Kuchma honors Castro for Cuba's assistance to children of Chornobyl (06/25/00)

Kuchma honors Castro for Cuba's assistance to children of Chornobyl

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma on June 16-18 made his first visit to Cuba, where he awarded Fidel Castro the Yaroslav the Wise medal in recognition of Cuba's treatment of children affected by the radiation aftereffects of the Chornobyl disaster.

The honor, named for Prince Yaroslav of Kyivan Rus', is one of the highest Ukraine can bestow upon an individual.

"Small Cuba does things that others fail to do," said Mr. Kuchma according to Uriadovyi Kurier, the official newspaper of the Cabinet of Ministers.

In the last 10 years Cuba has financed the cost of treatment for some 18,000 Ukrainian children at its Tarara Health Center near Havana in a program called "Children of Chornobyl." The program was initiated by Chairman Castro in 1990. At any given time about 200 Ukrainian children, many with their parents, can be found at the medical center being treated for various illnesses that can range from leukemia to thyroid disorders.

"We bow our heads in gratitude," said Mr. Kuchma, adding that Ukrainians will never forget the aid of the Cuban people.

He announced that he would take the medical center under his official patronage with an initial donation of $100,000 to help finance the hospital's continued efforts.

While the president's visit to the Tarara Health Center was the emotional highlight of his two-day stay in Havana, delegations from both countries also held extensive discussions on strengthening trade relations.

One of the first economic agreements they signed is for Ukraine's Pivden Mash Tractor Plant to supply Cuba with tractor repair kits. Since 1972, Ukraine has provided Cuba with more than 100,000 tractors, many of which stand idle today because spare parts once supplied by the Soviet Union are no longer freely available. Talks were also held on the construction of a Ukrainian repair depot.

The two sides also agreed to form a joint stock company for the Ukrainian processing of Cuban cane sugar, in which the two countries will hold equal shares. The Ukrainian interest will be in an international sugar consortium, composed of Ukrainian, Austrian and German firms.

Ukraine and Cuba, once bound by their relationships to the Soviet Union, have slowly drifted apart in the last 10 years, although some of the old ties continue today. In Havana Mr. Kuchma pointed out that Cuba supported Ukraine's election to the United Nations Security Council as a non-permanent member last year and recently sponsored its observer status in the organization of non-aligned countries.

While the delegations and the presidents discussed trade, another member of the Ukrainian delegation, Kyiv Mayor Oleksander Omelchenko visited a unique memorial in Havana: a monument to the Ukrainian bard Taras Shevchenko. The statue was erected last year at a cost of 200,000 hrv with financing provided by the Kyiv city administration, and sculpted by two Ukrainians, Ruslan Kukharenko and Mykola Orlenko.

Mr. Castro and Mr. Kuchma announced at the conclusion of the visit that the Cuban leader had accepted an invitation to visit Kyiv in the near future.

| Home Page |