Way to Russia Talk Lounge

markhagelin · Posted: Thu Nov 25, 2004 8:43 am Post subject: Crisis in the Ukraine

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/24/ukrcommission.shtml

Ukraine Commission Declares Prime Minister Yanukovich Winner

Created: 24.11.2004 19:31 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 20:08 MSK, 12 hours 16 minutes ago

MosNews

Ukraine’s Central Election Commission on Wednesday declared Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich the winner in a presidential election denounced by the opposition as subject to mass fraud.

Serhiy Kivalov, Commission Head, told reporters that Yanukovich has won 49.46 percent of the vote to 46.61 percent for liberal opposition challenger Viktor Yushchenko, Reuters reported.

The results show that Ukraine is evenly divided in two: Yanukovich won in 13 regions, Yushchenko in 14. After announcing the results, Kivalov declared the session closed while Yanukovich supporters chanted the Prime Minister’s name and Yushchenko’s supporters shouted “Shame! Shame!”

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/24/europeresults.shtml

EU Says Ukraine Should Not Announce Results of Unfair Elections

Created: 24.11.2004 15:09 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 15:09 MSK, 17 hours 15 minutes ago

MosNews

The European Union said on Wednesday Ukraine should not announce the results of Sunday’s contested presidential election before reviewing the vote, which international observers say were not free and fair, Reuters reported.

The Central Election Committee is set to announce the final results — after three days of fierce protests by the opposition and calls for negotiation between the presidential candidates — at 4 p.m. Kiev time.

“We have asked for the procedures and the results to be reviewed ... and we are urging our Ukrainian partners to resist announcing final results before that review has taken place.” Emma Udwin, a spokeswoman for the EU’s executive Commission, was quoted as saying.

The announcement came after tensions developed between Moscow and Washington over President Vladimir Putin’s congratulations to Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, who the Central Electoral Commission in the Ukraine said had won the presidential elections based on preliminary results.

Washington had also issued a statement urging that the official results not be released until an investigation is conducted.

New Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso called for restraint in Ukraine and said there would be consequences for EU relations with Kiev “if there is not a serious, objective review of the election results”.

Pro-Western liberal reformer Viktor Yushchenko has accused pro-Russian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich’s camp of vote-rigging and rallied tens of thousands of supporters in Kiev and other cities. Observers from Europe and the United States also called the elections unfair.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/24/yavlinsky.shtml

Russian Liberal Leader Yavlinsky Wants All Countries to Recognize Yushchenko Victory in Ukraine

Created: 24.11.2004 17:09 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 17:09 MSK, 15 hours 16 minutes ago

MosNews

Russia’s liberal leader Grigory Yavlinsky of the Yabloko party has called on all countries to recognize Ukraine’s liberal opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko’s victory in the nation’s disputed presidential race.

The Russian government endorsed pro-Moscow candidate Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, and Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated him on victory, even though the election results were contested by international observers.

In his statement, Yavlinsky, who was a presidential candidate in Russia’s most recent elections in March, said that “all countries, including Russia, have only one way out of this difficult situation — to openly recognize that Yushchenko won the presidential elections in the Ukraine,” Radio liberty quoted his statement as saying.

Earlier Yavlinksy said that those who “failed to provide democratic elections” should be held responsible for any disorder that could erupt in the mass protests that have paralyzed Kiev for the last three days.

He accused authorities of pressuring students, rigging ballots, and forcing unbalanced coverage of the elections on national television.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/24/havel.shtml

Former Czech Leader Havel Urges Ukrainians to Keep Up Protests

Created: 24.11.2004 13:16 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 13:16 MSK, 19 hours 8 minutes ago

MosNews

Former Czech president, Vaclav Havel, urged Ukrainians to keep up their protests against the presidential election results.

The leader of the “Velvet Revolution” in Czechoslovakia was quoted by Reuters as saying that “all respected domestic and international organizations agree that your demands are justified. Therefore I wish you strength, endurance, courage and fortunate decisions.”

Long years or decades of the Ukrainians’ future are at stake, Havel said during a trip to Taiwan.

On Tuesday, Ukrainian presidential opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko proclaimed himself president even though preliminary results provided by the Central Election Commission said he lost. Late in the evening, Yushchenko and his supporters surrounded the president’s office. The candidate’s aides said the current president, Leonid Kuchma, agreed to hold negotiations.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/24/diplomats.shtml

Ukrainian Diplomats Side With Opposition Candidate Yushchenko, Challenge Govt

Created: 24.11.2004 11:06 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 11:06 MSK, 21 hours 18 minutes ago

MosNews

Four Ukrainian diplomats in Washington accused their government of subverting the will of the people to favor pro-Russia Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich in the nation’s disputed presidential election. Their statements came after opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko declared himself president before parliament Tuesday.

In a signed declaration, the Ukrainian diplomats said Tuesday that voters were subjected to incessant threats, terror and massive fraud. “We cannot quietly look away as Ukraine’s future is buried along with the future of our children,” the diplomats said in the statement quoted by Reuters.

