October 23, 2015

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$15 M more in humanitarian aid

KYIV – The United States on October 16 announced nearly $15 million in additional humanitarian assistance to help those affected by the conflict in Ukraine. This brings total U.S. humanitarian assistance to eastern Ukraine since the start of the crisis to nearly $84 million. This new funding – through U.S. Agency for International Aid (USAID) Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance – will provide emergency shelter assistance to help more than 35,000 people get through the upcoming winter. It will also provide safe drinking water and support hygiene and sanitation programs to stem the spread of disease. In addition, the assistance will provide employment opportunities to get people and businesses back on their feet and help households replace lost assets. The United States also reiterated its call for full and unfettered access throughout the conflict zone to ensure that humanitarian aid can reach civilians in need. (U.S. Embassy Kyiv)

Cabinet to have ATO affairs minister

KYIV – Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers is introducing the political position of minister in charge of affairs of participants in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) under the law on the Cabinet, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said at a government meeting on October 21. “I would like to put forth a motion for consideration by the government and the parliamentary coalition. According to the law on the Cabinet of Ministers, the prime minister has the constitutional authority to introduce two ministers without creating ministries. That is the introduction of political positions of ministers who will be commissioned to carry out organizational, political and administrative functions,” Mr. Yatsenyuk said. Many questions about the medical and psychological rehabilitation of ATO participants, and about real protection for those who defended and are defending the country were raised during meetings with representatives of the National Guard, the Internal Affairs Ministry and the Defense Ministry after Ukraine officially marked its first Defender of the Fatherland Day on October 14, he noted. According to the prime minister, the new minister will coordinate the work of key security, defense, law enforcement and social agencies to ensure that the defenders of Ukraine who are entitled to benefits and social guarantees are provided with them, he said. Mr. Yatsenyuk appealed to the parliamentary coalition, the ministries of defense and internal affairs, non-governmental organizations and Cabinet members to name nominees for the post of minister for ATO affairs, who will coordinate the work of medical, psychological and social rehabilitation for 131,000 ATO participants. Mr. Yatsenyuk also promised that he will nominate a candidate for the post as soon as he gets proposals. “At the first plenary session of the Verkhovna Rada after I receive your suggestions, I will table a motion in Parliament to appoint the minister for ATO affairs,” he stated. (UNIAN)

Kyiv threatens to sue Russia over debt 

KYIV – Ukraine is threatening to sue Russia if it does not agree to write off part of its debt. Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said that all Ukrainian bondholders had agreed on the restructuring deal at a meeting in London on October 14, but a Russian representative did not show up. He said Kyiv would give Moscow two weeks, until October 29, to agree to likewise trim a $3 billion loan Russia gave Ukraine in 2013. Mr. Yatsenyuk said Kyiv would sue Moscow if it does not agree, though it’s unclear what legal basis Ukraine would have. Moscow has insisted on being fully repaid for the loan, which is due by the end of the year. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on October 15 that Russia has no intention of agreeing to any restructuring. Analysts say Ukraine’s potential failure to pay up in time could mean a showdown between the two countries at the end of December, spilling into possible asset seizures. (RFE/RL based on reporting by the Associated Press, Reuters and Interfax)

Buk manufacturer sues EU for losses

MOSCOW – The Russian state-owned manufacturer of the Buk surface-to-air missile system is suing the European Union for losses sustained by sanctions imposed against the firm following the downing of the Malaysia Airlines passenger jet over eastern Ukraine in July 2014. Almaz-Antey Director Yan Novikov said in an interview published in Izvestia on October 16 that the firm will also seek to recover costs incurred when it blew up a similar airliner in a test to investigate how MH17 was shot down. The EU, the United States and Ukraine believe the plane was downed by Russia-backed separatists using a Buk system provided by the Russian military. Russia denies providing such equipment, and Almaz-Antey says its tests indicate the aircraft was shot down by an older-model Buk used by the Ukrainian military. Mr. Novikov said Almaz-Antey will modify a suit it filed in Luxembourg in May to include compensation in the amount of $160,000 for the experiment. MH17 was shot down over the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk in July 2014 with the loss of all 298 lives on board. (RFE/RL, with reporting by TASS)

Ukraine files WTO trade dispute

KYIV – Ukraine has launched a trade dispute at the World Trade Organization (WTO) with a complaint about Russia’s restrictions on Ukrainian-made railway equipment. The WTO said in a statement on October 21 that Ukraine contended the Russian restrictions had been in place since late 2013. Ukraine alleged that the restrictions broke several WTO rules and amounted to an effective ban on imports of the products into Russia, the WTO statement said. An official at Russia’s Ministry for Economic Development told TASS that “tactics” were being devised to deal with the Ukrainian complaint. The action comes with relations between Kyiv and Moscow already tense due mainly to Russia’s illegal annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in March 2014 and the Kremlin’s direct backing of pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine. (RFE/RL based on reporting by Reuters, Interfax and TASS)

Yanukovych sues Ukraine government

LONDON – A law firm representing former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych says he is suing the government in Kyiv for “repeatedly” violating his human rights. London-based Joseph Hage Aaronson said in a statement on October 19 that Mr. Yanukovych has lodged a lawsuit with the European Court of Human Rights. His lawyers said Mr. Yanukovych has suffered “discriminatory treatment due to his political status and opinions.” Mr. Yanukovych fled to Russia in February 2014 after months of protests against his rule and is currently residing in Russia, though his exact whereabouts are unknown. In August, a court in Kyiv began trying Mr. Yanukovych in absentia for his alleged role in the deaths of anti-government protesters. Other charges against him include corruption and embezzlement. His lawyer said the ex-president cannot return to Ukraine because of security risks. (RFE/RL based on reporting by the Associated Press and TASS)

