NEWSBRIEFS (05/11/97)

NEWSBRIEFS

Ukraine and Romania move on treaty

WASHINGTON - On May 3, the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Romania initialed the text of the Bilateral Treaty on Friendship and Cooperation. During consultations held in Kyiv, Romanian and Ukrainian delegations led by Romanian Foreign Affairs Minister Adrian Severin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Hennadii Udovenko, exchanged opinions about ways to further bilateral relations. They agreed that the treaty will be signed by the two nations' presidents on dates that are to be determined by both sides. Afterwards, the treaty will be submitted for ratification to the Ukrainian and Romanian Parliaments. The document confirms the inviolability of existing borders between the two countries and proclaims that both sides will not have any territorial claims against each other now and in the future. On May 3, Mr. Severin was received by President Leonid Kuchma of Ukraine. (Embassy of Ukraine in the U.S. )

GM, Daewoo to produce cars

KYIV - U.S. carmaker General Motors and South Korea's Daewoo Group will form a joint venture in Ukraine to produce cars at the AvtoZAZ car plant in the city of Zaporizhia, Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko said on May 6. "There is the agreement that Daewoo and General Motors will sign a deal and form a joint venture,'' Mr. Lazarenko told a news conference. "The plan is for 220,000-255,000 cars annually in four years.'' He said GM would produce 35,000 Opels and 150,000 Daewoo cars in Zaporizhia, some 600 kilometers (330 miles) southeast of Kyiv. Mr. Lazarenko added that AvtoZAZ would produce its Tavria and Dana small city cars, but they would be modernized with the help of Daewoo and GM. Senior Daewoo officials have said previously the group was ready to invest up to $1 billion into AvtoZAZ. (Reuters)

Udovenko: society divided over NATO

KYIV - "Our society is still divided into two parts - those who are in strong opposition to Ukraine's cooperation with NATO and those who are in favor,'' Foreign Minister Hennadii Udovenko said in an interview on the eve of NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana's one-day visit to Kyiv on May 7. "I understand why many people are in opposition to NATO because of our Soviet mentality, when we considered NATO was enemy number one. And many people still think so.'' Mr. Udovenko said he hoped the Western alliance's new information center would help calm fears shared by about a third of the population who oppose expansion of the Western alliance. "The aim of the center is to show NATO is in the process of transformation, that this is not only a military bloc ... that NATO does not pose a threat to independent Ukraine,'' he said. An opinion poll carried by UNIAN news agency on May 6 said 37 percent of the population back the idea of Ukraine joining NATO, 28 percent oppose it and 34 percent are undecided. (Reuters)

Kuchma creates Energy Ministry

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma has folded the state nuclear regulatory agency, Derzhkomatom, into the Energy and Electricity Ministry, which has been renamed the Energy Ministry, the presidential press service announced on May 7. Energy and Electricity Minister Yurii Bochkariov was given the expanded portfolio and re-appointed energy minister. The move is aimed at "improv[ing] the governing structures in the energy-industrial complex and its efficiency,'' the press service said. Derzhkomatom will become an Energy Ministry department and oversee safety at the five nuclear power plants that produce 45 percent of Ukraine's electricity. (Reuters)

Air Ukraine to buy new planes

KYIV - Air Ukraine is to buy two Boeing 767-200ER airliners for its trans-Atlantic routes and three Airbus A320-200s for medium-range flights as the state-owned carrier begins to replace its aging Soviet-era fleet. A May 5 statement from the National Agency for Reconstruction and Development said the decision was taken by a two-thirds majority in the tender committee, which included government officials, experts and officers of Air Ukraine. The prices paid for the new aircraft were not disclosed, however, local news agencies recently quoted Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko as saying both Boeing and Airbus cut their prices per plane by $10 million each. Air Ukraine has an agreement from U.S. aviation authorities to postpone a ban on the flights of its Soviet-built Ilyushin IL-62s, imposed because of safety considerations and noisy landings and take-offs. Air Ukraine flies to New York and Toronto, but wanted to add Miami, Los Angeles and Washington, as well as renew its cancelled Chicago route by 1999. The airline has nine IL-62s, 30 Tupolev TU-134s and TU-154s, 30 Yakovlev YAK-40s and YAK-42s and 64 Antonov AN-24s. Some are grounded due to age and a fall in passenger numbers. The country's second carrier, Ukraine International Airline, operates three leased Boeing 737s serving west European destinations.(Reuters)

Russian gets equal status in Donbas

DONETSK - Legislators in the Donetsk Oblast in eastern Ukraine voted recently to give the Russian language the same status as Ukrainian, Ukrainian TV reported on March 21. The motion was passed following a discussion of the results of a 1994 poll showing that Russian is the native language of 67.7 percent of those living in the Donbas. Deputies on the Kharkiv City Council passed a similar motion last year. Local Ukrainian nationalists have sent a formal protest to the Donetsk Oblast's procurator-general. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Border, customs personnel upbraided

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma has instructed the Security Service of Ukraine, the Procurator General's Office and the State Border Committee to review procedures and behavior of customs and border control personnel, following numerous complaints from those traversing Ukraine's borders, local media reported on May 6. Mr. Kuchma criticized customs and border officials for frequent violations of established procedures and for hostility and improper behavior towards travelers and others, improper baggage searches and similar, repeated abuses of authority. In particular, Mr. Kuchma ordered officials to strengthen oversight of customs and border supervisory personnel, and to refine border and customs procedures. (Respublika)

Government backs CASE credit

KYIV - The Cabinet of Ministers issued a resolution on May 5 guaranteeing the repayment of a credit for the purchase by the Ukrainian Agriculture Exchange of U.S.-manufactured CASE combines and tractors. The government has instructed Ukreksimbank to issue a credit covering 85 percent of the contract between the exchange and CASE. The deal is worth $78 million. The credit will be paid off by the UAE on a staggered payment basis. (Respublika)

Apparition of Mother of God is reported

VOVKOVE, Ukraine - In this small village near the western city of Uzhhorod, local residents have reported seeing an apparition of the Mother of God, local media reported on May 7. Older persons recall that a chapel was once located on the site of the apparitions, a residential building. All attempts at photographing or videotaping the vision have failed. Pilgrims from throughout Ukraine are visiting the site. (Respublika)

Lukashenka speaks out on Union

MIENSK - Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has warned Russian legislators not to alter the charter outlining steps for further integrating the two states, Reuters reported on May 7. Mr. Lukashenka noted that he and Russian President Boris Yeltsin have already initialed the document. He also criticized the Russian media for "inflicting irreparable damage" and dampening Russian public support for the union. The charter, signed last month by the two heads of state, is accompanied by a statement pledging to form a union between Belarus and the Russian Federation. Russian deputies opposed to the union succeeded in reducing the original treaty to the charter, whose signing has been delayed to allow a six-week "public debate." (RFE/RL Newsline)

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