Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry: Russia interferes in Ukraine’s internal affairs

News / 29 September 2006 | 16:00

As Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk told a Thursday news conference in Kyiv, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s statement about alleged discrimination against the Russian language in Ukraine reveals nothing new in Russia’s stand on that issue, Cabinet’s press office reports.

Rather, it is strange that the statement originated from the Russian Foreign Ministry, Tarasyuk noted.

He referred to the statement as an obvious interference in Ukraine’s internal affairs.

As Borys Tarasyuk noted, the Russian language problem occasionally surfaces in Ukrainian – Russian relations.

Having called this “counter-productive and overpoliticized,” Borys Tarasyuk noted with regret that the Russian side keeps fanning passions over this issue, which cannot but cause our concer.

As Borys Tarasyuk disclosed, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry was supposed to issue an official statement to this effect on Thursday.

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Ukraine WTO entry no danger to trade with Russia

News / 29 September 2006 | 15:38

Ukraine’s accession to the World Trade Organization will not harm progress in trade relations with Russia, the economics minister said Friday, RIA Novosti reports.

Ukraine’s president has set WTO membership by the end of 2006 as a government priority, but the country’s Russian-leaning prime minister, elected in early August, has said more time may be needed to study all conditions for entry.

As well as their efforts to join the WTO, Ukraine and Russia are also committed to a long-term objective of forming a free-trade zone along with other members of the Commonwealth of Independent States, a loose confederation of ex-Soviet republics.

Economics Minister Volodymyr Makukha said, “The differences in tariff positions [at Ukraine and Russia's talks on entering the global trade body] from both sides should not influence the forming of free trade zones.”

In August, premier Viktor Yanukovich attended talks in southern Russia with leaders of other ex-Soviet republics, which included coordinating the countries’ positions on WTO entry.

Russia is also seeking to join the WTO by the end of year but its bid has encountered problems in negotiations with the United States.

Ukraine “is ready for consultations and to seek mutually acceptable solutions, which will not hinder the development of trade and economic relations between Russia and Ukraine,” the economics minister said.

Ukraine is already conducting trade at an 80% level of compliance with WTO norms, which is causing certain “undesirable discrepancies in trade relations between our countries,” Makukha said.

The minister also reiterated Ukraine’s goal of joining the Common Economic Space (CES), along with Eurasian Economic Community members Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan.

“Ukraine’s participation in the CES meets our interests, as well as the interests of our partners. We are actively working on plans for our involvement in the CES,” Makukha said.

“The CES should be an active mechanism for realizing large infrastructure projects,” he said.

In January-June, Russian-Ukrainian trade grew 8% year-on-year, reaching $12 billion, the minister said.

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EBRD to grant 20 mln USD loan to Odesa-based Black Sea Shipping Management Co Ltd

News / 29 September 2006 | 15:19

According to EBRD Representation sources in Kyiv, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will grant to 20 mln USD loan to the Odesa-based Black Sea Shipping Management Co Ltd (BSSM), of which sum 10 mln USD will be granted as a syndicated credit from the Bank of Scotland, Cabinet’s press office reported.

The loan will be used to finance projects for constructing five 5,500-ton freighters.

According to EBRD expert Riccardo Puliti, the loan correspondents to the EBRD’s strategy for supporting Ukraine’s transportation sector.

The loan will allow the BSSM to enhance its standards of marine cargo carriage.

As of this day and date, the EBRD has invested over 400 M. euros in Ukraine’s transportation sector.

The EBRD’s total investments in the Ukrainian economy exceed 2.4 bn. euros.

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GUAM Secretariat will start functioning not earlier than January 1, 2007

News / 29 September 2006 | 14:54

As Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk told a Thursday press conference in Kyiv, the Verkhovna Rada has not yet ratified the GUAM Statute, so the GUAM Secretariat will start functioning not earlier than January 1, 2007.

As far as the organisation’s budget is concerned, it has been endorsed, but will take effect only after the GUAM member nations’ budgets have been adopted, Mr Tarasyuk noted.

He stated the GUAM’s tentative budget at 500,000 USD.

Commenting on likely candidates for the GUAM Secretary General, Borys Tarasyuk said the member-nations had agreed to appoint Georgian First Deputy Foreign Minister Valeriy Chechelashvili, once BSEC Secretary General, to the post.

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Ukraine’s PM: Nobody accounted earlier

News / 29 September 2006 | 14:12

In the near future the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will consider a law on regional self-government, as Ukraine’s Prime Minister Victor Yanukovych told journalists in Donetsk, ForUm’s correspondent reported.

According to the Premier, Ukraine needs decentralization of the power. It will let to concentrate resources in the regions to solve regional problems.

“And then we will get responsible state bodies of government, distribution of commission between the Cabinet, the President and regional authorities. It will help to come out on a new level of responsibility,” Yanukovych said.

“Speaking about the central bodies of the power, the regions always asked me whether they (the power -ed.) would agree. And nobody has ever borne responsibility. Now the coalition has been formed in the parliament, which will change the situation and bodies of local self-government will come out on the new level,” the Premier added.

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Ukraine’s President presented awards to educators

News / 29 September 2006 | 13:51

Victor Yushchenko presented state awards to Ukraine’s best educators yesterday, President’s press office reported.

In his speech, the President said the role of pedagogues in society was immensely important, “for teachers mould outlooks and values of their pupils.”

“I am convinced the most important goal of any school is to bring up citizens. You must teach children to love their motherland and be proud of being citizens of their country,” he said.

Yushchenko opined that good education was a key to progress of any nation, helping it face challenges.

“We must be Europe’s most educated nation,” he said.

