NEWSBRIEFS

Orange allies reach agreement

KYIV - Roman Bezsmertnyi of Our Ukraine, Oleksander Moroz of the Socialist Party and Yulia Tymoshenko of the eponymous political bloc said during a session of the Verkhovna Rada on June 21 that they have agreed on establishing a ruling coalition, and pledged to sign a relevant agreement within the two following days, Channel 5 reported. Mr. Bezsmertnyi proposed to formally announce the creation of a coalition in the morning of June 23, while Mr. Moroz urged Our Ukraine and the Tymoshenko Bloc to complete all formalities on June 21. On June 20, Mr. Bezsmertnyi, Ms. Tymoshenko, Mr. Moroz, and Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov met with President Viktor Yushchenko to discuss the restoration of the Orange Revolution coalition, which existed until September 2005. According to an unidentified source quoted by the Ukrayinska Pravda website, the Tymoshenko Bloc will obtain 11 portfolios in a new Cabinet, including that of prime minister, Our Ukraine eight portfolios, and the Socialist Party four portfolios. The Verkhovna Rada will reportedly be headed by Mr. Yekhanurov of Our Ukraine, while Yosyp Vinskyi of the Socialist Party is to become first vice-chairman. When the Verkhovna Rada resumed its session on June 20, the five parliamentary parties presented statements. Our Ukraine caucus leader Roman Bezsmertnyi appealed to all parliamentary forces to create a "stabilizing coalition." Communist Party caucus leader Petro Symonenko urged lawmakers to form an "anti-crisis coalition" and elect parliamentary leadership. Mykola Azarov from the Party of the Regions called on all political forces in Parliament to set up a "broad coalition." Yulia Tymoshenko from the eponymous political bloc was also optimistic, even if simultaneously sarcastic, about prospects of forging a ruling coalition in Ukraine. "I can state that as events are unfolding, I do not reject the possibility that Our Ukraine will simultaneously sign two coalition agreements: one with the Party of the Regions and one with our bloc," she said. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Russian authoritarianism cited

WASHINGTON - U.S. Reps. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.) and David Dreier (R- Calif.), and Sens. John McCain (R- Ariz.) and Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) called in an open letter on the leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, France, Japan and Italy to use the upcoming Group of Eight (G-8) summit in St. Petersburg to tell Russia that it must improve its democratic credentials, Reuters reported. The four men argued that "President [Vladimir] Putin has steered Russia away from democracy and toward authoritarianism. ... He has increased pressure on opposition political parties and civil society, strengthened state control over national broadcast media, and pursued politically driven prosecutions of independent business leaders, academics, and others voicing criticism of the government." The four said that they believe that Russia should not be allowed to host the G-8 summit, but "understanding that the summit will take place, however, it is important that the [seven other] heads of state make clear that Russia's actions are inconsistent with G-8 democratic norms." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Sanctions on Belarusian officials

WASHINGTON - U.S. President George W. Bush on June 20 issued an executive order imposing targeted financial sanctions on Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka and nine senior officials of his government in response to what Washington sees as a fraudulent presidential election on March 19, international media reported. "These persons will not be able to access any assets that they might have in the United States, and U.S. financial institutions, wherever located, will not be able to provide any financial services to them," White House spokesman Tony Snow commented on the sanctions. The officials targeted by the sanctions also include the justice minister, the internal affairs minister, the KGB chief, the head of the Central Election Commission, the head of the State Radio and Television Company, the secretary of the Security Council, the head of presidential bodyguards, a deputy head of the presidential administration and the commander of a special rapid-reaction unit. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukraine says Russia violates treaty

KYIV - Russia's denial that it violates an agreement with Ukraine on the provisional stationing of the Black Sea Fleet on Ukrainian territory is not true, a Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Vasyl Filipchuk, said at a news briefing on June 6. Interfax reported that he said, "These allegations cannot be called anything other than misinformation." The spokesman added that "Russia is withholding navigational and hydrographical facilities belonging to our state [and] has no right to do so." Ukraine has called for an inventory of its property used by the Russian Black Sea Fleet in the course of a conflict over the lease agreement between the two states. "You should get used to fulfilling international agreements in full," Mr. Filipchuk said. The spokesman ended his briefing by reaffirming that Ukraine is prepared to continue "transparent and intense negotiations" on the further stationing of Russia's Black Sea Fleet on its territory. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukrainians trust media, Church most

KYIV - The mass media and the Church lead in the trust ratings of a recent poll done by Ukraine's Oleksander Razumkov Center of Economic and Political Studies, reported korrespondent.net posted on May 24. According to the opinion poll, 66 percent surveyed trust the Ukrainian mass media; 15 percent completely trust it, whereas 51 percent are more likely to trust it than not. Sixty percent of those surveyed trust the Church; 26 percent fully trust it, and 33 percent tend to trust it. Forty-three percent surveyed trust the Russian mass media; 10 percent of them trust it completely and 33 percent are more likely to trust it than not. Thirty-seven percent trust the Western mass media; 6 percent of them trust it completely, while 29 percent tend to trust it. The survey was conducted on May 11-19 in all regions of Ukraine, polling 2,000 respondents over age 18. According to korrespondent.net, the statistical error does not exceed 2.3 percent . (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Ukrainians support papal visit

