Latest Articles about Europe
KYIV TAKES EMERGENCY STEPS TO COPE WITH FUEL CRISIS
Ukraine's presidential administration and government are multiplying emergency measures in response to severe fuel shortages and prices hikes by an informal cartel of Russian suppliers (see EDM, May 18). Yesterday [May 18], President Viktor Yushchenko signed the legislation adopted on the preceding day by parliament,... MORE
UKRAINE MOVING TO REDUCE RUSSIAN MONOPOLY ON OIL MARKET
On May 17, Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada passed a government-submitted bill eliminating import duties on high-octane gasoline and diesel fuel. The legislation aims to stimulate such imports in response to artificially induced shortages and steep price hikes by the informal cartel of Russian oil-product suppliers in... MORE
TWO DOWN, ONE TO GO? UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS TARGET ANOTHER OLIGARCHIC CLAN
The May 13 arrest of the former governor of Trans-Carpathia, Ivan Rizak, follows the capture of the head of the Donetsk oblast council, Borys Kolesnykov, one month earlier. The widespread arrests of lower-ranking officials for election fraud and corruption have now moved up to medium-level... MORE
POROSHENKO ADOPTS PRIMAKOV’S CONCEPT FOR TRANSNISTRIA SETTLEMENT
On May 13, a session of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) approved a modified version of NSDC Secretary's Petro Poroshenko's plan to resolve the Transnistria problem. President Viktor Yushchenko chaired the session, which approved Poroshenko's plan "unanimously" (Interfax-Ukraine, May 13) -- a further... MORE
POLAND, LITHUANIA, UKRAINE CREATE INTER-PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY, JOINT BATTALION
On May 13, Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, Arturas Paulauskas, and Volodymyr Lytvyn, chairmen of the Polish, Lithuanian, and Ukrainian parliaments, respectively, signed the founding declaration of an Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of the three countries. The ceremony was held in Lutsk, Ukraine. The forum's ambit is that of the... MORE
YUSHCHENKO SHARES PLANS WITH THE NATION
Ukraine's new government has realistic plans for integration with the West; there will be no re-privatization; the government will continue to get rid of officials who served the old regime; and there is no serious opposition in the country. This is President Viktor Yushchenko's vision... MORE
SKINHEAD ATTACKS ON THE RISE IN UKRAINE
Since the Orange Revolution in November-December 2004, there have been a growing number of attacks by extreme right groups against Westerners in Ukraine. These attacks are commonly blamed on "skinheads," but real skinheads have denied involvement, saying that their only targets are individuals with darker-colored... MORE
UKRAINE’S ARMED FORCES LEAD THE WAY IN THE CIS
Ukraine took another key step toward closer relations with NATO with the disclosure of their intention to upgrade military communications to NATO standards. Major-General Volodymyr Rudyk, deputy chief of the Ukrainian General Staff, stated that the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense intends to replace the current,... MORE
KREMLIN ASSAILS BALTIC STATES
From the standpoint of Russia-West relations, perhaps the most consequential aspect of the May 9 anniversary celebrations in Moscow was the Kremlin's verbal assault on the Baltic states, amid complete and even complacent silence on the part of the European Union, NATO allies, and the... MORE
KYIV DIVIDED ON HOW FAR TO GO WITH RE-PRIVATIZATION
Foreign investors are showing more interest in Ukraine since the Orange Revolution. Nevertheless, they remain cautious because of uncertainties surrounding the threat of re-privatization. Until this issue is resolved, something President Viktor Yushchenko supports but Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko opposes, Ukraine's positive international image will... MORE