine. (Ukrinform)

400 enterprises to be privatized

KYIV - The State Property Fund intends to offer for privatization over 400 establishments, the chairwoman of the State Property Fund, Valentyna Semeniuk, said. Among the establishments exposed to competition she marked the Merydian enterprise and the Kryvyi Rih Ore Mining-Dressing Works Plant. These are the most significant facilities for us, Ms. Semeniuk said. Moreover, the fund decided to put up 76 percent of the shares of LuhanskTeplovoz (Luhansk Diesel Locomotive) for sale. (Ukrinform)

Yushchenko awarded Atlas Prize

KYIV - President Viktor Yushchenko won with the Italian Atlas 2005 Prize for his "heavy contribution to development of ideas in support of solidarity, cooperation and peace." The award was presented to the Ukrainian Embassy in Rome for delivery to the president. The Atlas award is annually presented by the Center of Social Action Programming together with the City Hall and the Province Council of the city of Agrigento in Sicily. Laureates of the prize, which was established in 1977, include Presidents Vaclav Havel of the Czech Republic, Ugo Mifsud Bonnici of Malta and Arpad Goncz of Hungary as well as outstanding figures of art and culture. (Ukrinform)

PM comments on lighthouses

KYIV - Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov said in Symferopol on February 4 that the use of lighthouses by the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Crimea is an economic issue rather than a political one, Interfax-Ukraine and ITAR-TASS reported. "If the lighthouses are Ukrainian and the Russians are using them, they must pay for them," Mr. Yekhanurov told journalists. According to him, there have been illegal "cottages" erected around some lighthouses used by the Russian Navy in Crimea. Mr. Yekhanurov said the use of land in Crimea by the Russian Black Sea Fleet is also an issue of primarily legal and economic importance. He claimed that some 160 hectares of land are used by the Russian fleet illegally. "The position of the Ukrainian side is as follows: You must pay for what you have not paid," Mr. Yekhanurov said. "If you don't want to pay, then free it. I don't want the budget to suffer losses." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Crimea: properties used illegally

SYMFEROPOL - The Property Fund of the Crimean Autonomous Republic has charged that the Russian Back Sea Fleet illegally occupies 96 facilities in Crimea, Interfax-Ukraine reported. According to the fund, these properties are not mentioned in a Russian-Ukrainian agreement on the division of belongings of the former Soviet navy. The fund also charged that the fleet command has sublet 25 properties it leases in Crimea without seeking the approval of the Ukrainian side, as stipulated by the agreement. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Student Brotherhood pickets BSF

SEVASTOPOL - Studentske Bratstvo (Student Brotherhood) activists pitched five tents near the Russian Black Sea Fleet's headquarters in Sevastopol on February 13. According to Bratstvo leader Oleh Yatsenko, the protest action was meant to alert Russia to the organization's demand, on the eve of the bipartite talks on the Russian Black Sea Fleet, that the terms of the previous bipartite agreements on the fleet must be observed. On February 14 Kyiv was expected to host a session of the Subcommission for Black Sea Fleet-related problems. The session is supposed to address unsettled issues of the Russian fleet's presence on Ukraine's soil. According to a 1997 agreement, the Russian Black Sea Fleet is to be based in Ukraine for 20 years. (Ukrinform)

Orthodox Choice: Communist Party

KYIV - Orthodox Choice, an organization formed by the Society of Orthodox Brotherhoods, will support the Communist Party in the Ukrainian parliamentary elections in March 2006, the society's head, Valentin Lukiyanyk, said on January 27. "To date we are becoming actively involved in campaigning for the Ukrainian Communist Party," Mr. Lukiyanyk said. The party's principles are close to Orthodoxy in spirit, he said. He called the Our Ukraine party, the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, the Socialists and the Popular Rukh party "anti-Orthodox forces" because their programs contradict the principles of the Orthodox Church. The chairman of the Orthodox Choice coordinating committee, Yuri Yegorov, told the conference that the Communist Party consistently defends Orthodox values and is "closer to the people." The Communist Party "proposed that we join their election ticket," he said. Mr. Yegorov said Orthodox Choice's cooperation with the Communists was based on the two groups' "similar" social principles: combating illegal enrichment, seeking a unification of Slavic peoples, supporting the use of the Russian language in Ukraine and a negative attitude toward NATO. (Interfax)

New terms of military service

KYIV -The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has passed a new version of the law on military service, which, in particular, specifies the terms of military service for conscripts. The term is limited to 12 months for privates and sergeants who have no college education. Those who have college education, which corresponds to requirements for the ranks of specialist or master, will serve for up to nine months. (Ukrinform)

Rada rejects foreign troop exercises

KYIV - The Verkhovna Rada on February 9 rejected President Viktor Yushchenko's motion to allow foreign troops to practice on military training grounds in Ukraine in 2006, Interfax-Ukraine reported. Only 215 deputies voted in support of the measure, which required 226 votes to pass. Under Ukrainian law, the Parliament must review each year whether to allow foreign troops on Ukrainian soil. "It is advantageous for Ukraine because the matter concerns creating combat-like conditions [for our troops]," Defense Minister Anatolii Hrytsenko commented on military exercises in Ukraine with the participation of foreign troops. "It is economically advantageous for us because the lion's share of expenses on holding such exercises is covered by other states." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, February 19, 2006, No. 8, Vol. LXXIV

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