KYIV - Radio Liberty asked its listeners, Internet site visitors and people on the streets of Kyiv whether the Ukrainian government should invite Pope Benedict XVI to Ukraine. Eighty-three percent of the Internet respondents were positively inclined, and 17 percent were against the pope's visit, ukraine.radiosvoboda.org reported on May 26. The people on the streets of Kyiv also supported the idea of the papal visit. Comments included: "Why not? So many Catholics live in Ukraine. Surely, the issue of religion is very delicate, but I think his visit is very important." "I have no arguments either for or against this. But if he comes, it will be a very important event both for Kyiv and Ukraine. For all I know, this pope has not been to Ukraine yet." "Let him come. John Paul II visited Ukraine, and let this pope come. Many people practice the Catholic religion in Ukraine. In my opinion, it will only improve relations between people of different religions." (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Turkmenistan seeks gas price hike

MOSCOW - Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov hopes to raise the sale price of Turkmen natural gas from $66 to $110-$125 per 1,000 cubic meters in the second half of 2006, the Russian newspaper Vedomosti reported on June 20. Troika Dialog analyst Valery Nesterov told the newspaper that if the price hike goes through, its knock-on effect could raise the price Ukraine pays for natural gas from current levels of $95 to $140-$150 per 1,000 cubic meters. In 2006 Ukraine is slated to receive 41 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas, which it purchases from the gas trader RosUkrEnergo. A RosUkrEnergo spokesperson told Vedomosti, "If Turkmenistan changes the conditions of its supplies, we will inform [Ukrainian national gas company] Naftohaz Ukrayiny and we will propose corrections to the purchase price." Experts queried by the newspaper are divided, with some suggesting that Ukraine may soon face a price hike and others arguing that Russia's Gazprom will seek to avoid a repetition of the "gas war" with Ukraine that broke out in early 2006. Gazprom CEO Aleksei Miller recently left Ashgabat without securing an agreement on gas purchases for the second half of 2006 . (RFE/RL Newsline)

Patriarch Lubomyr Husar visits Germany

LVIV - At the invitation of the German Episcopal Conference, Patriarch Lubomyr Husar, head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (UGCC), made an official visit to Germany on May 27-June 1. On May 27 the UGCC primate and Bishop Peter Kryk, the UGCC's apostolic exarch in Germany and Scandinavia, and the clergy of the exarchates of the UGCC from Germany and France celebrated a pontifical Liturgy at St. Joseph Church in Saarbruecken as part of Catholic Day (Katholikentag). Patriarch Lubomyr met with Cardinal Karl Lehmann, head of the German Episcopal Conference, and representatives of the conference. On May 29 the head of the UGCC talked for an hour with Secretary of State Dr. Girt Geller and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Patriarch Lubomyr also visited the Ukrainian Embassy in Germany and met with faithful of the UGCC at the Ukrainian parish in Berlin. On May 30 he began a visit to Munich, where he was to visit the Ukrainian Free University. On May 31 he was to present relics of Blessed Martyr Petro Verhun, former apostolic visitator to Germany, to the Munich community. (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Ukrainian Catholic primate visits France

KYIV-PARIS - On May 15-25 Patriarch Lubomyr Husar, head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (UGCC), was in France. The patriarch spent the first five days in Paris; on May 21 he went to Metz and on May 22 he was to arrive at Mackwiller, where a meeting with all priests of the UGCC who conduct pastoral activities in the countries of the European Union was to take place. On May 15-21 in Paris, together with all heads and representatives of the Eastern Catholic Churches, Patriarch Lubomyr celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Oeuvre d' Orient (Work of the East) charity association, which provides financial support for the Eastern Churches. The UGCC primate, together with the local French bishop and Ukrainian hierarchs and priests celebrated a liturgy in Metz. (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Over 1,500 new parishes in 2005

KYIV - According to Ukraine's State Department on Religious Matters, more than 1,500 new parishes appeared in the country in 2005. ictv.ua reported this on 2 June 2006. The department adds that more than 28,000 religious ministers are officially registered at the department. According to ictv.ua, Ukraine has 55 religious confessions whose annual donations exceed $5 billion (U.S.). The main source of Churches' income is donations given in conjunction with the celebration of marriages and other rituals. According to ictv.ua, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Moscow Patriarchate enjoys a leading, but not a monopolistic, place in the market of religious service in Ukraine. (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Rabbis' conference held in Kyiv

KYIV - The All-Ukrainian Conference of Rabbis, which gathered all rabbis working in the Jewish communities of Ukraine, took place in Kyiv on May 15. Organized by Ukraine's Main Rabbinate and the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine (FJCU), the conference was aimed at addressing current issues of Jewish life in Ukraine. Chief Rabbi of Ukraine Azriel Chaikin of the Lubavitch Chabad movement opened the conference. Ihor Bondarchuk, director of Ukraine's State Department on Religious Matters, represented the Ukrainian government and spoke at the opening ceremony. Naomi Ben-Ami, Israeli ambassador to Ukraine; Udi Ben-Ami, head of the Consular Department of the Israeli Embassy to Ukraine; and Arier Heter, adviser of the Israeli Embassy and director of the Ukrainian bureau of Natyv also participated in the conference. Discussed at the conference were urgent problems of Jewish communities in various towns and cities. The speakers stressed the necessity of closer cooperation and integration of programs of the FJCU, as well as the need for more careful attention to the problems of areas with a low Jewish population. Also discussed were new educational projects launched by the FJCU. Many rabbis touched upon the problem of anti-Semitism and the propagation of xenophobic ideas in modern Ukrainian society. (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Ukraine offers to host Karabakh talks

KYIV - Following talks in Kyiv on June 19 with his visiting Armenian counterpart, Vartan Oskanian, Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Borys Tarasyuk said Ukraine has offered to host further talks between the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan on approaches to resolving the Karabakh conflict, day.az reported. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, June 25, 2006, No. 26, Vol. LXXIV

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