NEWSBRIEFS (07/23/00)

NEWSBRIEFS

German fund to compensate laborers

BERLIN - The German government and enterprises signed an agreement on July 17 creating a $5 billion (U.S.) fund to compensate forced laborers of Nazi Germany during World War II. Representatives of Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Belarus, the Czech Republic, the United States and the Jewish Claims Conference signed the document. Former slave laborers are entitled to receive about $7,500 each; former forced laborers should receive about $2,500. Payments to the fund are split equally between the state and German businesses. There are now approximately 600,000 ex-forced laborers in Ukraine. (Eastern Economist, The New York Times)

Five Ukrainian centrist parties to unite

KYIV - The leaders of five centrist parties - the Party of Regional Revival of Ukraine, the All-Ukrainian Party Solidarity, the For a Beautiful Ukraine Party, the Labor Party and the All-Ukrainian Party of Pensioners - have agreed to merge their groups this fall, Interfax reported on July 18. Their leaders also agreed to set up a new parliamentary caucus based on the Solidarity parliamentary group, which currently has 27 lawmakers. Some leftist deputies have recently joined the Solidarity group in order to switch to the parliamentary majority without alienating their electorate. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Seven energy companies to be privatized

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma has issued a decree ordering the sale of the government's entire stake in seven regional energy distributors, the so-called "oblenergo" companies. It had been planned last year that the state would retain a 25 percent stake in these distributors. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Kuchma expects renewal of IMF loan

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma on July 16 said he expects that the International Monetary Fund will resume its suspended $2.6 billion loan program to Ukraine in September, Interfax reported. Mr. Kuchma added that there have already been two international audits of Ukraine's National Bank showing that the bank did not misuse IMF funds. Western media, in particular the Financial Times, have alleged those funds were misused. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Viktor Yuschenko told journalists the next day that Ukraine cannot stop accepting IMF credits. He said that while Ukraine undergoes its transition from a command system to a market economy, the country is witnessing a decline in revenues and needs IMF support to make social payments in order to prevent too large a drop in living standards. (RFE/RL Newsline)

PM reports economic achievements

KYIV - Prime Minister Viktor Yuschenko told the Verkhovna Rada on July 15 that the country's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 5 percent in the first half of 2000, compared with the same period last year. He added that budget revenues had increased by 10.5 percent during the first six months of 2000 and that almost all of it was collected in cash instead of through barter or offsets. Mr. Yuschenko noted that this year's growth has enabled the government to pay off debts to pensioners and cut back on unpaid wages to government workers, while the real income of the population increased by 11.8 percent. He also said there is no immediate threat of a new financial crisis although inflation is on the rise: 1.7 percent in April, 2.1 percent in May, and 3.7 percent in June. Inflation is expected to total 18.7 percent by the end of the year. (RFE/RL Newsline)

New fuel and energy minister tapped

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma appointed Serhii Yermilov as fuel and energy minister, Interfax reported on July 13. Mr. Yermilov commented after his nomination that his aim is to stabilize energy supplies to Ukraine and modernize the fuel and energy sector. Mr. Yermilov replaces Serhii Tulub, who resigned last month over disputes with Vice Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko over how to reform the troubled fuel and energy sector. President Kuchma also appointed Vadym Kopylov as Mr. Yermilov's deputy and head of the state-run Naftohaz Ukrainy. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Polish secret files to be opened

WARSAW - Leon Kieres, head of the National Remembrance Institute, told the PAP press service on July 15 that secret files of the Communist-era security services will be open in the second half of 2001 to people who were wronged by those services. Mr. Kieres said that, while the institute was formally opened on June 30, it will take time to set up and organize the work of the institute's 49 regional branches. The institute is made up of three sections: the Main Commission for Prosecuting Crimes against the Polish Nation, the Public Education Office, and the Archives and Files Office, which will grant access to secret files. Mr. Kieres estimates that the institute may employ up to 1,500 people. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukrainian peacekeeper dies

KYIV - Sgt. Liubomyr Tovkan of the Ukrainian peacekeeping forces that are part of KFOR in Kosovo died on July 10 while on a mission. The recent heavy rains caused the ground under the armored personnel carrier driven by Sgt. Tovkan to give way. The APC turned over and rolled down a hill. (Eastern Economist)

Crew and cocaine are held

KYIV - Ten Ukrainian crew members of the Panamanian registered vessel Tiger were detained in the Caribbean and arrested for drug smuggling. The U.S. Coast Guard searched the vessel and discovered 1.5 tons of cocaine with an approximate value of $100 million. The Embassy of Ukraine in the United States has sent a note to the U.S. State Department asking for complete information on the arrest of the 10 Ukrainian citizens, stated Foreign Affairs Ministry Spokesman Ihor Hrushko. He added the United States is slow in providing official information. (Eastern Economist)

