NEWSBRIEFS

Cabinet approves action program

KYIV - The Cabinet of Ministers on March 3 approved the main points of its action program, which is based on President Leonid Kuchma's annual address to the Parliament delivered last month, Interfax reported. The program - called "The Reforms for Prosperity" - is to be in force throughout the term of the current government. The programs foresees a 1.2 percent increase in gross domestic product this year and a 6.5 percent average annual increase in GDP in 2002-2004. The government expects that the planned reforms will result in a 40 percent growth in personal income in Ukraine. The program also pledges to create market mechanisms in the energy sector and diversify energy supplies. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukraine to continue borrowing money

KYIV - Minister of the Economy Serhii Tyhypko on March 3 said Ukraine will not stop borrowing money from international financial organizations, Interfax reported. "We need not be afraid of foreign debts - we need to be afraid of budget deficit, inasmuch as its existence practically increases foreign debt," Mr. Tyhypko noted. Commenting on inflation in January and February, which was 8.1 percent, Mr. Tyhypko said that figure was the result of "larger than planned" money supplies at the end of 1999. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Population falls by 400,000 in 1999

KYIV - Ukraine's State Committee on Statistics reported that the population of Ukraine on January 1 totaled 49.71 million, down 394,800 since January 1 of the previous year. There was a difference of 44,800 between migrants out of and into Ukraine, while 350,000 was the difference between those deceased and those born last year. The highest mortality figure was registered in the industrial, coal-mining Donetsk Oblast (79,800 deaths and 30,500 births), while the lowest was in essentially rural western Ukraine: Volyn Oblast (14,700 deaths and 11,800 births), Zakarpattia Oblast (14,400 deaths and 13,900 births) and Rivne Oblast (15,100 deaths and 14,200 births). The number of Ukrainian villages decreased in 1999 by 36 to 28,739. (RFE/RL Poland, Belarus and Ukraine Report)

More than 100,000 minors homeless

KYIV - Yuri Bohutskyi, deputy head of the presidential administration staff, told journalists on February 16 that there are 101,000 homeless minors in Ukraine, constituting 36.3 percent of all homeless people in the country. The data were obtained during special police raids across the country. According to Mr. Bohutskyi, vagrancy and begging among homeless minors has acquired a "mass character." He added that 14.4 percent of homeless minors are children of pre-school age. Ukraine has 80 orphanages, half of which were set up over the past two years. According to Mr. Bohutskyi, the number of orphanages is insufficient. President Leonid Kuchma recently issued a decree ordering the government to address the problem of homelessness and criminality among minors. In particular, the president instructed the government to open more orphanages and children's homes. (RFE/RL Poland, Belarus and Ukraine Report)

10,000 criminal cases on tax initiated

KYIV - More than 10,000 tax-related criminal cases were initiated in 1999, Ukrainian radio reported, quoting Viktor Zhvaliuk, vice-chairman of the State Tax Administration. The tax authorities confiscated over 2 billion hrv in 1999. (Eastern Economist)

Ukraine posts 3.4% growth in January

KYIV - The State Statistics Committee has reported that Ukraine's gross domestic product in January 2000 increased by 3.4 percent, compared with January 1999. Last month's inflation was 4.6 percent. The government predicts that GDP in 2000 will increase by 1 percent, compared with 1999, while inflation will not exceed 15.9 percent. In 1999 Ukraine's GDP fell by 0.4 percent, while inflation reached 19.2 percent. (RFE/RL Newsline)

41 countries invited to Peace Shield 2000

KYIV - Forty-one countries have been invited to participate in the Ukraine-U.S. maneuvers known as Peace Shield 2000. Most of the countries invited have already confirmed their participation. The maneuvers, which have been conducted since 1995, will be held July 8-22 this year on the territory of Ukraine, Bulgaria and Estonia. (Eastern Economist)

