December 8, 2015

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Biden to address Verkhovna Rada

WASHINGTON – U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden will address Ukraine’s Parliament next week as part of a two-day visit to the country. A senior U.S. administration official said in Washington on December 2 that Mr. Biden will speak to Ukraine’s unicameral legislature on December 8 about U.S. opposition to Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula and U.S. support for Ukraine’s debt-restructuring agreement with the International Monetary Fund and other international lenders. The official said this will be the first time a U.S. leader of Vice-President Biden’s rank has addressed the Verkhovna Rada. Vice-President Biden has visited Ukraine several times since the 2013-2014 Euro-Maidan uprising that overthrew pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych; he also speaks frequently with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. Mr. Biden is to meet with Mr. Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk on December 7. (RFE/RL, with reporting by Reuters)

Obama, Putin discuss Syria, Ukraine

PARIS – Barack Obama has urged Vladimir Putin to ratchet down tensions with Turkey as the U.S. and Russian presidents met on the sidelines of the Paris climate summit. White House and Kremlin officials said that during the 30-minute meeting on November 30 that Obama expressed regret for the death of the pilot in a recent shoot-down of a Russian fighter jet by a Turkish plane, which has sent relations between Moscow and Ankara plummeting. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the two discussed the ongoing crisis in Syria and both supported starting full talks to reach a political resolution to the war, now in its fifth year. A White House official said Mr. Obama told Mr. Putin that President Bashar al-Assad must leave power as part of any transition in Syria. The official also said Mr. Obama called on Mr. Putin to focus Russian air strikes on Islamic State militants, not rebels fighting Mr. Assad. Mr. Peskov said the two leaders also talked about Ukraine and the need to implement the Minsk ceasefire accords. (RFE/RL, with reporting by AP, Reuters and Interfax)

Russia to charge Vira Savchenko

OTTAWA – According to documents published by Mark Feygin, attorney for Nadiya Savchenko, Russia has opened criminal proceedings against Nadiya’s sister, Vira Savchenko, for “obvious disrespect for the court and for the Russian judiciary.” According to the documents, Vira Savchenko allegedly stated to the judge at Nadiya’s trial, “He is not a judge, but a schmuck.” Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that “the opening of criminal proceedings against Vira Savchenko, as well as the trial of Nadiya Savchenko and other Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia are reprisals against free thinking.” Nadiya Savchenko was serving in eastern Ukraine, when abducted by Kremlin-backed terrorists in June 2014 and taken to Russia, where she has been illegally detained and imprisoned since that time. Russia has ignored repeated calls from the international community for her immediate release. (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)

Kyiv to keep defense spending high 

KYIV – Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says his government will spend 5 percent of gross domestic product on defense and security next year, in a bid to strengthen the army in its fight against pro-Russian separatists in the east. Mr. Poroshenko said on December 2 that his government plans to spend about 14 percent of the government budget, or 100 billion hrv, on defense and security in 2016. Ukraine spent 90 billion hrv ($3.75 billion) this year. The conflict has killed more than 7,900 people thus far. After a period of relative calm, both sides have complained of increased ceasefire violations and use of heavy artillery that was meant to have been withdrawn under the terms of a truce deal. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on December 2 that there is a “real risk” hostilities will flare up again in eastern Ukraine. ”Russian-backed separatists have not yet withdrawn their troops and equipment, illegal groups in eastern Ukraine have not been disarmed, and Ukraine has not been able to re-establish control over its border,” he added. (RFE/RL, Based on reporting by DPA and Reuters)

Soros invests in ‘New Ukraine’ 

KYIV – U.S. financier and billionaire philanthropist George Soros is buying a “significant” stake in Ukrainian software developer Ciklum. According to a November 18 statement, Mr. Soros’s Ukrainian Redevelopment Fund has agreed to buy the stake from Ciklum’s Danish founder Torben Majgaard and private-equity fund Horizon Capital, which was co-founded by Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko. Ciklum employs more than 2,500 programmers in Ukraine and other countries. “It is a very dynamic company in an industry that represents the future of Ukraine,” Mr. Soros said. “It is also an investment in what I call the ‘New Ukraine’ – Ukrainians who are young, well educated and eager for their country to break from the past and to build an open society.” Mr. Soros said in March that he was ready to invest $1 billion in Ukraine’s economy. President Petro Poroshenko presented Mr. Soros with one of Ukraine’s highest awards – the Order of Liberty – on November 12. (RFE/RL, with reporting by bloomberg.com)

