Latest Articles about Europe
CHAIR SHAKY UNDER UKRAINE’S CHIEF PROSECUTOR
"I will go! I am fed up!" Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Sviatyslav Piskun declared during a call-in at the Fakty newspaper on Friday, June 17. "I think one should discuss things like that with the president before making statements," President Viktor Yushchenko said, reacting to Piskun's words... MORE
BELARUS OPPOSITION DEBATES TACTICS
The question of nominating a single candidate from the opposition forces to face Alexander Lukashenka in the prospective 2006 presidential election has elicited serious debate in Belarus. Plainly there is a lack of consensus about the procedure and the choice of potential candidates. The Belarusian... MORE
SOCIAL DEMOCRAT-UNITED LEADER MEDVEDCHUK AWAITS HIS FATE
In an interview long promised but only given yesterday (June 16) to Ukrayinska pravda, Social Democratic Party of Ukraine-United (SDPUo) leader Viktor Medvedchuk was asked if he was ready to flee abroad, like many of his pro-Leonid Kuchma allies. He replied, "No, under no circumstances.... MORE
WASHINGTON CONCERNED UKRAINE MAY NOT JOIN WTO THIS YEAR
During President Viktor Yushchenko's April visit to Washington, he enumerated three goals to be achieved this year: joining the WTO, lifting the Jackson-Vanik trade restrictions, and obtaining free-market economy status. The prospects for attaining the first two goals are doubtful, at least by the end... MORE
UKRAINIAN CABINET DECIDES TO RE-SELL STEEL MILL
Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko's cabinet has decided to re-privatize Ukraine's largest steelworks, Kryvorizhstal, ending months of uncertainty. The government of President Leonid Kuchma sold 93% of Kryvorizhstal's shares to the Investment Metallurgy Union (IMS), controlled by Kuchma's son-in-law, Viktor Pinchuk, and Donetsk tycoon Renat... MORE
MEDIA BIAS DECREASES IN UKRAINE, BUT THROUGH DUBIOUS MEANS
Six months into the Viktor Yushchenko presidency, the media and information situation in Ukraine remains mixed. The good news is that oligarch control over electronic media is on the decline. The bad news is that the tactics of the newly elected authorities are not always... MORE
VORONIN REQUESTS NATO IPAP, WESTERN SUPPORT TO RESOLVE TRANSNISTRIA
On June 7 in Brussels, Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin addressed the North Atlantic Council (NAC, the main decision-making body of NATO) in ambassadorial session, as part of NATO-Moldova consultations within the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program. It was the first-ever official visit by a Moldovan... MORE
IS BELARUS A DICTATORSHIP?
Several recent events have brought Belarus close to a dictatorship, a term used rather freely to describe the administration of President Alexander Lukashenka, but hitherto incorrectly. Over the past eleven years, despite the heavy hand of the authorities, there have remained important outlets for the... MORE
IS UKRAINE RESUMING DOUBLE-VECTOR DISCOURSE FOR OIL’S SAKE?
On his visit to Kazakhstan in search for oil supplies, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko held out the prospect of Ukraine's participation in the Russia-led project of a Single Economic Space (SES, which also includes Belarus and Kazakhstan). Without mentioning Ukraine's quest for increasingly closer relations... MORE
CRIMINAL CHARGES FILED AGAINST FORMER UKRAINIAN PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC PARTY
Criminal charges have been filed against the People's Democratic Party (NDP), led by former Ukrainian prime minister Valeriy Pustovoitenko. NDP's bank accounts have been frozen. The Ukrainian Prosecutor-General's Office revealed that one million hryvni (approximately $200,000) was transferred from Ukrainian Railways to the NDP at... MORE