Ukraine’s Head of State said the government had introduced independent testing at schools to fairly evaluate knowledge and root out corruption. He added that the cabinet had also established scholarships and prizes to honor the most gifted students and teachers. 

He said the welfare of Ukrainian educators was improving and hopes they will earn as much as industrial workers in a couple of years.

Yushchenko explained that his kind attitude toward teachers was due to his origin, for he “was born into a family of teachers and saw this hard work.”

“I think this profession is holy,” he said, wishing those present a happy Teacher’s Day, which is celebrated on October 1, success and “generous fruits of their tireless labor.”

Ukraine’s Education Minister Stanislav Nikolayenko attended the award ceremony. 

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Ukraine is ready to cover Russia’s shortages of electric power

News / 29 September 2006 | 13:28

According to Deputy Fuel & Energy Minister Aleksei Sheberstov, Ukraine is ready to cover Russia’s shortages of electric power, Cabinet’s press office reported.

Russia has asked Ukraine for assisting Russia in meeting the latter’s commitments with regard to exports of electric power to third nations.

As Ukraine has got several idling facilities to generate electric power Ukraine might offset Russia’s shortages, in exchange for supplies of natural gas to Ukrainian fuel-fired power plants, Sheberstov noted.

As he disclosed, the likely deal’s commercial nuances are being discussed.

The talks, he disclosed, will be completed in October.

The talks involve the INTER RAO YEES (“Russia’s Integrated Energy System”) on the Russian side, Sheberstov added.

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Ukraine’s PM attends exhibition of the housing and communal services’ equipment

News / 29 September 2006 | 12:56

Prime Minister of Ukraine Victor Yanukovych has just arrived at the exhibition of equipment of the housing and communal enterprises in Donetsk.

The PM was met by chairman of the Donetsk regional state administration Volodymyr Lohvinenko, vice PM Volodymyr Rybak, chairman of the regional council Anatoly Bluznyuk and mayor of Donetsk Oleksandr Luk’yanchenko.

As Donetsk mayor told journalists, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine pays great attention to the problem of the housing and communal services. “Yesterday Yanukovych set a task to the city officials to present a program of reformation of the housing and communal services. You know the Premier; he is very concrete person, so we pass from words to deeds,” Rybak said.

According to participants of the exhibition, heads of housing and communal enterprises of Donetsk, Kyiv, Sevastopol, these are energy saving technologies, which will let to provide Ukrainians with heat in conditions of increase of gas prices.

The exhibition presents heat- and water supply equipment which give the opportunity to reduce spending for energy carriers as well as machineries for municipal economy – buses, tank trucks, graders, refuse collector and other equipment.

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Ukraine’s PM indignant over mismanagement of community services

News / 29 September 2006 | 12:41

Prime Minister of Ukraine Victor Yanukovych is not satisfied with that the heads of housing and communal services “try to shift their mismanagement onto tariff policy.”

“Heads of housing and communal services try to shift off their mismanagement, and we tidy up this,” Yanukovych said in the Donetsk airport yesterday evening.

“We won’t practise populism,” the Premier declared and added: “we will remove all non-productive outlays.”

“I can unambiguously state that we will remove all non-productive outlays, which heads of housing and communal services try to shift onto tariff policy. We will clear the tariffs. It is our task,” the PM underlined.

Yanukovych expressed regret that “by the highest standards, there is no state policy of tariff formation in the country.”

“As a result, we have a lot of faults. We must investigate and introduce order to make the housing and communal services work properly,” the Head of the government noted.

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Azarov: Nobody means to throw stones at our predecessors

News / 29 September 2006 | 12:20

Mykola Azarov briefly touched upon the questions raised in speeches at the Cabinet of Ministers’ sessions yesterday. At first, he tried to destroy the myth about the new budget and claimed that Budget 2007 is more social vis-à-vis Budget 2006, as it envisages increase in all social payments.

First Vice Prime Minister Mykola Azarov also informed that in the new budget the amount of regional budgets alone was raised by 2.1 bln UAH, in particular, for medicine plus 543 mlnUAH, for food products – 520 mln UAH. After the last approval, 4.3 bln UAH was added, assistance to the families with children was increased by 5.3 bln UAH, as Mykola Azarov stressed.

At the same time, First Vice Prime Minister complained that the officials were trying to fight disproportion created in 2005-2006. The thoughts exist, that our dynamics of GDP was the best among the rest countries of CIS but 5% with a tail is not a perfect result comparing to 2005, especially if to take into account the quality of its increase and its structure, Mykola Azarov was quoted as saying.

Considering the amount of investments, the orator recalled period 2003-2004 when direct foreign investments totaled 2.3 bln UAH. In reality, the country faces decrease of investments into the basic capital at the expense of own resources of our enterprises, he informed.

According to First Vice Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, the low level of inflation is explained as owing to great volume of foodstuffs, but the primary question here is to resume market of our products we have lost for now.

He also informed the audience about the lack of 640 mln UAH for child birth assistance, plus 750 mln UAH to finance servicemen pensions and 2 bln UAH as subsidies for city budgets on tariffs increase.

“Nobody means to throw stones at our predecessors, we only make unbiased, serious analysis affording to reach clear and proper decisions,” emphasized First Vice Prime Minister Mykola Azarov.

Touching upon the issue of tariffs, the official said that realization of gas extracted in Ukraine is focused only for the Ukrainian people and that, facing such a difficult situation, we shouldn’t afford “UkrNafta” to sell gas abroad. Answering to Poltava governor Mr. Asadchev, Mykola Azarov opined,” Tariffs cannot be a bit uplifted, it’s anti-economic category. Tariffs should be well-grounded, which the Government is trying to do now.”

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