Verkhovna Rada deputies protest Russian Duma leader's remarks (10/04/98)

Verkhovna Rada deputies protest Russian Duma leader's remarks

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - Pandemonium erupted on the floor of Ukraine's Parliament on September 29 after the chairman of the Russian State Duma, Gennadii Selezniov, called for Ukraine to enter into a political union with Belarus and Russia. The reaction forced the Russian politician to cut short his presentation.

Mr. Selezniov, on a two-day visit to Ukraine, had been invited by Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksander Tkachenko to address a general session of the legislative body.

After a warm greeting by Mr. Tkachenko, in which he called Mr. Selezniov's appearance "a bright manifestation of Russian-Ukrainian friendship," Mr. Selezniov began a critique of Ukraine's foreign and domestic policy. Angered Ukrainian national deputies hooted, hollered and stomped their feet at various moments throughout the speech, but became particularly incensed when Mr. Selezniov told the general session: "We would enthusiastically greet Ukraine's accession to the union between Russia and Belarus."

The statement by Mr. Selezniov, who belongs to the Russian Communist Party, caused many to rise to their feet with clenched fists and pointed fingers and was followed quickly by a walkout by the center-right Rukh faction.

Rukh members, who along with many non-leftist national deputies, had heckled Mr. Selezniov and pounded their tables in disapproval several times during his presentation in response to his inflammatory statements, apparently had enough after the call for a Slavic union and left the session hall chanting "provocation, provocation."

The reaction from the Communist faction, which had greeted the Russian State Duma leader's appearance before Ukraine's legislative body with a standing ovation, was quite different. As the Rukh faction stormed out, the Communists rose from their seats chanting "friendship, friendship."

With chaos overcoming the proceedings, a break was called, after which the session resumed with the State Duma leader no longer in attendance.

Mr. Selezniov irked non-leftist national deputies even before his pronouncement for the need for a Russian-Ukrainian-Belarus union with statements that denounced any move by Ukraine toward membership in NATO.

"Expansion of NATO is not an appropriate reaction to new realities in Europe and will inevitably lead to the emergence of new dividing lines," he said, echoing Russia's official line in opposing the alliance's expansion.

Mr. Selezniov also criticized Ukraine's move away from the Russian language. He suggested that Ukraine's ethnic Russian minority should be entitled to educate its children in Russian. Many Russian-language schools still operate in Ukraine, although the official language is Ukrainian.

More catcalls and booing greeted his explanation for the Russian State Duma's failure thus far to ratify the Russian-Ukrainian Treaty on Friendship and Cooperation, which he said is due to concerns over the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada's refusal to ratify the Black Sea Fleet agreement and Ukraine's unclear stance toward NATO. The Russian-Ukrainian treaty has already been ratified by the Verkhovna Rada.

In addition, he called on Ukraine to join the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States

After the aborted presentation, Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma moved quickly to respond to Mr. Selezniov's words and dismiss any suggestion that he supports a move toward a Slavic union. The president told Interfax-Ukraine that he is "strongly opposed" to a union between the three countries and that the Belarus-Russian union "has flopped."

"The Belarusian-Russian Union and the Customs Union created by the CIS's individual members showed that nothing has come of this idea," said President Kuchma.

The call for union with Moscow was the central theme of Mr. Selezniov's two-day visit to Kyiv. During his first day in Kyiv, at a meeting with the Verkhovna Rada leadership, he told faction representatives, "This would be hailed by our people as the most important event of the 20th century."

He explained that he had reason to believe that a majority of Ukrainians would support a referendum on a return to Moscow. "If you held a referendum," said Mr. Selezniov, you would become convinced that this is what the people want."

He added, "We are ready to consider Ukraine as part of a future union of Slavic nations."

After his Verkhovna Rada appearance, he attended a meeting with local government officials, he continued to pound on the need for a Moscow-Kyiv-Miensk union. "Without Ukraine we don't feel comfortable," explained Mr. Selezniov.

From the way individual Ukrainian national deputies responded to Mr. Selezniov's words, it was clear that the democratically-oriented factions in Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada did not feel at ease with the Russian speaker's comments.

The leader of the Rukh Party, National Deputy Vyacheslav Chornovil, told reporters after his faction walked out during the Selezniov speech, "How would you react after someone insulted your mother, your brother, your family?" He called Mr. Selezniov's words an intrusion into the internal affairs of Ukraine.

Former President Leonid Kravchuk, who belongs to the Social Democratic (United) faction of Parliament, also criticized the speech, as well as the leftist Ukrainian legislators who supported it.

"I am amazed that our so-called leadership was so pleased. Instead of representing the dignity of the nation and its people, they applaud and jump about in their seats because Moscow acknowledged them," Mr. Kravchuk told the newspaper Den.

National Deputy Oleh Bilorus of the Hromada faction, who was Ukraine's first ambassador to the United States, said that Mr. Selezniov's comments were an attempt at undermining the Ukrainian Constitution and the principles of full Ukrainian sovereignty.

By September 30 more than 150 Ukrainian national deputies had signed a petition sponsored by the Rukh faction that condemned Mr. Selezniov's presentation. The petition has not been signed by any legislators from the Socialist, Progressive Socialist, Agrarian or Communist parties.

Before his return to Moscow, Mr. Selezniov said he was non-plussed by the political uproar caused by his words and that his visit was a success. "We reached full mutual understanding and our dialogue will go on," said the State Duma leader, according to ITAR-TASS.

Mr. Selezniov explained that his proposal for a union of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine was "acceptable" to Ukrainian Parliament Chairman Tkachenko, while President Kuchma "got interested" in the idea. Commenting on the Rukh deputies' reaction to his speech, Mr. Selezniov said it was "normal," adding that "complete unanimity of opinion in the Parliament is bad," according to Reuters.

An official communiqué signed by Mr. Selezniov and Mr. Tkachenko states that their talks took place in an "atmosphere of friendship, cordiality, mutual understanding and confidence."

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