[Ohio UZO News] Ukraine: The White House; WP; NYT; FT; ; WoE; OSCE link

[Deychak, Orest]

The White House

Trip Statement of the Vice President 

Vice President Cheney will travel abroad beginning September 2, 2008.
President Bush has asked the Vice President to travel to Azerbaijan,
Georgia, Ukraine and Italy for discussions with these key partners on
issues of mutual interest. The Vice President will meet with President
Aliyev of Azerbaijan, President Saakashvili of Georgia, President
Yushchenko of Ukraine, and President Napolitano and Prime Minister
Berlusconi of Italy, as well as senior officials of their respective
governments. In addition to meetings with foreign leaders, the Vice
President will attend and address the Ambrosetti forum entitled,
"Intelligence on the World, Europe and Italy" in Lake Como, Italy

The Washington Post

Georgia and The Stakes For Ukraine 

Victor Yushchenko 

25 August 2008

FINAL

A17

 

The conflict in Georgia revealed problems that extend well beyond our
region. Recent events have made clear how perilous it is for the
international community to ignore "frozen conflicts." The issues of
breakaway regions in newly independent states are complex; too often,
they have been treated as bargaining chips in geopolitical games. But
such "games" result in the loss of human lives, humanitarian disasters,
economic ruin and the collapse of international security guarantees.

Ukraine has become a hostage in the war waged by Russia. This has
prompted Ukrainian authorities and all of our country's people,
including those living in the Crimea, to ponder the dangers emanating
from the fact that the Russian Black Sea fleet is based on our
territory.

The tragic events in Georgia also exposed the lack of effective
preventive mechanisms by the United Nations, the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe, and other international
organizations.

We in Ukraine hope that the Russian Federation will heed the opinion of
the global community so that the issues at hand can be settled through
negotiations. We want an end to the looting and destruction of Georgian
infrastructure. We must do everything possible to prevent provocations
and avoid further massacres.

The ongoing conflict between Russia and Georgia affects my country's
interests. Military operations have taken place close to our borders,
and the Russian Black Sea fleet was directly involved. The question of
Ukraine's national security was acutely raised. Given the activities of
the Russian fleet, I had to issue a decree regulating its functioning on
the territory of Ukraine.

Under these circumstances, Ukraine could not stay silent. We, along with
other nations, engaged to seek resolution of the conflict. From the
first day of hostilities, Ukraine called for an immediate cease-fire by
all parties and dispatched humanitarian aid to victims regardless of
their ethnicity.

Ukraine upheld its firm support for the sovereignty and territorial
integrity of Georgia.

On Aug. 12, I, together with my colleagues from the three Baltic states
and Poland, visited Tbilisi. Our proposals seeking a solution to the
conflict were in harmony with the European Union settlement plan. We
highly praise the efforts of the United States and the E.U. presidency,
led by the French, to achieve a cease-fire. Their actions proved
efficient in putting a halt to war and bloodshed.

Ukraine favors a wider international representation in the peacekeeping
force in the conflict area. A new multilateral format mandated by the
United Nations or the Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe is the only way to guarantee security in the conflict zone.

I strongly hope that that plan will be strictly implemented by the
conflicting parties. We are ready to join international efforts to
provide relief and help victims resume their peaceful lives. Ukraine
also stands ready to take part in the U.N. or OSCE missions by sending
peacekeepers.

It is clear that in addition to the political dimensions of issues
involving breakaway regions, we need to cope with the social and
economic aspects of this phenomenon. Many of these provinces are beyond
the control of the respective governments or the international
community. In many cases, the absence of monitoring has turned these
territories into havens for smuggling as well as illegal trafficking in
arms, people and drugs. Corruption and human-rights abuses are rampant.
These areas are marked by their lack of democratic electoral procedures
and their unfree or biased media. The ethnic dimension of the problem is
often exaggerated to help conceal the criminal practices.

Moreover, an area home to such activities poses a threat to the
prosperity and development of adjacent nations. Official authorities are
compelled to counter attacks from separatist paramilitaries. But they
are not always successful. Before large-scale combat erupted in Georgia,
Russian peacekeepers failed to prevent the shelling of Georgian
territory by South Ossetian separatists. Indeed, that activity
intensified in the days before the greater conflict.

This weekend Ukraine celebrated the anniversary of its independence.
This conflict has proved once again that the best means of ensuring the
national security of Ukraine and other countries is to participate in
the collective security system of free democratic nations, exemplified
today by NATO. In accordance with national legislation and its foreign
policy priorities, Ukraine will continue following the path of
Euro-Atlantic integration. This is the path of democracy, freedom and
independence.