Registered unemployment is at 4.4 percent

KYIV - The unemployment rate in Ukraine as of June 1 was 4.4 percent of the working age population, while in May it was 4.5 percent the State Statistics Committee reported on June 20. As of June 1 the state employment agency registered 1,198,700 unemployed, with 755,900, or 63 percent of them, women. The highest levels of unemployment were registered in Zhytomyr Oblast, 7.9 percent; Chernihiv Oblast, 7.4 percent; Rivne Oblast, 7.3 percent; Sumy Oblast, 7.2 percent; Lviv Oblast. 7.1 percent; and Volyn Oblast, 7.0 percent. At the beginning of summer the number of advertised jobs was 72,300, which means there are 17 unemployed people for each job vacancy. A total of 625,800 persons receive unemployment benefits. Labor and Social Policy Minister Ivan Sakhan forecast that in 2000 more than 3 million people will turn to the employment agency. (Eastern Economist)

Supreme Court, Rada back president

KYIV - The Ukrainian Supreme Council on July 13 ruled that the Parliament can vote only on constitutional changes in the form submitted by President Leonid Kuchma and cannot consider an alternative and weaker version, the DPA news service reported. Several hours later, the Parliament voted 251-22 in the first reading to amend the basic law to give the president the power to dissolve the Parliament, create a bicameral legislature, reduce the number of deputies and eliminate the national deputies' immunity from prosecution. The Parliament must vote on the amendments again later this year, and those changes must receive 300 of the 450 votes in order to be incorporated into the Constitution of Ukraine. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Rada OKs privatization of UkrTelekom

KYIV - By a vote of 244-0, with 141 deputies not participating, the Verkhovna Rada on July 13 approved a bill on privatizing the Ukrainian telecommunications company, the Associated Press reported. The bill calls for the government to retain 50 percent plus one of the shares in the company and directs the Cabinet of Ministers to make the final decision on how to conduct this privatization effort. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Poland reassures Ukraine on pipeline

WARSAW - President Aleksander Kwasniewski said on July 13 that Warsaw "will not support anything that could be aimed against Ukraine - anything that could be blatantly anti-Ukrainian will not gain our backing," the PAP news agency reported. Mr. Kwasniewski's comments, made in a telephone call to Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma, came after an announcement that Russia's Gazprom wants to begin negotiations on the construction of a new pipeline via Poland to Western Europe, thus bypassing Ukraine. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials said they are working on a strategy to counter Moscow's plans to build a pipeline that bypasses Ukraine, ITAR-TASS reported. Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko was quoted as saying that "Ukraine is indeed worried" about such a routing. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Rada approves budget, tax changes

KYIV - By a vote of 240-1, the Verkhovna Rada on July 13 approved a budget code bill requiring officials to set federal and regional budgets at the same time, the Associated Press reported. The same day, a majority of deputies approved in the first reading a government-backed tax code abolishing tax rates set in other bills and setting a five-year moratorium on amendments to state taxes. Meanwhile, the Parliament also passed a bill setting the monthly subsistence level at 270.1 hrv ($49.80 U.S.). (RFE/RL Newsline)

WTO: Ukraine must do more to qualify

GENEVA - World Trade Organization officials in Geneva told Ukrainian negotiators that Kyiv must do "a lot more to come into line with standard trade practices" before they can hope to be admitted to the WTO, Reuters reported on July 13. The Ukrainian delegation had presented a large package of documentation, but the WTO said more is needed. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Berlin to back Kyiv on IMF aid

BERLIN - German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder told visiting Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma on July 12 that Berlin will support Ukraine in its efforts to obtain assistance for its economic development from the International Monetary Fund. This indication of German backing came despite a disagreement on how Ukraine will replace the power-generating capacity of Chornobyl once that nuclear plant is shut down. Ukraine wants to build two additional nuclear power plants, while Germany insists that its money be used to fund other kinds of power-generating facilities. (RFE/RL Newsline)

IFC to begin investing in Ukraine

KYIV - Peter Vojke, the president of the International Finance Corp., told Ukrainian officials on July 12 that his group plans to begin investing in the Ukrainian economy, ITAR-TASS and Interfax reported. He said this decision reflects IFC officials' view that the present Ukrainian government is committed to reforms. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Bilateral talks continue on Azov Sea

KERCH, Ukraine - The eighth round of bilateral negotiations on the status of the Sea of Azov and the Kerch Strait and also on the delimitation of the Black Sea began in Kerch on July 12, ITAR-TASS reported. The two sides continue to disagree over the Sea of Azov, with Ukraine calling for its delimitation and Russia urging that it be jointly exploited. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Entrepreneurs get more state support

KYIV - The presidential decree on measures for support of entrepreneurial activity signed on July 15 will assist in the realization of entrepreneurial potential, stated Deputy Presidential Chief of Staff Pavlo Haidutskyi. He added that "the rate of entrepreneurship development is high, however, it does not satisfy the president." The number of small enterprises rose by 15 to 20 percent annually since 1996, however the number of jobs decreased by 17 percent. Even more disturbing is the financial state of small enterprises whose profits dropped by nine-times from 1996-1999. The average number of workers in these enterprises dropped from 12 to six. The decree regulates the number of inspections of small businesses, and eliminates the so-called volunteer payments to the local budgets. (Eastern Economist)

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