12 dead after boat capsizes

ODESA – Ukrainian officials say 12 people were killed and one has been listed as missing after a passenger boat capsized near the Black Sea port city of Odesa. The Ukrainian Infrastructure Ministry said the accident took place near the small town of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, about 40 kilometers southwest of Odesa, at about 4 p.m. local time on October 17. The ministry added that a preliminary report showed the boat had been overloaded, carrying more than twice as many people as were permitted. Volodymyr Zhmak, deputy governor of the Odesa Oblast, said the Ivolga passenger boat capsized as a result of stormy weather. Mr. Zhmak said there was not a sufficient number of lifejackets on the boat for all 36 passengers on board. He added that 23 passengers were rescued and the bodies of 12 who drowned have been recovered. Mikheil Saakashvili, the former Georgian president who is now the governor of the Odesa Oblast, issued a statement on his Facebook and Twitter accounts that confirmed “some casualties.” Mr. Saakashvili described the incident as a “tragedy.” The Internal Affairs Ministry says a criminal case on safety violations has been launched. (RFE/RL, with reporting by Reuters and Agence France-Presse)

Standard & Poor’s upgrades Ukraine rating

NEW YORK – The ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has upgraded Ukraine’s credit rating from “selective default” after Kyiv managed to strike a major debt write-down deal. The New York-based agency said on October 19 that it was raising Ukraine’s foreign currency sovereign rating from “SD” to “B-/B” – a grade defined as “highly speculative” but one that leaves the door open to future borrowing from abroad. “The rating action follows the completion of Ukraine’s distressed debt exchange on October 14,” Standard & Poor’s said in a statement. The ratings agency downgraded Ukraine to selective default on September 25. Ukraine was then still negotiating with its commercial creditors aimed at easing its outsized debt burden and keeping on track a life-support package led by the International Monetary Fund (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Agenc France-Presse and Interfax)

Both sides pull back tanks In Donetsk 

KYIV – Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russia militants say they have begun withdrawing tanks and smaller weapons from the front line in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. “The withdrawal has already started,” Ukrainian military spokesman Leonid Matyukhin said in a statement on October 20. “At this very moment, we are withdrawing from around Debaltseve.” Sitting on a key rail link between the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, Debaltseve witnessed heavy fighting between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russia separatists at the beginning of the year. Mostly destroyed and deserted, Debaltseve remains under rebel control. A rebel leader in Donetsk, Eduard Basurin, told the AFP news agency that the “pullback has begun with Debaltseve” and would continue in other locations on October 19. Fighting has largely subsidied in eastern Ukraine over recent weeks with a fresh truce reached in September largely holding. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Agence France-Presse and Interfax)

Russian sentenced for spying for Ukraine

MOSCOW – Russia has found another person guilty of espionage by providing confidential information to Ukrainian officials. A regional court in Russia’s western Bryansk region, which borders Ukraine, said on October 8 that Viktor Shur was found guilty of spying for Ukraine and sentenced to 12 years in prison. Investigators said Mr. Shur had collected classified data related to Russia’s security and handed that information to Ukraine’s intelligence service. Mr. Shur, who was arrested in December upon returning from Ukraine, reportedly pleaded guilty. The trial was held behind closed doors. The case against Mr. Shur is the latest in a series of treason cases in Russia amid the ongoing crisis in Ukraine’s east. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by RIA Novosti, Interfax and Agence France-Presse)

Ukrainian soldier killed despite truce 

KYIV – A Ukrainian soldier has been killed and two wounded in restive eastern regions despite a cease-fire deal with separatist rebels. The truce has been largely holding since the start of September, allowing the two sides to extend a pullback of weapons. Ukrainian Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak said the attack took place on October 13 when separatists fired grenade launchers at Ukrainian forces near Avdiyivka, a government-controlled town just north of the rebel-controlled city of Donetsk. Mr. Poltorak said details were still sketchy and suggested a rogue group not controlled by rebel leaders could be behind the attack. The withdrawal of weapons from the front line was agreed on condition that both sides fully respect the ceasefire. Fighting between Ukrainian government forces and the separatists in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions has killed more than 7,900 people since April 2014. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Agence France-Presse and Reuters)

Not guilty plea on cybertheft charges 

NEWARK, N.J. – A Ukrainian man pleaded not guilty October 19 to U.S. charges he orchestrated a scheme to steal computer users’ online bank information and sell it on the black market. Sergey Vovnenko, who allegedly used aliases like “Darklife” and “Centurion,” was charged in April in a six-count indictment that was unsealed the previous week. He had been living recently in Naples, Italy, before his arrest and extradition this month. U.S. prosecutors in New Jersey allege that Mr. Vovnenko and co-conspirators hacked into the computers of an unnamed global financial institution with offices in New Jersey. They allegedly stole user names and passwords for bank accounts and other online services, then used online forums to sell the information. They also allegedly used it to illegally access and withdraw money from bank accounts. The indictment didn’t estimate how much money the co-conspirators stole. Mr. Vovnenko is charged with wire fraud conspiracy, unauthorized computer access, and aggravated identity theft. He is being held without bail. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by the Associated Press)

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