Poroshenko pardons Russian prisoner 

KYIV – Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has pardoned a Russian citizen arrested in eastern Ukraine and exchanged him for a Ukrainian serviceman held by Russia-backed separatists. Mr. Poroshenko announced the exchange on his official website, which showed a photograph of him meeting early on December 1 with the freed Ukrainian, Andriy Hrechanov. The president said he pardoned Vladimir Starkov, who was arrested in July in eastern Ukraine and later sentenced to 14 years in prison. Ukrainian security services had released a video in which Mr. Starkov acknowledged being a Russian military officer. Russia has denied sending troops and weapons to eastern Ukraine, where separatists have been fighting government troops since April 2014 in a conflict that has killed more than 7,900 people. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by AP and UNIAN)

Monitors on elections in eastern Ukraine

KYIV – A non-governmental group of international election monitors says delayed local elections on November 29 were conducted in accordance with laws and regulations in the eastern Ukrainian cities of Mariupol and Krasnoarmiysk. The European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO) said on November 30 that high voter turnout in the two cities indicated the population’s engagement in political developments. Ukraine’s Central Election Commission said voter turnout was 34.6 percent in Mariupol and 34.5 percent in Krasnoarmiysk. The two cities, which both are in government-held territory of eastern Ukraine’s turbulent Donetsk region, were supposed to conduct local elections in October. But polling stations did not open there during the October vote because of disputes over ballots. Much of the Donetsk region and the neighboring Luhansk region are controlled by Russia-backed separatists. Self-styled separatist leaders have agreed to postpone their own elections until sometime in 2016. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by UNIAN and Interfax)

Russian generals head invasion forces

OTTAWA – The Main Intelligence Department of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense has identified two Russian generals in charge of Russia’s invasion forces in Eastern Ukraine. The first is Col. Gen. Sergei Istrakov, deputy commander of the General Staff of the Russian Federation Armed Forces, who “is responsible for the coordination of Russian occupying forces in Donbas.” The second is the Southern Military District staff commander of the Russian Armed Forces, Lt. Gen. Mykhailo Teplynsky, “who directly commands the Russian occupying forces in eastern Ukraine,” the Main Intelligence Department said. (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)

NATO reaffirms support for Ukraine

BRUSSELS – At a December 2 meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission at the NATO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, NATO Secretary General J. Stoltenberg stated, “We meet today to reaffirm our strong continued commitment to Ukraine. And our support for a peaceful and diplomatic end to the conflict.” He also noted: “Russia has not withdrawn its troops or its equipment. The illegal separatist groups are yet to be disarmed. And Ukraine still does not have full control over its own borders. Ceasefire violations have recently increased. So we see a real risk of a resumption of violence. It is urgent that the Minsk agreements are implemented. And that they are implemented in full. NATO has been supporting Ukraine politically as well as practically. Including by setting up Trust Funds, to enable Ukraine to better defend itself and to strengthen and reform its institutions. We strongly encourage Ukraine to continue along the path of reform.” (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)

Russia halts gas supplies to Ukraine 

MOSCOW – Russia’s state-controlled natural-gas giant Gazprom has stopped deliveries of gas to Ukraine because of Kyiv’s alleged failure to make the required prepayments. Gazprom CEO Aleksei Miller said in Moscow on November 25 that no further gas deliveries will be forthcoming until payment is made. He said Ukraine’s refusal to buy Russian gas “creates risks for gas transit to Europe.” The gas cutoff comes less than two months after Russia and Ukraine signed a European Union-brokered deal aimed at ensuring gas supplies through March. Relations between Kyiv and Moscow have been soured since Russia annexed the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula of Crimea in 2014 and began supporting separatist militants in eastern Ukraine. Tensions have been particularly high in recent days after explosions damaged power lines sending electricity from mainland Ukraine to Crimea, plunging much of the peninsula into darkness. (RFE/RL)