The diplomats, based at Ukraine’s embassy in Washington, spoke up just before the Bush administration urged the Ukrainian government not to certify results of Sunday’s disputed presidential runoff election. Unofficial totals gave Yanukovich a narrow lead over Western-leaning opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko.

Earlier Russian news agencies reported Ukrainian Foreign Ministry officials voicing their support for Yushchenko, who they said was elected by the Ukrainian people

U.S. officials had urged Ukrainian authorities to hold off announcing the official election results until an investigation could be conducted.

“The United States is deeply concerned by extensive and credible indications of fraud committed in the Ukrainian presidential election,” White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan told reporters at a briefing, Reuters reported.

“We strongly support efforts to review the conduct of the election and urge Ukrainian authorities not to certify results until investigations of organized fraud are resolved,” Buchan said.

The State Department renewed its demand for a complete and immediate investigation. Elizabeth Jones, assistant secretary of state for European Affairs, called in Ukraine’s ambassador, Mikhailo Reznik on Monday and again Tuesday to underscore U.S. demands for an inquiry and to warn that U.S. relations with Kiev could be damaged.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/23/radasession.shtml

Ukraine’s Parliament Fails to Secure Quorum for Election Dispute Session

Created: 23.11.2004 18:14 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 18:14 MSK

MosNews

The Ukrainian parliament, the Rada, opened a special session on Tuesday due to the dispute over the presidential election results.

Opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko who lost according to the preliminary information provided by the Central Election Commission of Ukraine, called for the session at a rally on Monday.

Only 191 deputies were registered at the session. They are mostly supporters of Yushchenko. Supporters of the other contender, Viktor Yanukovich, were absent as were the communists. The parliament needs at least 226 votes to pass any solution. Opening the debate, parliamentary speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn told deputies: “We are sliding towards the abyss. It is amoral and criminal to pretend nothing is happening in the country. We must act in good time otherwise the people will decide on our behalf tomorrow,” Reuters reported.

Parliament does not have the power to annul the elections.

“Ukraine’s presidential election has seen an attempted coup d’etat, an illegal seizure of power. This is a crime against the Ukrainian people. We declare Yushchenko to be the legitimate president of Ukraine,” Roman Zvarych, a member of Yushchenko’s Our Ukraine group, was quoted by the agency as saying at the session.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/23/ukrainefm.shtml

Ukrainian FM Official Says Diplomats Support Yushchenko

Created: 23.11.2004 21:57 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 23:27 MSK

MosNews

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Markiyav Lubkivsky said the Ukrainian diplomats support Viktor Yushchenko who proclaimed himself president.

Lubkivsky quoted by ITAR-TASS news agency said 150 leading officials of the ministry signed the statement of the “full and unconditional support” of Yushchenko. “At this historical moment, Ukrainian diplomats find it necessary to determine their civic positions clearly,” he said.

Lubkivsky did not elaborate whether the minister, Konstantin Grishchenko, supported Yushchenko too.

Yushchenko read presidential oath at the Ukrainian parliament on Tuesday. Later, he led a march of his supporters to the president’s office.

“"We cannot remain silent and observe a situation which could call into doubt Ukraine’s democratic development and destroy the efforts of many years to return our country to Europe,” Reuters quoted the diplomats’ statement. “A nation should be headed by a leader who enjoys the real trust of the Ukrainian people and whose personal moral authority will be decisive in strengthening Ukraine’s authority.”

Later, Russian Information Agency Novosti quoted a statement issued by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry saying the current president Leonid Kuchma takes measures to normalize the situation. The ministry urged foreign states and international organizations to abstain from statements on the elections before the official results are released.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/23/voterfraud.shtml

HR Watchdog Freedom House Calls Ukrainian Elections Illegitimate

Created: 23.11.2004 11:09 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 13:09 MSK

MosNews

Freedom House has accused Ukrainian authorities in Sunday’s president elections of massive fraud, saying the elections were neither fair nor honest.

The human rights group joined a number of western monitors that included U.S. Senator Richard Lugar in criticizing the elections — the official results handed victory to the pro-Russian current Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich — as failing to meet international standards of democracy.

“Hopes that the runoff vote would improve upon the first round of voting on October 31 and reflect the genuine will of the Ukrainian people, were regrettably not realized,” said Freedom House’s executive director Jennifer Windsor in a press release.

ENEMO (the European Network of Election Monitoring) — working in cooperation with Freedom House, the National Democratic Institute, and the International Republican Institute — fielded 1,000 observers from 16 countries from the former USSR and Central Europe and covered approximately 5,000 polling places throughout the country.

“ENEMO has identified a systematic pattern of violations that seem to have been planned to influence the elections,” said ENEMO co-head Peter Novotny. “Given the closeness of the election, the blatant and carefully targeted violations ensured the election does not reflect the will of the Ukrainian people,” he said.

Ukraine’s election campaign was marked by the denial of media access to democratic opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko; media controls through the use of temnyks —- theme directives from the government guiding the presentation of television news and other disruptions of a balanced election process, Freedom House notes.

