Latest Articles about Ukraine
Pro-Russian Old Guard, Returns to Run Ukrainian Security Forces
President Viktor Yanukovych and Prime Minister Nikolai Azarov are both ignoring the sensitivities of “Orange” Western and Central Ukraine by returning to positions of power individuals from Leonid Kuchma’s second term in office. Moreover, defectors from the Kuchma regime, who had received asylum in Russia... MORE
Will Tymoshenko Unite Ukrainian Opposition?
Yulia Tymoshenko has found herself in the opposition after losing the February 7 presidential election runoff to Viktor Yanukovych. Her coalition in parliament has ceased to exist, and on March 3 a new pro-Yanukovych majority dismissed her from the post of prime minister. Although Tymoshenko... MORE
New Team in Kyiv Sets Stage for Gas Consortium With Russia
Ukraine’s new government, built around the Party of Regions, has re-empowered some key Ukrainian protagonists of gas “schemes” with Russia from past years (Naftohaz Ukrainy Management Change Indicates Turn to Russia, EDM, March 24).Yulia Tymoshenko‘s government succeeded in ridding Ukraine of those schemes at the... MORE
Naftohaz Ukrainy Management Change Indicates Turn to Russia
On March 22, the new Ukrainian government completed the formation of the senior management team at Naftohaz Ukrainy, the state oil and gas company (Interfax-Ukraine, UNIAN, March 22; Kommersant, March 23). This team is directly answerable to Fuel and Energy Minister Yuriy Boyko and, equally... MORE
Gas Lobby Takes Control of Ukraine’s Security Service
On March 11, the Ukrainian parliament appointed Prime Minister, Nikolai Azarov, and a new Security Service (SBU) Chairman, Valery Khoroshkovsky. As Ukrayinska Pravda (February 24) warned: “An additional bonus for the Liovochkin-Firtash group could be the appointment of Khoroshkovsky as the head of the SBU... MORE
All the President’s Men in a Deja-vu Ukrainian Cabinet
A new pro-Yanukovych majority in parliament appointed its cabinet on March 11. Prime Minister, Mykola Azarov’s, cabinet, numbering 29 ministers, is the largest in Europe after Belarus. It looks very much like the cabinet of the then-Prime Minister Yanukovych in 2006-2007. Azarov’s cabinet is dominated... MORE
Yanukovych Will Ignore Russian Espionage Against Ukraine
The election of the Party of Regions leader Viktor Yanukovych as Ukraine’s president presents a fundamental shift in the country’s national security culture as outlined by his three presidential predecessors. The most important revision will be Yanukovych’s, and the Party of Regions, view of Russia... MORE
President Yanukovych in Moscow: First Round of Tough Talks?
Viktor Yanukovych’s first visit to Russia as Ukrainian president on March 5 showed that he is no more prone to making concessions to Moscow than any of his predecessors. Yanukovych quickly came to an agreement with Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, and Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin,... MORE
Salient Issues in Ukraine-Russia Relations and Yanukovych’s Moscow Visit
Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s visit to Moscow on March 5 (see “Yanukovych in Moscow: More Than Balancing the Brussels Visit,” EDM, March 10) focused almost entirely on bilateral relations, practically overlooking or avoiding international issues. The following issues were discussed in public: • Governance model:... MORE
Yanukovych in Moscow: More Than Balancing his Brussels Visit
Ukraine’s newly elected President, Viktor Yanukovych, paid a visit (and, to a degree, homage) to Moscow on March 5. Inaugurated in office on February 25, Yanukovych chose Brussels as his first destination for a working visit abroad on March 1 (EDM, March 4). Having tilted... MORE