Latest Articles about Europe
Zhdanoka Candidacy Polarizes Latvian Election
Tatyana Zhdanoka, a leftist opponent of Latvian national statehood, is the candidate of the largest Russian political bloc in Latvia in European Parliament elections. She is frontrunner for that seat, campaigning amidst unprecedented political activity by Russian radical groups in Latvia. Zhdanoka is a veteran... MORE
Ukraine Faces Setback In Transit Of Kazakh Oil
On May 19, Oleksandr Todiychuk resigned as president of Ukraine's national oil transit company UkrTransNafta. Todiychuk's resignation follows a decision by President Leonid Kuchma to abolish the office of plenipotentiary for the Eurasian Oil Transport Corridor (EAOTC), which Todiychuk held concurrently with the UkrTransNafta post.... MORE
Ukrainian Parliament Debates Future Of Its Troops In Iraq
Yesterday, the Ukrainian parliament (Rada) debated the issue of a continued Ukrainian military contingent in Iraq, the fourth largest in the 33-member U.S.-led Coalition. Reports were heard by Minister of Defense Yevhen Marchuk, First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Volodymyr Yelchenko, First Deputy Chairman of... MORE
Gazprom Eyes Takeover Of Beltransgaz
BelTransGaz, the Belarusan state gas company whose pipelines carry Russian gas to Europe, is being targeted by Russia's state-controlled Gazprom monopoly for cheap takeover. Turning up the political pressure, the Russian side released on May 19 the transcript of a meeting held two days earlier... MORE
Ukraine’s Euro-atlantic Integration At Dead End
First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Oleksandr Chalyj, Ukraine's last remaining government lobbyist for Euro-Atlantic integration, resigned on May 15 (Ukrayinska Pravda, May 15). This came only days before the annual Ukraine-EU Cooperation Council meeting on May 18. Since the removal of pro-Western Foreign Minister... MORE
U.S. Congress Expresses Strong Support For Free Elections In Ukraine
On May 12 the U.S. Congress held a hearing entitled "The Future of Ukraine and the Interests of the United States" dealing with Ukraine's upcoming presidential election and the state of its democratization. In addition to former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine and Deputy Assistant Secretary... MORE
Parliament Vote Reflects Ukrainian Political Crisis
On May 12, the Ukrainian parliament passed a resolution that recommended President Leonid Kuchma dismiss the governor of Trans-Carpathia oblast and provide a critique of "destabilizing activities" engaged in by members of the presidential administration. The non-binding resolution received 238 votes, winning the support of... MORE
Media Freedoms In Ukraine And The Cis: A Gloomy Picture
In the first week of May two human rights organizations, the Paris-based Reporters Without Frontiers and the Kyiv-based Institute of Mass Information, released reports on the state of media freedom in the world and in the CIS and Ukraine respectively. The picture both organizations provide... MORE
Poll Numbers Show Yanukovych Closing The Gap
A debate has raged in Ukraine this month over the authenticity of poll numbers for Viktor Yanukovych, the pro-Kuchma candidate in this year's October election. Pro-opposition activists have questioned how Yanukovych's ratings could have grown so suddenly and nearly reached those of the main opposition... MORE
Kuchma Regime Using “skinheads” Against Opposition
Ukraine's prosecutor general is to report to parliament on May 12. He has already claimed that his office has undertaken 600 interviews during the course of its investigation into irregularities that occurred during the April 18 election in Mukachevo. Nevertheless, since the election, violent attacks... MORE