Korea and Ukraine to boost trade

News / 16 July 2009 | 18:00

Prime Minister Han Seung-soo and his visiting Ukrainian counterpart Yulia Tymoshenko yesterday agreed to deter protectionism and explore mutually beneficial business projects.

During the first-ever visit by a Ukrainian prime minister to South Korea, Tymoshenko exchanged views with Han on improving cooperation in trade, agriculture, construction and energy development.

South Korea and the Ukraine established diplomatic ties in 1992.

The two prime ministers signed agreements yesterday on trade remedy cooperation and collaboration between state-funded export-import banks.

 

Tymoshenko also paid a courtesy call on President Lee Myung-bak and was scheduled to meet with local businessmen before heading home last night.

In addition to bolstering economic ties, Han and Tymoshenko discussed how to support ethnic Koreans’ stay in the Ukraine, the South Korean prime minister’s office said.

The Ukraine, located between Russia and Europe, is known for its abundance in natural resources and a large domestic market. Bilateral trade has nearly doubled in the past three years to $2.6 billion last year.

Han told his Ukrainian counterpart that extended bilateral cooperation in nuclear power generation, construction and plant engineering would be mutually beneficial, and requested for her support during the talks yesterday.

Tymoshenko said she hoped her nation could share Korea’s know-how in economic development through bolstered economic ties, and agreed to cooperate for stable sojourn of ethnic Koreans in her country.

“Ukraine is Korea’s second largest trade partner among the CIS nations after Russia,” said a Korean foreign ministry official.

“The first-ever visit by a Ukrainian prime minister to Seoul is expected to contribute greatly towards improving bilateral ties.”

Tymoshenko, Ukraine’s first female prime minister and one of the key leaders of the Orange Revolution, began her second term in Dec. 2007.

She is the first Ukrainian woman to run for presidential elections early next year.

Tymoshenko, a former businesswoman in the gas industry, reportedly expected to gain three things from her visit to Seoul – joint development of Ukraine petroleum, gas, titanium and uranium; joint construction of seaport infrastructure around the Black Sea; and Ukrainian railway modernization led by Hyundai plus cooperation in the automobile industry.

Ukraine increased natural gas imports from Russia fourfold this month as Tymoshenko pledged to store enough fuel to ensure stable supplies during the winter.

Ukraine, which relies on Russia for about 70 percent of its energy needs, is seeking to increase the amount of gas in its underground storage facilities after a dispute with Russia led to a Jan. 1 supply cut that affected Europe.

 

By Kim So-hyun

 

Source: The Korea Herald

ForUm

PR is against of Odesa plant sale

News / 16 July 2009 | 17:05

Party of Regions has spoken out against the government’s intentions to launch the privatization of the Odesa Portside Plant (OPZ), and described the deepening financial and economic crisis and the actual start of the presidential election in Ukraine as major obstacles to this move, ForUm informs, referring to Kyiv Post.

“The government, in the heat of the global financial and economic crisis, at the worst possible moment [given] the falling value of major assets, and an unprecedented situation on the market, has announced the start of the privatization of the Odesa Portside Plant,” reads the statement released by the party on Thursday.

“The Party of Regions thinks that OPZ has huge potential that could favor the strong promotion of Ukrainian national interests in the outside world,” the party said.

The Party od Regions  also described the government’s decision as “short-sighted and unreasonable” and said that this decision could be compared to “a crime against the state and its people.”

The statement also says that the decision to announce the sale of the plant seriously violated current laws, because “strategic objects in Ukraine can be privatized only in line with a state [privatization] program, which was not adopted this year.”

As reported, the State Property Fund announced a tender to sell a 99.567% stake in the Odesa Portside Plant with a starting price of UAH 4 billion. The tender will be held 75 days after the date of its announcement.

ForUm

Yanukovych wants to know how IMF loan was spent

News / 16 July 2009 | 16:16

The leader of the Party of Regions Viktor Yanukovych has summed up six month of policy, the ForUm’s correspondent informs.

Yanukovych is convinced that the current power could not protect people from the crisis.

“People are left with crisis face to face: without work, without proper salary, with increasing prices,” he said.

“The current power is a bankrupt. Coalition in the parliament is split. Ministers run away from the government. Corruption scandals are observed. The power uses only foreign loans, due to which Ukraine is surviving,” Yanukovych said.

Yanukovych calls to take measures urgently and slow the crisis. According to him, it is necessary to make investigation and get to know how was money from the budget 2009, as well as money from the IMF, spent

ForUm

Ukrainian government to form special group of support to South Korean investors

News / 16 July 2009 | 15:05

After Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko completes her visit to the Republic of Korea, the Ukrainian government will form a special group of assistance to South Korean investors, which will be led by Vice Premier Hryhoriy Nemyria, according to Kyiv Post.

Tymoshenko said this while opening a working lunch with representatives of South Korea’s business circles, the Ukrainian governmental press service reported on Thursday.

“We will create special mechanisms of cooperation. A special group will be operating under Ukraine’s government, which will be promoting your investments into the fields of cooperation with Ukraine,” she said.

The premier said that the Ukrainian government counts on cooperation in energy sector, in particular in production and transportation of energy, introduction of energy saving technologies and renewable power sources, oil and gas extraction, development of infrastructure and logistics, and cooperation in farming sector.