Meanwhile, a Moscow journalist covering the elections also documented cases on Monday of blatant vote rigging at a number of Kiev voting stations.

According to the Kommersant daily, a staff member from Yanukovich’s campaign office who asked to remain anonymous showed the correspondent a text message saying the exit polls showed 55 percent for Yushchenko against 43 percent for Yanukovich, admitting that votes were being rigged to produce “official” results.

Another staff member at the campaign offices, also speaking on conditions of anonymity, told the journalist that all improperly filled-out ballots and ballots where voters marked “against all” would be counted for Yanukovich. The official said such ballots constituted about 7 percent of all the votes.

In connection with the allegations of voter fraud, Freedom House has called on the United States and Europe to pressure Ukraine’s parliament to defend due process and fair voting.

markhagelin · Posted: Fri Nov 26, 2004 3:06 am Post subject:

Kiev 1, Moscow 0 ?????

____________________________________________________

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/yushcourt.shtml

Ukraine’s Yushchenko Files Complaint to Supreme Court Over Elections Violations

Created: 25.11.2004 15:58 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 19:01 MSK, 7 hours 45 minutes ago

MosNews

Opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko’s team said on Thursday he had filed a complaint to Ukraine’s Supreme Court over the conduct of officials overseeing a contested presidential election, the Reuters news agency reports.

“Today we filed a complaint to the Supreme Court over the actions of the Central Election Commission,” an official at Yushchenko’s headquarters said, a day after the commission declared Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich president.

The Supreme Court confirmed the complaint had been received.

Ukraine’s electoral authorities declared Moscow-backed Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich president on Wednesday evening, ignoring protests by supporters of West-leaning liberal leader Viktor Yushchenko who says he was robbed of victory by mass fraud.

Yushchenko, who does not recognise Yanukovich as president, has announced plans for a strike in Ukraine that will hit transport and factories. He says he is ready to take part in another election, as long as it is an “honest” one.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/ukrcourt.shtml

Ukraine’s Supreme Court Halts Publication of Elections Results, Set to Examine Yushchenko’s Complaint

Created: 25.11.2004 19:34 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 19:51 MSK, 6 hours 55 minutes ago

MosNews

The Supreme Court of Ukraine has barred official publication of the country’s presidential election results.

Without the results published in the press, the winner’s inauguration cannot take place. The Central Election Commission said on Wednesday evening that the current prime minister, Viktor Yanukovich, had won the race.

The court also said it will examine the complaint from the opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko who disagreed with the commission’s results, pointing out violations in its work. The complaint will be examined on Nov. 29.

Yushchenko quoted by Reuters called this court decision a “victory” and said this is “only the beginning.”

“The court ruling bars the Central Election Commission from officially publishing the results of the election and proceeding with any other action connected with this,” a statement from the court was quoted by the agency

The current president, Leonid Kuchma, will remain in power for the time being.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/lithukr.shtml

Lithuania, Poland Asked to Mediate in Ukraine Election Crisis

Created: 25.11.2004 17:57 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 17:57 MSK, 8 hours 49 minutes ago

MosNews

Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus is considering a request by his Ukrainian counterpart, Leonid Kuchma, to mediate in the country’s election conflict. No decision has been made yet, Reuters quoted Lithuanian officials as saying.

“We will consider all possibilities. We need a clear understanding of what this means,” Lithuanian Foreign Minister Antanas Valionis was quoted by the agency as saying.

A similar request was sent to the Polish leader Aleksander Kwasniewski. Adamkus’ official said the leader would closely examine the request with his Polish counterpart, the agency reported.

The Central Election Commission of Ukraine published the official data, saying the current prime minister Viktor Yaunkovich won the race. However, former PM Viktor Yushchenko disagreed with the results. On Tuesday, he proclaimed himself president but later said he is ready to rerun the elections.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/rallyembassy.shtml

Ukrainian Americans Rally at Russian Embassy to Support Yushchenko

Created: 25.11.2004 13:08 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 13:57 MSK, 12 hours 49 minutes ago

MosNews

Hundreds of Ukrainian Americans rallied in support of Ukraine’s opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko at Russian embassies in Washington, protesting what they called “stolen elections” and a “Russian conspiracy”.

Russia has endorsed the pro-Moscow presidential candidate in Ukraine’s elections, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, who, according to disputed results released by the government, won the elections.

The protesters gathered in Washington, traveling from New York, Philadelphia and Chicago, the Interfax news agency reported.

Earlier they held a similar rally in front of the Ukrainian embassy.

Citing official reports, Interfax reported that as many as 300 diplomats have joined the protests against elections that have widely been called unfair and illegitimate, in favor of the pro-Western opposition candidate.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/vitaz.shtml

Ukraine Opposition Claims Authorities Using Russian Special Forces

Created: 25.11.2004 11:46 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 11:47 MSK, 14 hours 59 minutes ago

MosNews

Aleksander Zinchenko, the head of the electoral headquarters of Ukrainian opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko, said on Wednesday that up to 1000 troops from Russia’s Interior Ministry’s task force Vityaz had been stationed in Kiev to ensure the support of Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, the official winner of the presidential elections, the Interfax news agency reports.