NATO urges military reform in Ukraine

KYIV - NATO Secretary-General George Robertson, who participated in the NATO-Ukraine Commission meeting in Kyiv on March 1, has called on Kyiv to speed up military reform. Mr. Robertson pledged that NATO is prepared to help Ukraine reform its defense sector and help retrain military personnel for reintegration into society. "You cannot avoid the pain in army reform," the Associated Press quoted him as saying. Ukraine's Foreign Affairs Minister Borys Tarasyuk told journalists that NATO envoys at the meeting were critical of Ukraine's record on reforming the armed forces, but he added that the tone of the discussions was positive, according to Reuters. The two sides also discussed the use of the Yavoriv military range (Lviv Oblast) to train international peacekeeping forces. Mr. Robertson said Ukraine can expect payment for making Yavoriv available to NATO troops. (RFE/RL Newsline)

OSCE: no mandate in war crimes case

RIGA - Following Russian demands for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to become involved in the case of Vasili Kononov, convicted war criminal, the organization's mission in Latvia said it has no such mandate, the BNS news agency reported on March 1. The Russian government reacted angrily to the conviction of the former Soviet partisan, which it said was "unfair." Mr. Kononov thanked Russia's acting President Vladimir Putin for his assistance in his case. Russia also voiced anger at the beginning of the trial of Yevgeni Savenko, who is charged with genocide and who publicly apologized to Janis Rungis, a victim of KGB oppression, "on behalf of all Russian people," the LETA press service added. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Kyiv, Miensk agree on military cooperation

KYIV - Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksander Kuzmuk and his Belarusian counterpart, Alyaksandr Chumakou, met in Kyiv on March 2 and signed a bilateral cooperation agreement for 2000. Gen. Kuzmuk noted that the two countries are facing the same problems in the military sector, in particular, in modernizing their armed forces, recycling obsolete weaponry, and improving military training. Mr. Chumakou told journalists that Miensk does not plan to have any Russian troops stationed in Belarus during peacetime. He also noted that Belarus cooperates with NATO under the Partnership for Peace program but not on the scale "it would like to," according to Interfax. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Rada ratifies accord on NATO troops

KYIV - The Verkhovna Rada on March 2 voted 228-10 to ratify an agreement that defines the status of NATO troops and servicemen from countries participating in the Partnership for Peace program in Ukraine. NATO Secretary-General George Robertson said the agreement will help promote the increased use of Ukraine's Yavoriv training range for PFP maneuvers. The Parliament also ratified the Open Skies Treaty, which allows its signatories to monitor flights over one another's territory. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Moscow slams U.S. human rights report

MOSCOW - Moscow has rejected the U.S. State Department's annual report on human rights as "unacceptable." The report criticized what it called the indiscriminate use of force in Chechnya, resulting in the killing of civilians. In a statement issued on March 1, Russia's Foreign Affairs Ministry said that the report was based on "unverified, biased information" about Russia's campaign in Chechnya and shows Washington's "prejudiced stance" toward human rights in Russia. (RFE/RL Newsline)

British report atrocities against Chechens

LONDON - The Observer on March 5 cited eyewitness reports of an attack by Russian forces on February 4 against civilians in the village of Katyr-Yurt, 20 kilometers northeast of Grozny, Reuters reported. Russian planes reportedly began bombing the village that morning, and buses flying white flags were later sent to evacuate the villages. Those buses were then targeted by ground-to-air missiles. In all, some 363 people were killed in the attack. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukraine, Poland discuss cooperation

KYIV - Polish Foreign Affairs Minister Bronislaw Geremek met with Ukraine's Foreign Affairs Minister Borys Tarasyuk and Prime Minister Viktor Yuschenko in Kyiv on March 2 to discuss boosting bilateral trade and plans to build an oil pipeline from Ukraine's Black Sea port of Odesa to Gdansk in Poland. Mr. Geremek said Poland is interested in the pipeline and will start talks on the issue. He noted that Poland will do everything in its power to delay as long as possible introducing visas for Ukrainians or avoid their introduction altogether. "We hope to convince the EU [European Union] that we need to have special relations with Ukraine," the Associated Press quoted Mr. Geremek as saying. Mr. Geremek told Mr. Yuschenko that Poland is ready to share its experience in debt restructuring with Ukraine and help Ukraine carry out reforms. Mr. Yuschenko said Ukraine wants to see Poland as a "strategic investor on the privatization market." (RFE/RL Poland, Belarus and Ukraine Report)