Kyiv says Russia cuts coal deliveries

KYIV – Ukraine’s energy minister has told the Verkhovna Rada that Russia has begun to restrict coal supplies to Ukraine, days after the Kremlin threatened to punish Kyiv for a power blackout of Russian-annexed Crimea. Volodymyr Demchyshyn told lawmakers on November 27 that pro-Russian separatists who control coal mines in eastern Ukraine also have halted the delivery of coal supplies. He said that with two ships carrying coal from South Africa due to arrive in December, Kyiv would have enough coal to “ensure the stable functioning” of its energy system for 45 to 50 days. He said Ukraine was in talks with South Africa about further coal deliveries. Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak said on November 24 that Russia might cut coal supplies to punish Ukraine for what he said was its deliberate refusal to help rebuild power lines to Crimea that were blown up by unknown saboteurs. Russia has already cut natural gas deliveries to Ukraine. Mr. Demchyshyn said Ukraine had enough reserves to last through the winter. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP and DPA)

Eastern EU members on Nord Stream

BRUSSELS – Ten European governments – the easternmost members of the European Union – have complained in a letter that Russia’s plans to extend its natural-gas link to Germany run counter to EU interests and risk further destabilizing Ukraine. The letter, written on November 26, was signed by Poland, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Greece, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. It calls for a summit-level EU debate on the Nord Stream II project. Reuters quoted the letter as saying: “The position of the European Commission on the Nord Stream II project will also essentially influence the perception of the EU’s common foreign and security policy among its core allies and traditional partners.” A group of European companies in September signed an agreement with Russia’s state-controlled Gazprom to expand its Nord Stream pipeline to Germany, bypassing Ukraine. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Reuters, Platts, and Naturalgaseurope.com)

Kyiv bans Russian aircraft transit

KYIV – Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk says his country has imposed a ban on transit flights over Ukraine for all Russian airlines. Speaking at a Cabinet session in Kyiv on November 25, Mr. Yatsenyuk asked the Infrastructure Ministry to officially notify Russia about “the closure of [Ukrainian] airspace to all Russian airlines without exception.” Last month, the two countries banned landings by each other’s airlines. Mr. Yatsenyuk also said his government had decided to order Ukraine’s Naftohaz oil and gas giant to stop buying natural gas from Russia. He said the major reason for the decision was the difference between European and Russian gas prices, with European ones being “much better.” Russia’s state-controlled natural-gas giant Gazprom said earlier on November 25 that it had stopped deliveries of gas to Ukraine because of Kyiv’s alleged failure to make the required prepayments. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by UNIAN and Interfax)

OSCE paper on propaganda

VIENNA – The media-freedom representative of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has issued a discussion paper on propaganda and media freedom, repeating her assertion that propaganda is “an ugly scar on the face of modern journalism.” Representative Dunja Mijatovic noted on November 25 that her office had devoted much time in recent months to addressing the root causes of propaganda, particularly in connection with the conflict between the Ukrainian central government and Russia-backed separatists. Ms. Mijatovic said that “ignorance, hate, hostility, and other consequences of propaganda are imminent threats to journalism and free media and we need to put more resources in fighting these threats.” The paper issued on November 25 is a contribution to a discussion of these issues, she said. Among other things, the discussion document calls for the “abolition of government-run media.” (RFE/RL)

Foreign military instructors in Ukraine

OTTAWA – Military instructors from Canada, the United States and Lithuania began training the Ukrainian army in Yavoriv, Lviv Oblast. A ceremonial opening of the course was held on November 23. The training program is scheduled to last until 2017 and includes training on tactics, weapons training, tactical medicine, communications, countering explosives and other areas. Approximately 500 Canadian, American and Lithuanian armed forces personnel will take part in the training, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense reported. (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)

Western leaders to extend sanctions

ANTALYA, Turkey – Western leaders who met on the margins of last week’s Group of 20 summit in Turkey agreed to extend sanctions imposed on Russia for its intervention in Ukraine by six months until July of next year, reported Reuters, citing a senior European diplomat. Reuters reported on November 21 that U.S. President Barack Obama, Germany’s Angela Merkel, Britain’s David Cameron, Italy’s Matteo Renzi and French Foreign Affairs Minister Laurent Fabius, who represented President Francois Hollande at the summit, “attended the brief meeting near the conclusion of the G-20 meeting in Antalya. …Western countries have said all elements of Minsk [agreements] need to be fulfilled before they can consider easing the sanctions.” (Ukrainian Canadian Congress, based on Reuters)

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