COMMENTARY: Kyiv conference on "Ukraine in Europe and the World" (03/14/04)

COMMENTARY: Kyiv conference on "Ukraine in Europe and the World"

by Marta Farion

KYIV - After more than a decade of Ukrainian independence, and in the shadow of Ukraine's upcoming presidential election, 17 European experts in politics, economics and social issues and three Americans - former Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Miller and current U.S. Ambassador John Herbst - convened in Kyiv on February 20-21 to assess Ukraine's future relationship with its European neighbors and the larger democratic world.

This was to be the first time that Ukraine's opposition forces gathered at the same forum to discuss their differences through dialogue rather than confrontation, an approach that has long been missing in the political culture of the country.

The conference, titled "Ukraine in Europe and the World," was co-sponsored and backed financially by a collection of European and American think tanks and NGOs, including the Adenauer Fund of Germany, the German Marshall Fund of the United States, the Center for International Relations of Poland, the Euro-Atlantic Institute of Ukraine, the Kyiv Mohyla Academy of Ukraine and others from France, the Czech Republic and Romania, and was billed as another round of discussions about Ukraine's staggering path toward European integration.

The conference's not so subtle subtext was that this year's presidential election would constitute the nation's choice point about its own future - to take the train going East or the train going West, a choice between going backward or going forward.

Secretary Albright's opening address set the discussion's agenda in bold language. "Democracy is not a gift. It has to be built by millions of people, and each person must take responsibility for leadership with wisdom, respect for the rule of law and free and fair elections," she said. "The people of Ukraine must make a full commitment to democracy. Ukrainians must stand on the shoulders of the dissidents, the non-people of the past, and not accept the theft of liberty," she warned.

The conference provided the Ukrainian government with its most recent report card, delivered openly and unvarnished by diplomatic ambiguities. Borys Tarasyuk, Ukraine's former minister of foreign affairs and now the chairman of the Euro-Atlantic Institute, presided over the proceedings. Viacheslav Briukhovetsky, president of the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, opened with the question "Why, after 13 years of Ukrainian independence, are there more problems now than then? He noted, "New people will someday write the history of this period, and they will have to write about our brutal reality."

Along these lines, Anders Aslund, professor and economic advisor to the Ukrainian government, said, "Ukraine is now a repressive state. The main election question is corruption." Ivan Pliusch, national deputy and former chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, said, "Let us not kid ourselves and our guests. We all know that ministers are already selected and appointed before elections. Deals are made before elections, and we know who the producer of this show is." And Anatolii Grytsenko of the Razumkov Center for Economic and Political Studies in Ukraine, observed, "Elections in the times of Gorbachev were cleaner than elections in Ukraine now. Ten years ago, there was more freedom of the press than now."

Opposition leader and member of Parliament Yulia Tymoshenko spent considerable time in discussions with Secretary Madeleine Albright and former speaker of Parliament Ivan Pliusch.

Many conference participants noted Ukraine's recent crackdown on the press, and Tom Dine of Radio Liberty talked openly about his recent experiences: "Kuchma attacked Radio Liberty and the mass media. He got his knee into our body, but this is a general media problem. Any independent voice in Ukraine is under attack, but we are going to fight to be on the air. We are looking for new partners."

Most of the conference's discussion, however, focused on which positive and affirmative steps will be required by Ukraine to be fully accepted by and integrated within the community of democratic nations. Advice to Ukraine was freely given. For one thing, the importance of political dialogue was emphasized. Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski stated in his written message, "Dialogue is fruitful only when all parties participate and the media and the press are not closed. It is not enough to listen - what is needed is to hear." And Viktor Yushchenko, former prime minister, head of the Our Ukraine faction and presidential candidate said, "Perhaps this conference is a first step toward having the political elite come together in a joint conversation on its own land and not somewhere else. A political dialogue in our country is a first brick in building a democratic political system."

Anatolii Grytsenko added, "The current situation is the fault of the government, the fault of the opposition and the fault of the people. We are all guilty of neglecting democracy." And Sasha Vondra of the Czech Republic observed, "It is not what the world can do for Ukraine. The question is what can Ukraine do for itself?" Dr. Briukhovetsky pointed to the significant role to be played by Ukraine's younger generation, reciting Hemmingway's observation that "man is not made for defeat; man can be destroyed, but not defeated," and he called for the nurturing of the intellect of the young generation to lead Ukraine to a better future.