Putin does not exclude NATO membership

MOSCOW - In an interview broadcast on March 5, Russia's acting President Vladimir Putin told BBC Television that he does not rule out Moscow's joining NATO but stressed it will do so only "when Russia's views are taken into account as those of an equal partner." Saying he cannot imagine Russia being isolated from Europe, Mr. Putin remarked that "it is hard for me to visualize NATO as an enemy." "When we talk about our opposition to NATO's expansion..., we have never declared any region of the world a zone of our special interest," he said, adding that attempts to exclude Russia from the enlargement process have triggered such opposition in Moscow. With regard to Chechnya, Mr. Putin said Russia is acting against "extremists" who have turned the province into a "mini-Afghanistan." Russia's actions, he maintained, are aimed solely at "minimizing civilian casualties." The BBC interview was recorded on February 29, the same day as federal forces in Chechnya took Shatoi. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ivanov: Putin's remark was hypothetical

MOSCOW - Commenting on acting President Vladimir Putin's remark that he does not rule out Russia's joining NATO on "equal terms," Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Igor Ivanov said that statement had been taken out of context and did not represent a change of policy, Interfax reported. Mr. Ivanov told NTV on March 6 that Mr. Putin had given a "hypothetical answer to a hypothetical question." The acting president's main point was that "Russia wants to play a role in Western European institutions," Mr. Ivanov stressed. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Russian membership not on NATO agenda

BRUSSELS - As the United States and Britain welcomed acting President Vladimir Putin's NATO remark as signaling Russia's willingness to improve relations with the Atlantic alliance, NATO Secretary-General George Robertson commented on March 6 that the prospect of Russia's joining the alliance is not on the agenda for now, Reuters reported. Building on the alliance's existing ties with Moscow is already a "challenging task," Mr. Robertson said. At the same time, he noted that the alliance recognizes the need to continue its partnership with Moscow, and he lauded the "positive spirit" that Mr. Putin displayed in the BBC interview. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Pliusch wants to limit participation in CIS

KYIV - Parliament Chairman Ivan Pliusch said on March 6 that Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada should cease participating in sessions of the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly, Interfax reported. Mr. Pliusch said the Ukrainian Parliament should maintain contacts with the CIS Inter- Parliamentary Assembly only "at the level of parliamentary committees" to discuss unifying CIS legislation on pensions, social security guarantees for servicemen, and the economy. CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly sessions are not "needed by anybody since they do not imply any commitments," he commented. Mr. Pliusch added that limiting the participation of the Verkhovna Rada in the CIS body will save Ukraine money. (RFE/RL Poland, Belarus and Ukraine Report)

Ukraine's industrial production grows

KYIV - The State Committee on Statistics on March 6 reported that the country's industrial output grew by 14.7 percent last month, compared with February 1999. Industrial growth was up 10.2 percent in the first two months of 2000, compared with the same period last year. The committee commented that companies increased production to take advantage of cheaper production costs, compared to those of foreign competitors, after the hryvnia lost value owing to the 1998 regional crisis. (RFE/RL Poland, Belarus and Ukraine Report)

Russia's Black Sea Fleet heavily indebted

SEVASTOPOL - Sevastopol Mayor Leonid Zhunko on March 6 said Russia's Black Sea Fleet has run up huge electricity debts to the city and impaired the city's ability to provide normal electricity and gas supplies to residents, Interfax reported. According to Mr. Zhunko, the fleet currently owes the city 40 million hrv ($7.2 million U.S.), while the city's annual budget totals 100 million hrv. Mr. Zhunko said Sevastopol has become "hostage to the fleet's untimely payments," but he added that the city administration continues to maintain "working, non- politicized relations" with the fleet. (RFE/RL Poland, Belarus and Ukraine Report)

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, March 12, 2000, No. 11, Vol. LXVIII

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