Clinton extends help to Ukraine in battling AIDS (12/04/05)

Clinton extends help to Ukraine in battling AIDS

by Zenon Zawada
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton met with Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko on November 27 to extend his foundation's help in combating the nation's AIDS epidemic.

The two leaders signed an agreement in which the Clinton Foundation will provide high-quality training for medical personnel, access to less-expensive testing equipment, offer HIV/AIDS patients access to inexpensive drugs and fund treatment programs on the oblast level.

"I believe in the potential of this project, and I believe in its immense effectiveness," Mr. Yushchenko said at a joint press conference on November 27.

In late October Mr. Yushchenko declared Ukraine's AIDS rate "disastrous," citing official government statistics that there are about 12,000 AIDS patients in Ukraine.

Weeks later, German Ambassador to Ukraine Dietmar Studemann estimated that about 1.4 percent of the population is HIV positive, or about 672,000 Ukrainians.

The Clinton Foundation signed its first memorandum of cooperation with the Ukrainian government in September 2004.

He said it was a "great honor" to sign the latest memorandum, which was signed by Health Minister Yurii Poliachenko on the Ukrainian side. "I have always been warmly received and remain this way in my relations with Ukraine," Mr. Clinton said.

As part of the agreement, the Ukrainian government will also be able to buy antiretrovirus medication at 90 percent below market prices.

The foundation's assistance will significantly reduce the money spent by the Ukrainian government per HIV/AIDS patient, estimated at between $2,500 and $5,000, Mr. Yushchenko said. As a result, funds will be available to assist more patients.

In addition to discussing his foundation's work, Mr. Clinton said Ukraine has made progress in the year since the Orange Revolution. "I see a more vibrant democracy, freedom of speech, a more aggressive free press, freedom of political assembly and the kind of disagreements that characterize any modern democracy," he said.

Ukrainians need to be patient in building an economy and political system that will provide a decent life for its citizens, Mr. Clinton added. "I think that in the last month, Ukraine was able to significantly improve its investment climate," he said, in a direct reference to the Ukrainian government's sale of Kryvorizhstal to the Netherlands-based Mittal Steel Co.

The successful sale was widely discussed among American businessmen and investors, Mr. Clinton said.

"The spirit of openness, which currently reins in Ukraine, will attract foreign, and especially American, investors," he said.

Mr. Clinton declined to comment on Ukraine's internal politics, stating that Mr. Yushchenko "doesn't need any advice."

President Yushchenko, however, issued yet another call for unity among Ukraine's democratic forces. "Solidarity and unity is the most original concept for bringing victory in the 2006 parliamentary elections," he said.

During Mr. Clinton's visit, President Yushchenko hosted the former U.S. president at his Koncha Zaspa home in suburban Kyiv.

Mr. Yushchenko also said he would accompany Mr. Clinton to place flowers at the memorial to victims of the 1932-1933 Holodomor located in Kyiv's at St. Michael's Square.

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