Kuchma and Yeltsin agree to form committee on bilateral cooperation

by Danylo Yanevsky
Special to The Ukrainian Weekly

KYIV - Presidents Leonid Kuchma and Boris Yeltsin held a working meeting in the Russian capital on January 16 to discuss bilateral ties and signed an agreement on the creation of a special committee on Russian-Ukrainian cooperation that is to meet twice a year under the co-chairmanship of Prime Ministers Viktor Chernomyrdin and Yevhen Marchuk.

Official communiques characterized the talks as "constructive and fruitful" and noted that the two-hour session was marked by "a high degree of understanding and trust." The presidents are reported to have discussed internal political developments in their respective countries as well as the progress of economic reform.

Both men expressed satisfaction with the development of Russian-Ukrainian relations and pledged to increase the effectiveness of economic cooperation.

At the same time, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Hennadiy Udovenko held talks with his newly appointed Russian counterpart, Yevgeni Primakov. Defense Ministers Valeriy Shmarov and Pavel Grachev also met. President Kuchma's delegation to Moscow included also Volodymyr Horbulin, national security adviser to the president.

Messrs. Kuchma and Yeltsin had scheduled their meeting while both were attending the funeral in Paris of French President Francois Mitterand.

In Moscow, Presidents Yeltsin and Kuchma spoke about the wide-ranging agreement on Russian-Ukrainian cooperation that has been stalled for some time now over such issues as dual citizenship, agreeing that it should be resolved most expeditiously

The two chief executives also discussed possible scenarios for the division of the Black Sea Fleet, which is taking place in accordance with the provisions of the June 1995 Sochi agreement.

The assistant director of President Kuchma's press service, Andriy Chyrva, reported at a press briefing in Kyiv that the two had agreed it would be useful to take the fleet issue beyond the parameters of the bilateral agreement on cooperation.

Mr. Chyrva added that the decision to create a special committee on Russian-Ukrainian cooperation would ensure that the bilateral cooperation agreement would be signed in the nearest future, though no date has been set.

The new committee will focus special attention on economic ties, reported the Open Media Research Institute, since Russia remains Ukraine's largest trade partner, accounting for 43 percent of its exports and more than half its imports in 1995.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, January 21, 1996, No. 3, Vol. LXIV

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