Without giving the source of his information, Zinchenko said that Russian troops arrived in Ukraine on Nov. 21, on the eve of the elections, and remained in the capital after the situation reached crisis point.

The Ukrainian opposition claims that Russians are pursuing three goals. The first is “to ensure the disappearance of 10 to 15 leading figures from the Ukrainian opposition”. The second is the arrest of the closest allies of opposition candidate Yushchenko, who are not members of parliament. The third goal was to provoke fights and clashes on Kiev’s streets in order to give the authorities an excuse to announce an emergency situation in the country.

The head of Yushchenko’s electoral headquarters also said that the incumbent president of Ukraine, Leonid Kuchma, was using the Russian task force as a personal bodyguard.

However, the opposition campaigner noted that the Russian servicemen, who are allegedly in Kiev, are wearing Ukrainian uniforms and had no documents that could prove their Russian citizenship.

On Wednesday Ukrainian news agencies also cited a report by the Ukrainian opposition headquarters that two planes with servicemen of the Russian special task force Vityaz had landed at the Boryspil airport near Kiev. Colonel Lyashenko, who was responsible for receiving the flights, refused to do so and tendered his resignation, the report said.

The press service of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry has categorically refuted the presence of Russian special forces on the country’s territory. The Russian Interior Ministry, which controls the elite Vityaz troops, has also denied that any of its servicemen had been sent abroad.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/ukrstrikes.shtml

Ukraine Facing Nationwide Strikes in Support of Yushchenko

Created: 25.11.2004 10:30 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 10:40 MSK, 16 hours 5 minutes ago

MosNews

Ukrainian singer Ruslana, the winner of this year’s Eurovision contest, announced she was going on hunger strike and urged European governments to help influence the situation in Ukraine by peaceful means.

Ruslana’s announcement Wednesday came as opposition leaders called for a nationwide strike to shut down factories, schools and transportation after officials declared Ukraine’s pro-Moscow prime minister the winner of a presidential runoff election that many countries have denounced as rigged, Associated Press writes.

The call by reformist candidate Viktor Yushchenko and his allies for an “all-Ukrainian political strike” risked provoking a crackdown by outgoing President Leonid Kuchma’s government, which has said the opposition’s actions in the aftermath of Sunday’s bitterly disputed runoff were, in effect, preparations for a coup d’etat.

A strike could also further divide the country: Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych drew his support from the pro-Russian, heavily industrialized eastern half of the country, while Yushchenko’s strength was in the west, a traditional center of Ukrainian nationalism.

To prevent the crisis from widening, Yanukovych said negotiations with Yushchenko’s team would begin Thursday, the Interfax news agency reported, citing Ukrainian television. The opposition has said, however, that it would talk only about a handover of power to Yushchenko.

The Central Election Commission’s decision to declare Yanukovych the winner “puts Ukraine on the verge of civil conflict,” Yushchenko told hundreds of thousands of his cheering supporters who massed for a fourth straight night in central Kiev’s Independence Square.

After the speeches, many demonstrators headed to the presidential administration building, the site of a tense standoff with riot police on Tuesday night. The police presence was heavy again, with well over 1,000 officers in riot gear who stood in phalanxes up to eight deep outside the building.

The election has been denounced as fraudulent by Western observers, who cited ballot stuffing, voter intimidation and other irregularities. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Wednesday that the United States cannot accept the result, warning “there will be consequences” in the two countries’ relationship.

The commission said Yanukovych got 49.46 percent of the vote and Yushchenko 46.61 percent.

“With this decision, they want to put us on our knees,” the Western-leaning Yushchenko told the crowd, which responded with chants of “Shame! Shame!” and “We will not give up.”

Kiev’s city council and the administrations of four other sizable cities — Lviv, Ternopil, Vinnytsia and Ivano-Frankivsk — have refused to recognize a Yanukovych victory.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/markov.shtml

Russian Political Scientist Blames Polish Conspiracy for Ukraine Election Crisis

Created: 25.11.2004 17:30 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 17:30 MSK, 9 hours 16 minutes ago

MosNews

Renowned Russian political scientist Sergei Markov told reporters in Moscow on Thursday that the ongoing political crisis in Ukraine was in fact a Polish conspiracy with the aim of imposing Polish patronage over Ukraine and thus raising Polish influence within the European Union.

“Yushchenko’s electoral campaign has been developed within the Polish diaspora abroad and its ideological basis was prepared by former U.S. national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski and his two sons,” the Newsru.com web-site quoted Markov as saying.

Markov said that another ethnic Pole, Andrian Karatnitsky, the head of the U.S. foundation Freedom House, had hired Serbian spin doctors and brought them to Ukraine ahead of the presidential elections. (Another Russian political scientist, Gleb Pavlovsky, said in a Wednesday evening news broadcast on Russia’s RTR television channel that Yushchenko’s campaign had been prepared by the same specialists who prepared similar campaigns in Serbia and Georgia).