The writer is president of Ukraine.

http://www.washingtonpost.com <javascript:void(0)> 

[Note:  For more information on the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), referenced in President Yushchenko's
op-ed, see www.osce.org]

  <javascript:void(0)> 

Russian Actions Reignite Tensions Over Strategic Port in Ukraine 

By DAVID L. STERN 

25 August 2008

Late Edition - Final

6

SEVASTOPOL, Ukraine -- Russia's guided missile cruiser Moskva appeared
suddenly on the horizon, dark and imposing like a fortress in the
twilight, and steamed on Saturday into this Black Sea port, where its
sailors were given a hero's welcome. ''Russia! Russia!'' chanted
hundreds of supporters from the embankment, as fireworks burst.

The ship, more than 600 feet long and bristling with guns and missile
launchers, was one of several from the Black Sea Fleet that patrolled
the coast of Georgia during the conflict between it and Russia. The
fleet -- which the Russians say sank a Georgian gunboat that fired on
them -- is based here in Sevastopol, a city populated mainly by ethnic
Russians.

The next day, in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, President Viktor A.
Yushchenko presided over the first military parade in years -- with a
massive display of tanks, armored personnel carriers and missile
launchers -- to celebrate his country's 17th year of independence from
the Soviet Union. Russia's willingness to send troops into Georgia,
another former Soviet republic, to settle their territorial dispute this
month has made Ukraine jittery, and the pro-Western Mr. Yushchenko used
the celebration to again push for inclusion in the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization.

''We must speed up our work to achieve membership of the European system
of security and raise the defense capabilities of the country,'' Mr.
Yushchenko said in a televised speech to thousands gathered in the
city's main Independence Square. ''Only these steps will guarantee our
security and the integrity of our borders.''

The dueling celebrations, one rejoicing in Russia's military might and
the other overshadowed by it, underscore the tensions between Russia and
Ukraine, where leaders had hoped the days of Russian dominance were long
over. They also highlight Sevastopol's status as something of a fault
line between the two countries.

Though it is in Ukraine's southern Crimean peninsula, Sevastopol -- home
to thousands of Russian naval personnel and their families -- is
ethnically and culturally very much a Russian town.

Crimea, connected to Ukraine by a slender causeway, was in fact
considered a part of Russia, until Nikita S. Khrushchev, the
Ukrainian-born Soviet leader, bequeathed it to Kiev as an act of good
will in 1954.

What was considered a purely symbolic gesture at the time, however,
assumed monumental importance with the breakup of the Soviet Union.
Crimea -- wrested from the Turkic Tatars in the late 18th century under
Catherine the Great -- was now a part of Ukraine.

And with it went Sevastopol, the strategic base for the Black Sea Fleet
for more then 200 years and a city of deep emotional resonance for
Russians. Twice it has been besieged -- by British-led forces in the
19th-century Crimean War, and then for 250 days before falling to the
Germans in World War II.

After the Soviet breakup, Moscow and Kiev wrangled first over the
ownership of the fleet -- of which the Kremlin finally took the lion's
share. Then they argued over the terms by which Russia could continue to
use the base. The two countries agreed on a 20-year renewable lease in
1997.

With the ascension of Mr. Yushchenko's pro-Western government after the
2004 Orange Revolution, and with Russia's new assertiveness as
petrodollars flow into its coffers, Sevastopol has once again been
thrust under the klieg lights.

Crimea was a stronghold of Mr. Yushchenko's political opponent, the
pro-Russian Viktor F. Yanukovich.

Russian nationalists have begun agitating to reclaim Sevastopol and
Crimea, although taking such an action is far from a mainstream
sentiment. The mayor of Moscow, Yuri M. Luzhkov, raised Ukrainian
hackles in May when he called for Russia's western neighbor to return
''what doesn't belong to it,'' The Associated Press reported.

The Ukrainians, for their part, have struck back. Mr. Yushchenko, who
traveled to Tbilisi in a display of solidarity with the Georgian
president, Mikheil Saakashvili, threatened to ban Russian warships from
returning to Sevastopol, saying their movements were subject to
Ukrainian approval. Yuriy Yekhanurov, the country's defense minister,
later said that the fleet could move unhindered.

As with his Independence Day remarks, the Ukrainian leader has also
amplified his rhetoric for joining NATO, despite Russia's clear
indications that it opposes expanding the alliance to its border. Many
analysts say that Europe is not seeking a battle with Russia and that
the Georgian conflict has reduced, rather than enhanced, Ukraine's
chances of joining the alliance.

At the same time, the idea of eventually rejoining Russia has strong
support among many in Sevastopol, though no one here is yet speaking of
pushing the matter politically, let alone militarily.

