BEREZOVSKY IMPLICATED IN TAKEOVER BID IN UKRAINE.

The management of Ukraine’s Mikolayiv Alumina Plant has come out publicly against a proposed takeover by Russian business interests linked to CIS Executive Secretary Boris Berezovsky. According to MAP General Manager Vitaly Meshin, Berezovsky is behind the Siberian Aluminum (SIBALCO) consortium’s offer of US$60 million for a 56 percent stake in MAP. Berezovsky has interceded with Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma in favor of SIBALCO as a “strategic investor” in Ukraine, Meshin said. He called for government support against a takeover by “Russian giants” with their “reputed links to the shadow economy.” (Eastern Economist Daily (Kyiv), July 6)

Berezovsky was Russian President Boris Yeltsin’s choice for the CIS post, but was formally nominated by Kuchma at the latest CIS summit. The appointment of a business magnate to lead the CIS apparatus has raised questions about potential conflict of interest.

KUCHMA USING PRESIDENTIAL DECREES TO INTRODUCE REFORMS.