While opening a meeting with heads of industrial groups of Korea, Tymoshenko expressed hope that her visit to the country will facilitate the inflow of Korean investments to Ukraine.

ForUm

Yushchenko and Obama could meet this autumn

News / 16 July 2009 | 14:04

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry is considering the possibility of holding a meeting between Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko and U.S. President Barack Obama this autumn, Deputy Foreign Minister Kostiantyn Yeliseyev said at a press briefing on Wednesday, UkrInform reported.

He said that preparations for a possible meeting would be discussed during U.S. Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Ukraine on July 20-22.

“Preparations for a possible meeting between the two presidents in the near future, perhaps in autumn this year, will be one of the important elements during the visit,” Yeliseyev said.

He also said that during Biden’s visit to Ukraine, the sides would discuss the ways to step up a political dialogue at the highest level.

Upon Obama’s election as U.S president, Yushchenko stressed the importance of strengthening cooperation with the U.S. counterpart and his team.

ForUm

European Union calls for more gas storage

News / 16 July 2009 | 13:53

The European Union called Thursday on member nations to ramp up natural gas storage and build more pipelines to cope with any future cutoff in energy supplies from Russia, Kyiv Post reported, referring to Associated Press.

In January, thousands of homes went without heating and some power plants shut down when gas stopped flowing through pipelines from Russia due to a payment dispute with its neighbor Ukraine.

EU officials complained that Europeans were held hostage by the row and are seeking new routes and sources for energy _ something that will take years to realize.

The EU executive says the 27-nation bloc could double gas storage by 2015. It said Romania _ one of the bloc’s poorest states _ and Slovenia urgently need to build more storage because they depend so heavily on imports.

It is also calling for better energy connections between countries to help pump gas to where it is needed if supplies fall short.

EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs said the EU was ready to help fund some of this new infrastructure. He added, however, that the decisions need to be made by governments and that private companies also had to bear some of the costs.

The EU said ¤1 trillion ($1.4 trillion) needs to be spent by 2030 to upgrade Europe’s power generation and grid and ¤150 billion ($211 billion) on gas networks, including pipelines from suppliers.

Under a proposed draft law, the European Commission called on EU nations to share information on their gas demand and supply.

It does not require them to pool supplies in times of trouble. Piebalgs said this would be an overreaction to the gas crisis and any sharing should be voluntary.

The EU Commission also said Europeans can play a part by using less natural gas for heating or cooking.

EU officials hold talks Friday with the Ukrainian and Russian state-owned gas producers who are asking for a multibillion dollar loan to help Ukraine pay its energy bills to Russia’s Gazprom. The EU says any loan must be linked to promises not to interrupt Europe’s supply again.

One quarter of the EU’s energy comes from natural gas, 58 percent of it imported. Russia provides two-fifths of these gas imports, most of that passing through Ukraine. The EU’s eight eastern European members depend on Russia for more than three quarters of their gas.

Other major gas suppliers are Norway, Libya and Algeria.

The EU expects gas imports to surge by 2020 as European wells run dry and power companies shift from burning coal to less polluting gas to try and curb greenhouse gas emissions.

ForUm

MPs left for vacation

News / 16 July 2009 | 12:54

The fourth session of the VRU of VI convocation is closed, the ForUm’s correspondent informs.

After the VRU speaker announced about the close of the session, MPs listened to the hymn of Ukraine.

The fifth session will start its work on September 1, 2009.

As a reminder, today’s VRU session was opened, but MPs could not work effectively.

ForUm

PR turned off electricity in Rada voting system

News / 16 July 2009 | 11:24

MPs from the Party of Regions turned off the voting system “Rada”, the ForUm’s correspondent informs.

The leadership of the VRU called PR to let the parliament work and consider agenda. But voting system “Rada” still does not work.

As a reminder, the morning VRU session is opened but almost all MPs are near the VRU podium and presidium.

MPs from the BYuT faction blocked the VRU podium before the beginning of the VRU session in order to let the VRU to work.

ForUm

VRU is working at a siege

News / 16 July 2009 | 10:29

Morning VRU session has started, however all MPs registered in the session hall are near the VRU podium, the ForUm’s correspondent informs.

In particular, representatives of BYuT are standing near the VRU leadership in order to give them possibility to conduct VRU session. But MPs from PR are blocking.

MP Oleh Tishchenko was sworn in.

As a reminder, MPs from the BYuT faction blocked the VRU podium before the beginning of the VRU session.

On initiative of 151 MPs today extra session of the parliament was opened. The anti-crisis laws and laws on election are on agenda.

In turn representatives of PR also gathered around the VRU podium and blocked the office of the VRU leadership, demanding to adopt at first draft law on increase of living wage.

ForUm

BYuT took the lead over PR in blocking VRU

News / 16 July 2009 | 10:00

MPs from the BYuT faction have blocked the VRU podium before the beginning of the VRU session, the ForUm’s correspondent informs.

MP from the BYuT Olena Shustik informed that her political forces took the lead. According to her, BYuT insists on adoption of necessary decisions for the country, therefore it is blocking the VRU podium in order Party of Regions can’t do this today.

In turn representatives of PR also gathered around the VRU podium and blocked the office of the VRU leadership in order the morning session not to be opened.

As a reminder, on initiative of 151 MPs today extra session of the parliament will be held. The anti-crisis laws and laws on election are on agenda.

But PR still demands to adopt at first draft law on increase of living wage.

ForUm