A parallel theme in much of the conference's discussion centered on the role of Europe in facilitating Ukraine's march toward democracy. Pavol Demes of Slovakia and the Transatlantic Center for Central and Eastern Europe noted, "Europe should open up its borders. There should be no iron curtain on European borders." And Hennadii Udovenko, national deputy and former Ukrainian minister of foreign affairs, said: "People say the Berlin Wall is down, that there are no more walls. That is not true. There is a curtain, a wall around Europe. Europe needs to open its borders to Ukrainians."

Former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Miller noted, "When our countries (Ukraine and the United States) were engaged through numerous visits of the president, the secretary of state, the ministers, and other government officials, there was much more success in relations. There is very limited exchange between our countries now. We in the West have not done our work in engagement fully." Dr. Aslund added, "The West's media should pay more attention to Ukraine. There is no full-time correspondent of the major media in Kyiv, and this must change."

A related event that resulted from the conference was the visit of various European leaders and Secretary Albright to the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, where they participated in an open discussion with students, scholars and alumni in a free debate and exchange of ideas. Secretary Albright noted that she had followed NUKMA through the years. She continued, "I am very concerned about what is going on in Ukraine for those who want democracy. Democracy is not an event, it is a process."

Secretary Albright commented: "there are problems in the United States also, but we have a system of checks and balances. But in Ukraine the system is not checked and it is not balanced. The future of Ukraine is in your hands, to help Ukraine join the community of democracies. The issues about joining the EU are not simple. There are requirements and great consequences. That is why it is important for young Ukrainian people to shine a light and speak out. Make sure that the process this election year is an open one."

The conference was well-organized and professionally managed, but it was not without moments of genuine Ukrainian intrigue, surprise and humor. For one thing, the Ukrainian government was a reluctant and tepid participant, and conference organizers were not notified until hours before its convening that government officials would participate. Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, Justice Minister Oleksander Lavrynovych and Foreign Affairs Minister Kostyantyn Gryshchenko attended.

Of the three, Prime Minister Yanukovych produced the most controversy when he warned the conference against "criticizing and blackening everything done thus far" and complained that the political competition in Ukraine had been "perverted" by the opposition, whose sole purpose was "to paralyze the government's work."

Perhaps in a statement that could be interpreted as an opening toward political reconciliation, Mr. Yanukovych stressed the importance of the gathering as a step to improve mutual understanding. "We need to understand which are the roads for our country's transformation. What is it that unites us, that we have in common? We have a mutual concern about Ukraine's destiny and a pain and regret over lost opportunities. We are all aware of the significance of this year's election. These elections will be a deciding factor in the development of democracy in Ukraine. Will Ukraine rise up to European democratic traditions or will it return to totalitarian rule?"

Such words may be a sign of willingness to work toward common goals. But Mr. Yanukovych's closing reference to "a great French reformer and democrat Napoleon Bonaparte who said 'It is imperative to be strong,' " drew laughter throughout the conference hall, as well comments that the prime minister's interests would be best served if he replaced his speech writer.

As the prime minister immediately left the building, his closing remark provided Mr. Yushchenko with an opportunity to begin his presentation saying that "Since we established here a tradition of quoting French reformers, I will quote Charles DeGaulle who said 'I hate the opposition, but the opposition is also France.' Well, we are the opposition, and we are also Ukraine."

The conference's intrigue centered on the opening night reception. Conference participants received two invitations to the dinner, the second of which was a last-minute correction of the first. The first invitation was to a gala dinner in the Hall of Columns in the City Administration Building, with the participation of Kyiv's Mayor Oleksander Omelchenko. But hours before that event, a second round of invitations was distributed, which instead directed conference participants to another dinner at the Rus' Hotel. Later, the talk on the Khreschatyk, the capital's main thoroughfare, was that the government had leaned on Mayor Omelchenko to withdraw his hospitality. Apparently the mayor was on an official visit abroad.

And that was perhaps the ultimate irony of the entire week - that the serious problems and issues facing Ukraine would finally have to be discussed and debated by non-Ukrainians from other countries, whose interest in Ukraine's future would force the country's political leaders to finally come together, however briefly, at a roundtable for the first time and try to begin a new political tradition of discussion, compromise and consensus.

Marta Farion, attorney and chair of the Chicago-Kyiv Sister Cities Committee, attended the international conference held in Kyiv on February 20-21 titled "Ukraine in Europe and the World."

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