“The arrival of Lech Walesa and Aleksander Kwasniewski as intermediaries in the Ukraine negotiations would become a part of the Tbilisi-Belgrade scenario, as the objective of these intermediaries is not peace, but a passing of power to Yushchenko,” Markov said.

He added that the original plan is for Poland to impose its patronage over Ukraine. Polish politicians are seeking more influence within the European Union, currently dominated by France and Germany, and to achieve this, they want to become patrons of the whole of Central and Eastern Europe, the Russian analyst said.

Markov said the United States would benefit from a Yushchenko victory as it would weaken Germany and France on the world arena and also split Ukraine and Russia. He also added that “the majority of the representatives of the Polish diaspora in the United States hate George Bush and want to cause a quarrel between him and Russian President Vladimir Putin”.

Markov also said that the main drawback of the plan was that its implementation was possible only on condition of extreme secrecy. He reminded the press that due to historical reasons the Ukrainians are very suspicious of the Poles and such a plan would find widespread disapproval among the majority of Ukrainians.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/putineu.shtml

Putin Meets EU Leaders, Congratulates Yanukovich on Victory in Ukraine

Created: 25.11.2004 14:33 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 14:57 MSK, 11 hours 49 minutes ago

MosNews

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with European Union leaders in the Hague on Thursday for a summit that is expected to focus on the conflict around Ukraine’s presidential election.

Putin was welcomed by the Dutch Prime Minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, who holds the EU’s rotating presidency, Reuters reported.

Putin sent a letter of congratulation to the current Ukrainian prime minister, Viktor Yanukovich, who won the elections, according to the Central Election Commission. The other candidate, former PM Viktor Yushchenko disagreed with the official information claiming it was falsified. He proclaimed himself president on Tuesday, but on Wednesday said he was ready to rerun the elections.

In his letter to Yanukovich, quoted by Russian Information Agency Novosti, Putin said, “the Ukrainian people have made their choice in favor of stability, strengthening of state system, further development of democratic and economic reforms.”

The Russian president noted that the majority of Ukrainians supported Yanukovich’s effort to develop cooperation with Russia and other states. “The citizens of our countries that have with common historical and cultural ties, become even closer to each other,” the letter said.

Putin first congratulated Yanukovich on his victory on Monday when official information was still not available. He later explained he did so according to the data provided via exit polls. He noted, however, that everyone should listen to the Central Election Commission of Ukraine.

On Wednesday, the Netherlands demanded that irregularities reported by international observers be rectified and said it is sending a special envoy to Ukraine to meet political leaders. “The EU has noted that the second round of the presidential elections last Sunday has fallen far short of international standards for democratic elections,” it said. “The EU does not believe these results reflect the will of the Ukrainian people.”

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/11/25/outsiders.shtml

Putin Slams “Outsiders” for Interfering in Ukraine Elections

Created: 25.11.2004 17:31 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 17:31 MSK, 9 hours 15 minutes ago

MosNews

Russian president Vladimir Putin criticized international support for the mass protests against what are widely seen as unfair presidential elections in the Ukraine, accusing supporters of pushing Russia’s neighbor into “mass mayhem”.

“We should not introduce in the practice of international life a means of addressing similar disputes through mayhem on the street,” Reuters quoted Putin as saying at a news conference after a summit with European Union leaders.

He said that outsiders have no moral right to interfere in any way in the electoral process.

However, both Putin and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana told the news conference it was important to preserve the unity of Ukraine as a nation state.

http://www.mosnews.com/commentary/2004/10/20/kingputin.shtml

Belarus Experiment Paves Way for Putin Dynasty

Created: 20.10.2004 17:41 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 17:41 MSK

Aleksandr Kornilov

Gazeta.Ru

Russia should hold a referendum to extend the incumbent president’s term in office for at least another four years, or just name him a new czar straight away. This brilliant idea was put forward by Pavel Borodin, the state secretary of the Union of Russian and Belarus, on Tuesday. In his opinion, Vladimir Putin could rule the country for at least five consecutive terms.

Russian authorities have long been using Belarus to test possible scenarios for Russia’s further political development. Lately, the issue has been especially popular among Russia’s political scientists.

However, nobody expected that Aleksandr Lukashenko’s victory —- absolutely predictable and downright unlawful, according to European politicians —- in Sunday’s referendum to allow a third term in office until at least 2011 would produce such a hypnotic effect on Russian officials.

The Belarusian electoral authorities had not even released the final results of Sunday’s vote when the first calls to extend Vladimir Putin’s presidency were voiced in Russia, in words so amazing and flattering that even Aleksandr Grigorievich [Lukashenko] would be envious.

Talking live on the Ekho Moskvy radio station, State Secretary of the Union of Russia and Belarus Pavel Borodin said that our president should follow his Belarusian counterpart’s example and call a referendum that would allow him to run for what would be his third term in office. In line with Russian law, no one can hold the post for more than two terms.

