Latest Articles about Europe's East

WHO ARE YUSHCHENKO’S TRUE ALLIES?

Despite Ukraine's September political crisis and the subsequent fall of the Yulia Tymoshenko government, the Tymoshenko bloc in parliament is still a fairly reliable ally of President Viktor Yushchenko's People's Union-Our Ukraine (NSNU). Other allies from the Orange Revolution, including the Socialist Party (SPU) and... MORE

RUSSIA ACKNOWLEDGES PUNISHING MOLDOVA’S WESTERN ORIENTATION

On November 10, Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs introduced for the first time a causal link between Moldova's pro-Western orientation and Russia's refusal to withdraw its forces from that country's territory. The Ministry's CIS Affairs Department Director Vyacheslav Kovalenko began a special news briefing that... MORE

OPPOSITION COURTS THE BELARUSIAN PUBLIC

Following the election of Alexander Milinkevich as the leader of the united opposition at the Democratic Convention in early October, the Belarusian opposition has begun to elaborate its tactics for the anticipated elections in the summer of 2006. The Political Council created after the Convention... MORE

YUSHCHENKO CHANGES PROSECUTORS

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has replaced Prosecutor-General Sviatoslav Piskun with Oleksandr Medvedko. Piskun was too close to former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who is set to be Yushchenko's most dangerous rival in the parliamentary election next March. Furthermore, Piskun failed to solve a single major... MORE

UNEDIFYING DEBUT TO 5+2 NEGOTIATIONS ON MOLDOVA

After a 15-month break, negotiations on Transnistria resumed on October 27-28 in Chisinau and Tiraspol, now in the 5 + 2 format. This includes the United States and the European Union as observers to the old five-sided format of Russia, Ukraine, OSCE, Chisinau, and Tiraspol.... MORE

LYTVYN’S BLOC – AN UMBRELLA FOR KUCHMA’S PEOPLE?

Ukrainian Parliamentary Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn has decided on the format of his participation in the March 2006 parliamentary polls. The much-advertised mega-bloc between Lytvyn, President Viktor Yushchenko's People's Union-Our Ukraine (NSNU), and former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko's Fatherland party has failed to materialize. Instead, Lytvyn... MORE

YEKHURANOV REFERS TO OLIGARCHS AS “NATIONAL BOURGEOISIE”

Once reviled by reformers, Ukraine's wealthy business oligarchs are now being described as a "national bourgeoisie" by top government officials. After much controversy and debate, on October 24 Kryvorizhstal, Ukraine's largest steel mill, was re-privatized in proceedings that were transparent and widely praised. The Ukrainian... MORE

ALLY CLEARED OF CRIMINAL CHARGE – A TRAP FOR YUSHCHENKO?

The Ukrainian Prosecutor-General's Office closed a criminal case against former National Security and Defense Council (NRBO) secretary Petro Poroshenko on October 20. This was the only case launched against a member of President Viktor Yushchenko's inner circle following the accusations of corruption against his team... MORE