Latest Articles about Ukraine
POLITICAL BATTLE IN UKRAINE OVER THE CONDUCT OF FOREIGN POLICY
The governing Party of Regions and its leftist allies have launched a systematic offensive to wrest control of Ukraine’s foreign policy from the president and his appointees. This offensive is forcing President Viktor Yushchenko to defend his positions more resolutely than has hitherto been the... MORE
WILL UKRAINE JOIN WTO ANY TIME SOON?
Ukraine is an inch from joining the World Trade Organization (WTO), which President Viktor Yushchenko has proclaimed to be his strategic goal. This feat would be the only legacy of his first term, which expires in January 2010, at least regarding efforts to join Western... MORE
PUTIN TESTING UKRAINE’S POLITICAL SYSTEM WITH HIS BLACK SEA FLEET PROPOSAL
Official Kyiv seems divided in its initial response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposal to prolong the basing of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in Ukraine’s Crimea. Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych is clearly not opposed to the idea while officials loyal to the president are firmly... MORE
PUTIN OFFERS UKRAINE “PROTECTION” FOR EXTENDING RUSSIAN BLACK SEA FLEET’S PRESENCE
In his annual phone-in dialogue with Russian citizens, televised live on October 25, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed extending the stationing of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in Ukraine’s Crimea beyond the 2017 legal deadline. Moreover, Putin obliquely cast doubt on Ukrainian sovereignty and security in... MORE
UKRAINE’S GEOPOLITICAL PREDICAMENT: WHILE LONGING FOR PLACE IN UNITED EUROPE IT CANNOT IGNORE RUSSIA’S CONCERNS
This week’s events confirmed that Ukraine is being pulled in two directions as it faces a strategic dilemma. On the one hand, Kyiv is pushing for associated membership with the European Union and a free-trade deal with the rich bloc. On the other hand, the... MORE
MOSCOW RAISES GAS PRICE TO UKRAINE
Meeting in Kyiv on October 24, Prime Ministers Viktor Yanukovych of Ukraine and Mikhail Fradkov of Russia authorized the signing of agreements whereby 55 billion cubic meters of “Central Asian” gas would be delivered to Ukraine in 2007 at a price of $130 per 1,000... MORE
OUR UKRAINE QUITS CABINET — BUT HINTS AT RETURN
The pro-presidential Our Ukraine bloc will be in opposition to Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych’s cabinet, Our Ukraine’s formal leader, Roman Bezsmertny, declared in parliament on October 17. He urged the four ministers representing Our Ukraine in the cabinet to resign, and the next day President... MORE
YUSHCHENKO PICKS DONETSK MAN FOR SECURITY CHIEF
On October 10 President Viktor Yushchenko appointed one of Ukraine’s most influential businessmen, Vitaly Hayduk, as secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC). Yushchenko had reportedly been about to choose either opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko or former prime minister Yuriy Yekhanurov for this... MORE
RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN “INTERNATIONAL” GAS CONSORTIUM BACK ON THE AGENDA
On October 10, President Viktor Yushchenko’s office issued two policy announcements regarding control over Ukraine’s gas transit pipeline system: regarding national ownership in the morning and regarding a Russian-German-Ukrainian consortium in the evening. Meeting in the morning with Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych to discuss government... MORE
YUSHCHENKO’S PARTY CONSIDERS OPPOSITION OPTION
The Our Ukraine bloc of six right-of-center parties, which supports President Viktor Yushchenko, has withdrawn from talks on joining the government coalition with the Party of Regions (PRU), the Socialists, and the Communists. Roman Bezsmertny, the formal leader of Our Ukraine (NU), announced that it... MORE