Four years is not long enough for a politician to show his worth, Borodin said. That is why he must have a chance to hold the post for three, four or even five terms in succession. The official also noted that he would vote for the extension of Putin’s term “with all his heart”.

Borodin failed to mention that Putin has been at the helm for nearly five years now, and still no cardinal changes have taken place in the country, either economically, or in terms of living standards. The official substantiated his wish to see Vladimir Vladimirovich ruling the country until at least 2012 according to the following thesis: “Russia, unlike the West, is ruled not by corporations but by czars. Such power as is held by Putin and Lukashenko is God-given.”

Thus, Borodin has not just amended recent history — we all thought Putin was given his power by Boris Yeltsin and Boris Berezovsky — he has also initiated discussion on the extension of his presidency at the highest possible level.

What, only yesterday, was treated as a bad joke has suddenly become a reality — a high-placed official appointed to his post at the recommendation of Putin, openly spoke of reviving the monarchy in Russia and establishing a new dynasty.

The Kremlin responded to Pavel Borodin’s proposal immediately. Presidential spokesman Aleksei Gromov told Interfax that Borodin had expressed his own point of view which “does not agree with reality”. And then added, asking not to be named as the source, that he is altogether perplexed with Borodin’s statement, as “being an international functionary, he is giving advice on Russia’s internal political situation, which runs counter to diplomatic practice.”

That response is really quite funny, because Borodin is recognized as an “international functionary” only in Moscow and Minsk.

Moreover, the state secretary of the union state had, until yesterday, never made any rash or untoward statements during his tenure, not even when Putin and Lukashenko disagreed publicly, or when the union state itself was on the brink of disintegration — which has been the case more than once. Borodin knows how to keep a diplomatic silence.

And, here we are! The Russo-Belarusian official unexpectedly comes up with a suggestion that Russians should apply the progressive experience of its brother nation. The Kremlin feigns indignation, what monarchy, what are you talking about!?

But Borodin’s proposal to crown Putin is, to all appearances, aimed at building an alternative background against which the idea of simply extending Putin’s powers for a third term would not seem that terrible to the majority. The testing of public opinion has begun.

As for the monarchy, well Putin has at least one contraindication — he has no male heirs who would traditionally take the reins of power in czarist Russia. Nor is he a spouse to a deceased emperor, as was Catherine II. Hence, it is clear that he will never be accepted as a civilized monarch.

But then Putin can still claim a holy kingship, still highly revered in certain primate tribes. Such a czar holds unrestricted power, but answers for acts of God. A bad harvest or some other natural calamity costs “the holy czar” his life — his tribesmen kill and eat him, whereupon the elders elect his successor. Those czars do not have to care about choosing a successor themselves.

markhagelin · Posted: Fri Nov 26, 2004 4:54 am Post subject:

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=6921739

Ukrainian Journalists Hail End to Biased Reporting
Thu Nov 25, 2004 02:34 PM ET

KIEV (Reuters) - One of Ukraine's main establishment television channels won freedom to provide balanced coverage of the country's political crisis and beam pictures across the country of mass demonstrations over disputed election results.

In a sign that support for Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, declared victor of this week's presidential election, could be dwindling, journalists at 1+1 television said on Thursday management had lifted restrictions on their coverage.

That would mean pictures of the huge demonstrations in support of opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko would reach homes in Yanukovich's heartland in Ukraine's Russian-speaking east.

Opposition channels, which have been showing live footage of events throughout the day, have been prevented from broadcasting in the east.

"We recognize our responsibility in broadcasting biased information after being pressured by different political forces," said the journalists at 1+1, which is controlled by outgoing President Leonid Kuchma's chief of staff.

"From today ... we guarantee that any information that we broadcast will be complete and objective."

At state television, also firmly behind the prime minister until now, 237 journalists demanded the right to broadcast the mass protests live.

Ukraine has often come under fire for failing to ensure balanced television coverage.

Reporters complained the authorities stepped up a campaign of intimidation before the election. Many said they received lists of what they should and should not show or write.

Pro-government television was awash during the campaign with pictures of Yanukovich while his rival was shown nowhere.

Kuchma survived months of protests after the headless corpse of investigative reporter Georgiy Gongadze was found in 2000. The opposition alleged Kuchma was linked to the murder, but he denied the charges.

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=6919788

Fears of Ukraine Split After Disputed Election
Thu Nov 25, 2004 09:05 AM ET

By Elizabeth Piper

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine's presidential election and the mass unrest over its disputed vote count have exposed a centuries-old faultline dividing the country which some fear could even become the front line of a civil war.

Hundreds of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets across central and western Ukraine to denounce an official vote count handing the presidency to a pro-Moscow prime minister, but in eastern regions it is business as usual.

The election, which the opposition says was stolen by Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, divided the Russian-speaking industrial east of the former Soviet state from the nationalist Ukrainian-speaking west.

