…KEEP THEIR DISTANCE FROM MOSCOW.

For the time being, the CIS, its two economic subgroups and Moscow at the center seem only capable of signing meaningless documents and complicate even further an already chaotic situation in mutual economic relations. The only certainty in those relations is the precipitate drop in Russia’s trade with all CIS countries save Belarus (see the Monitor, May 11) and the effort by all the member countries–again save Belarus–to reduce economic reliance on Russia in order to avoid the fallout from that country’s crisis.

In a routine action, the prime ministers elected their Ukrainian colleague, Valery Pustovoytenko, as chairman of the Prime Ministers’ Council, succeeding Uzbek Prime Minister Utkir Sultanov. The procedure conforms to a recent top-level decision–a symbolic satisfaction to the member countries–to rotate that chairmanship rather than have it occupied permanently by Russia. The timing of Pustovoytenko’s elevation is fortuitous, as the succession proceeds according to the Russian alphabetical order of the countries’ names. His elevation in the CIS will, however, complicate the effort just launched by the Ukrainian communists and socialists to dismiss Pustovoytenko by a parliamentary vote of no confidence in order to strike a blow against President Leonid Kuchma (Eastern Economist Daily (Kyiv), June 7; Itar-Tass, June 4-5).

The Monitor is a publication of the Jamestown Foundation. It is researched and written under the direction of senior analysts Jonas Bernstein, Vladimir Socor, Stephen Foye, and analysts Ilya Malyakin, Oleg Varfolomeyev and Ilias Bogatyrev. If you have any questions regarding the content of the Monitor, please contact the foundation. If you would like information on subscribing to the Monitor, or have any comments, suggestions or questions, please contact us by e-mail at pubs@jamestown.org, by fax at 301-562-8021, or by postal mail at The Jamestown Foundation, 4516 43rd Street NW, Washington DC 20016. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution of the Monitor is strictly prohibited by law. Copyright (c) 1983-2002 The Jamestown Foundation Site Maintenance by Johnny Flash Productions