NEWSBRIEFS (02/22/98)

NEWSBRIEFS

Chornobyl closure by 2000 in doubt

KYIV - The delay in the construction of two new nuclear reactors may force Ukraine to keep Chornobyl open after 2000, an RFE/RL correspondent in Kyiv reported on February 11. Environment Minister Yurii Kostenko said that if the reactors at the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants are not completed on time, Chornobyl will have to remain open. Kyiv is negotiating with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to secure a loan that would allow it to complete the new reactors, but probably not before 2001. President Leonid Kuchma has pledged to close Chornobyl by 2000. The one functional reactor at Chornobyl is currently undergoing repairs and is scheduled to go on line again by March. (RFE/RL Newsline)

EBRD uncertain about loan for reactors

KYIV - Charles Frank, the acting president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, said in Kyiv on February 18 that the EBRD still is unsure about lending money to Kyiv for the construction of nuclear reactors, ITAR-TASS reported. The new reactors would be built at the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants and would pave the way for the permanent shutdown of Chornobyl. Mr. Frank said that even if the $1.2 billion loan were granted, it would not be possible to construct the new reactors by 2000, the year by which the Ukrainian government has pledged to close down Chornobyl. He said the EBRD wants to ensure that the decision to build the two new reactors is cost-effective, that a safe design is used and that the loan would be repaid. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Communist leader besieged in Lviv

LVIV - Nationalists shouted slogans and threw potatoes at Communist Party chief Petro Symonenko as he campaigned here on February 11. Police encircled the building where Mr. Symonenko was meeting with journalists. The Communist Party has the largest faction in the Verkhovna Rada, with about one-sixth of the 450 seats, but its support is concentrated mainly in eastern Ukraine. Parliamentary elections are scheduled for March 31. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Luzhkov still has eye on Sevastopol

MOSCOW - During a speech to World War II veterans on February 17, Moscow Mayor Yurii Luzhkov vowed that "we will still fight for Sevastopol," ITAR-TASS reported. Mr. Luzhkov criticized what he called the "forced Ukrainianization" taking place in the Crimean port, where the Black Sea Fleet is based and which Mr. Luzhkov has repeatedly declared a Russian city. He confirmed that the city of Moscow will continue to fund the construction of housing for Russian sailors based in Sevastopol. (Eastern Economist)

Journalists' union slams government

KYIV - The Ukrainian Media Club has accused the government of a "campaign of repression" against the press, Agence France-Presse reported on February 6. The media union - which is made up of local and foreign independent journalists - issued a statement claiming that President Leonid Kuchma and the government are behind organized harassment of the press. Pravda Ukrainy, the largest opposition daily, was recently shut down because of a registration technicality. (RFE/RL Newsline)

...while opposition daily sues president

KYIV - The largest opposition daily Pravda Ukrainy is suing President Leonid Kuchma for damages incurred since it has been shut down due to a registration technicality. The newspaper is seeking 5 million hrv ($2.6 million U.S.) in damages from President Kuchma because he failed to veto the Information Ministry order to shut it down. Pravda Ukrainy argues that the order was unconstitutional. Meanwhile, another opposition paper, Vseukrainskiye Viedomosti, is facing closure after losing a libel case and being handed a 3.5 million hrv ($1.8 million U.S.) penalty by the court. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Kherson TV journalist is beaten

KYIV - Television journalist Sergei Mikheyev was beaten on February 6 in Kherson by three men. Mr. Mikheyev, who had been investigating mafia activities, is in stable condition. Four journalists have been beaten in Ukraine so far this year. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Newspaper editor shot in Odesa

ODESA - The editor-in-chief of a daily newspaper was shot and seriously wounded here, ITAR-TASS reported on February 16. Leonid Kapelushnyi, editor of Slovo and a correspondent for the Russian daily Izvestiia, was ambushed by two men in the city center and shot twice. A police spokesman said Mr. Kapelushnyi is also the chairman of the regional election commission. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukraine, Russia in agreement on Iraq

HAVANA - Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Hennadii Udovenko said in Havana on February 16 that Ukraine's view on the crisis in Iraq "fully coincides" with the Russian position that an armed conflict must be prevented, ITAR-TASS reported. Mr. Udovenko, who is also president of the United Nations General Assembly, said Ukraine has offered specialists to the U.N. who could investigate alleged sites of biological or chemical weapons in Iraq. Mr. Udovenko was in Cuba for a two-day visit. He met with his Cuban counterpart, Roberto Robaina, and visited a resort where Ukrainian children from the Chornobyl region are undergoing treatment. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Antonov celebrates 25 years of AN-28

KYIV - The Antonov Design Bureau is celebrating the 25th anniversary of production of the AN-28. Designed with regional transportation in mind, it was first put into production in Poland in 1979. A total of 180 planes were built between 1979 and 1992. The AN-28 is used by 28 airlines and air forces. (Eastern Economist)

Poland to give $10 M for Chornobyl

KYIV - The Polish government will contribute money towards the construction of the new sarcophagus roof at the 4th energy bloc at the Chornobyl nuclear power station in Ukraine. Radio Liberty reported on January 26 that Poland will provide $10 million (U.S.) for the project. (Eastern Economist)

Ukrainian-Italian business center opens

KYIV - The Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry opened the Ukrainian-Italian Business Service Center in Kyiv on January 23. Its aim is to assist and support cooperation between small and medium-sized Italian and Ukrainian businesses. Between 1995 and 1997, direct Italian investment into the Ukrainian economy rose from $15 million (U.S.) to $30 million. About 200 Ukrainian-Italian joint ventures have been registered, and 60 of them are active, mostly small and medium-sized businesses. The center will provide information and services for potential exporters and existing traders. (Eastern Economist)

Prosecutors see big rise in crime

KYIV - Prosecutors filed 10,836 criminal cases relating to economic crimes in 1997. The figure is 65.2 percent higher than in 1996. The Prosecutor General's Office confirmed that 5,673 cases were actually submitted to court - a 26.4 percent increase from 1996. Crimes committed in the credit, banking and finance sector rose 33 percent as compared to 1996. Crimes involving privatization of property rose 200 percent in comparison with 1996. (Eastern Economist)

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