The split, pushed into the background by mass poverty which followed independence in 1991, has been reopened by politicians resorting to vote-winning but divisive proposals.

The issue strikes at the very heart of Ukraine's fragile identity. In the Russian-speaking Donbass coalfield in the east, many feel greater kinship with Russia than with their fellow citizens at the other end of the country.

"There is a series of factors -- historical, cultural, religious, national separating the two sides," said independent analyst Oleksander Dergachev.

"Let's take Donbass. The majority there came in the 30s and the 50s from Russia, so there is only a small population native to the region.

"The region was molded by the Soviet system so there was little development of the national culture felt in the center of Ukraine and even more so in the west."

The west is home to Ukraine's large eastern-rite Catholic minority, having been ruled by Poland and Austria-Hungary at different times. It feels distinctly part of central Europe.

The east is Orthodox, once part of Czarist Russia and later firmly within the Soviet Union.

Most of Ukraine's more than 47 million people have lived quite happily with the cultural split in recent years. Ukrainian is the sole state language, although Russian is widely spoken.

OLD HATRED REVIVED

But campaigning brought back old memories.

Yanukovich sparked fury among nationalists by raising two bones of contention long buried. He proposed making Russian an official language and allowing Ukrainians, principally ethnic Russians, the option of dual citizenship, now barred by the constitution.

Liberals denounce both ideas as potentially lethal to the notion of Ukrainian statehood.

The two contenders had distinct geographical powerbases. Yanuovich, backed by Moscow, won well over 90 percent in the east's industrial Donetsk region, where he was once governor. Opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko, a Western-leaning former prime minister, ran up a similar score in the western region of Ivano-Frankivsk.

Ivano-Frankivsk and other western regions have refused to accept the results and declared Yushchenko their president. In Donetsk, Yushchenko's supporters are routinely branded traitors.

Some politicians fear a permanent split in Ukraine whatever the outcome of the current confrontation -- Yanukovich remaining in office despite the protests or Yushchenko taking power after a new election or legal challenge.

The west of Ukraine, or alternatively the east and the south, could declare a form of autonomy or even break away.

President Leonid Kuchma said on Wednesday Ukraine could face the same fate as the young Soviet Union, plunged into civil war in 1919. Many in the streets shared his fears.

"I hope there won't be civil war, Ukraine needs to be together," said Iryna Vovilova, a science professor.

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=6920675

Ukraine's Industrial Heartland Derides Strike
Thu Nov 25, 2004 11:30 AM ET

By Lina Kushch

DONETSK (Reuters) - Workers in Ukraine's industrial heartland of Donetsk, hard at work in plants and collieries, treated with derision any suggestion that an opposition strike over a contested election could paralyze the ex-Soviet state. Home to coal mines, car assembly and metals plants, the Russian-speaking Donetsk region produces much of Ukraine's wealth and is the home region of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, declared president by the disputed official count.

In Soviet days, Donetsk region was portrayed as the foundry of communism, the grimy Donetsk worker as hero of the age. Many, especially the older generation, still like to see it that way.

Locals here vowed to carry on working to "feed the people" and ignore calls by opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko to join a general strike to reverse the poll outcome.

Plans were under way to launch the strike, with heavy backing likely in Yushchenko's strongholds in Kiev and nationalist western Ukraine. But action was so far limited to a few protesters blocking highways.

Alexander Levenzon, spokesman for car assembly plant Azovmash, scoffed at tales of strike action in the nationalist West. In the post-Soviet era industry there had wilted.

"It is just absurd when they show 200 people from Chernivtsi stopping work at a car-assembly plant," he said, referring to a town on the Romanian border.

"In western Ukraine industry is practically dead."

The election has highlighted a divide between Ukraine's east and west. The Russian-speaking east solidly backed pro-Moscow Yanukovich, a former governor in Donetsk region, while the Ukrainian-speaking west supported Yushchenko.

"Our people say they want to work to feed their families. We are having a normal working day. We never protest as we have to feed the whole of Ukraine."

ENTHUSIASM RESTORED

In Donetsk, a town with neat central streets but grimy, dilapidated suburbs, about 400 demonstrators shouting "No to extremism! Yes to peace and harmony!" gathered in Lenin square.

The aim was to support Yanukovich against accusations that the poll was rigged in his favor and present at least a token counterweight to protests in Kiev and other cities.

But most dispersed when Yanukovich was declared president by election officials despite appeals by Western states to hold back on any formal proclamation of results.

"The declaration of the results restored our enthusiasm, gave us joy and a feeling of fulfilling our duty," said Igor Strelchenko, a senior trade unionist.

"We...understand that only normal work will ensure stability. The miners are working. They understand that without coal, without our labor the country could not survive. The miners are behind Viktor Fyodorovich (Yanukovich)."

Some miners headed for Kiev to show their support. Most decided to stay put and carry on with work.

"I think that both candidates need to sit down and hold talks to relieve the tension," said Sergei Pustovit, a transport worker at Donetskugol coal mine.

"Go to Kiev to get a crowd going? What for? I think that at the moment there is nothing for us to do there."

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=6919690

Ukraine C.bank to Support Banks Hit by Deposits Run
Thu Nov 25, 2004 08:51 AM ET

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine's central bank said on Thursday it was ready to support commercial banks if they were hit by a run on deposits due to the political crisis gripping the ex-Soviet state.

Natalya Hrebennyk, head of the central bank's monetary department, told Reuters the bank would cut obligatory reserve requirements for commercial banks.

"We are taking measures through various monetary instruments to secure stability of the banking system," Hrebennyk said.

Some commercial banks have suffered from a run on deposits sparked by low confidence in the banking system and uncertainty over political developments.

A disputed presidential election this month sent hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians into the streets to back opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko's complaint that he was denied a victory by mass fraud.

Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, backed by Ukraine's establishment and Russia, has been declared the winner. Many Western governments say they will not accept the results as legitimate.

Many Ukrainians have sad memories of botched monetary reforms which destroyed life savings and have little faith in undercapitalized and overcrowded banking system. They tend to keep savings in dollars and at home.

"On certain banks which had a considerable reduction of liquidity due to withdrawal of funds from deposits... the board will consider a question to support their liquidity with stabilization credits or banking overnight credits," the central bank said in a statement.

Bankers said the run on deposits started weeks before the Nov. 21 run-off vote. No individuals were willing any longer to open savings, they said.

"Due to the unstable political situation, people are withdrawing deposits," a commercial banker said. "They buy dollars at any exchange rate, anywhere they can find it. People are not sure they will have bread on the table tomorrow."

Ukraine's sovereign bond prices collapsed on Thursday as investors bailed out, fearing a deepening of the crisis.

The central bank has spent about $2 billion from hard currency reserves in two months to support the hryvnia currency amid growing demand for dollars sparked by capital flight and inflation fears linked to government pre-election spending.

Bankers also said they supported opposition street rallies against mass fraud during elections.

"Most support them but we cannot all go into the streets. Employees are going in turns," said one banker.

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=6919701

Ukrainian Opposition Says Russian Commandos in Kiev
Thu Nov 25, 2004 08:53 AM ET

WARSAW (Reuters) - Ukrainian opposition activist Borys Tarasyuk told Poland's parliament on Thursday that Russian commandos were in Kiev and could clash with demonstrators, but Moscow dismissed the accusation as nonsense.

Tarasyuk, a close aide to liberal opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko, who argues he was robbed of victory in weekend polls by fraud, said Russian 'spetsnaz' commandos were deployed near presidential buildings.

In Kiev, where tens of thousands of Yushchenko supporters have been demonstrating for four days, there was no evidence such forces had been deployed though rumors suggesting that have circulated for days.

Election results, which give Moscow-backed Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich victory, have been called fraudulent by independent observers and rejected by the United States. Hundreds of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets.

"Some 800 Russian spetsnaz troops, perhaps as many as 1,000, are in Ukraine armed to their teeth," Tarasyuk, a former foreign minister, told Poland's parliament, which has backed Yushchenko in what deputies see as Ukraine's fight for democracy and ties with the West.

"Spetsnaz is preparing to meet the Ukrainian people in the heart of Ukraine, in its capital ... Our deputies saw first hand spetsnaz troops at the presidential administrative building, armed with machine guns and live ammunition."

Tarasyuk is one of the first foreigners who is not a head of state to address Warsaw's parliament -- a sign of support from Polish politicians who fear neighbor Ukraine could once again fall under Moscow's control as during the communist era.

Former Polish President Lech Walesa was in Kiev on Thursday meeting key players in the crisis and addressed crowds backing Yushchenko in the city's main square.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov was quoted by the Russian Itar-Tass news agency as denying charges Moscow had dispatched commandos to Kiev.

"I should thank the authors of this nonsense for good PR for the Russian spetsnaz," he said. "It's the invention of people... consciously trying to make people think it is true and to destabilize the situation."

Poland, the largest of 10 mostly post-communist states that joined the European Union in May, has in recent years been a leading advocate of closer Ukrainian ties with the west, including its potential EU membership.

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=6922068

EU's Solana to Visit Ukraine for Urgent Talks
Thu Nov 25, 2004 04:29 PM ET

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana will visit Ukraine on Friday for urgent talks with the main figures in the country's presidential election crisis, his spokeswoman said on Thursday.

Spokeswoman Cristina Gallach told Reuters Solana would meet President Leonid Kuchma, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich and opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko to discuss "a negotiated diplomatic solution" to the dispute over the results of last Sunday's presidential run-off.

The EU and the United States have said the election failed to meet international standards because of fraud and demanded that the Ukrainian authorities review the conduct and results.

markhagelin · Posted: Sat Nov 27, 2004 2:00 am Post subject:

http://www.kyivpost.com/top/21928/

markhagelin · Posted: Sat Nov 27, 2004 11:52 pm Post subject:

http://www.kyivpost.com/top/21931/