''Everyone wants for Crimea to become part of Russia,'' said Nina
Vakula, a local resident, as she watched the Moskva.

Ms. Vakula is living proof of the ties that bind Russia and Ukraine. She
is a Ukrainian citizen, but her son-in-law serves in the Black Sea Fleet
and both he and her daughter hold Russian passports. The couple's
2-year-old son, Yura, a Slavic portrait with hair bleached white from
the sun, was born in Ukraine.

Ms. Vakula says that Ukrainians and Russians are part of one Slavic
family, and that divisions between them are artificial.

Those sentiments are not shared by those who not only fear Russia's
return, but also worry that Sevastopol's importance could provide a
pretext for Moscow to extend its reach here.

''These people are separatists,'' said Oleg Yatsenko, a student leader
who traveled from Kiev to stage pro-Ukrainian rallies during the
warships' return, referring to the those who had gathered to welcome
home the sailors. ''They want to do the same thing here that was done in
Georgia.''

Financial Times

Ukraine flexes its muscles

By Roman Olearchyk in Kiev 

Published: August 25 2008 

Ukraine held an army parade yesterday to celebrate 17 years of
independence from the USSR. The display of military might follows
Russia's invasion of Georgia, a mutual pro-western ally.

Some 3,500 soldiers, tanks, armoured personal carriers and anti-aircraft
systems rumbled down Kiev's main street. A flyby of fighter jets and
helicopters followed. It was the first military parade held by Kiev
since 2001, planned some months ago.

Addressing an audience, Kiev's pro-western president, Victor Yushchenko,
expressed solidarity with Georgia and said Kiev must also increase its
own defences.

"We are well aware of the threats that are emerging more and more
acutely in our region. We condemn acts of aggression," he said.

Kiev's relations with Moscow deteriorated after a pro-democracy
revolution propelled to power a pro-western leadership which seeks
speedy membership of the European Union and Nato.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev answered Ukraine by calling for both
countries to "preserve" close ties.

 

Window on Eurasia: Ukrainians Discuss How Best to Counter Russian Threat
to Crimea

 

Paul Goble

 

            Vienna, August 21 - Having watched Moscow's moves in Georgia
and listened to various Russians suggest that the Crimea, where Russia's
Black Sea Fleet is based, is or should be Moscow's next target,
Ukrainian politicians, diplomats, and foreign policy analysts are
discussing the nature and dimensions of the Russian threat and what Kyiv
should do to parry it. 

            In addition to Russian actions and threats, this issue has
heated up in recent days because of calls by senior Ukrainian officials
for Russia to begin preparing to move its fleet out of Sevastopol by or
possibly even before 2017, statements that most Russian politicians have
refused to take seriously and most military analysts say would be very
difficult.

            Today, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Volodomyr Ogryzko said
that Moscow must begin thinking about moving both men and materiel from
Sevastopol now because regardless of what some may think, Kyiv will
honor its agreement with Moscow but "in any case after 2017, the Russian
fleet will not be on our territory (news.mail.ru/politics/1960873).

            Ogryzko said that the Ukrainian government cannot understand
why Russia has simply "refused" to discuss the situation or any plans to
withdraw its forces and close the base. As a sovereign country, the
minister said, Ukraine will meet its treaty obligations, but he
underscored that Ukraine has "the right to make a choice" about any
bases on its territory.

            And if Ukraine makes the decision not to have such bases,
the foreign minister continued, "no one, including Russia can influence
our decision. ... If in Moscow, they do not yet understand this, that
governments live according to such rules throughout the world, then this
is Russia's problem" and not Ukraine's.

            But recent Russian behavior in Georgia and Moscow's
reactions to Kyiv's positions on this and other issues has convinced
many Ukrainians that Russia's problem in this regard is becoming a
problem for their country because of the danger that Moscow will try to
destabilize its neighbor to ensure its continued control of Sevastopol
or even seek to seize Crimea.

            Those concerns have been exacerbated by three new
developments: suggestions by some officials that Timoshenko should be
charged with treason, a statement by a Crimean Tatar leader and
Ukrainian parliamentarian that Moscow has many levers to use in Crimea,
and an assessment by Ukrainian military analysts of what Moscow is
already doing.

            The first of these, charges that opposition leader Yuliya
Timoshenko should be investigated for possible treason on behalf of
Russia, has already been extensively discussed, with some analysts
arguing that this scandal by itself represents an effort by Moscow to
destabilize and discredit the Ukrainian government. 

            But the second and third deserve more attention. Today,
Mustafa Dzhemilyev, who is both the leader of the Crimean Tatars and a
deputy in the Ukrainian parliament, said that he is convinced that the
large number of Crimeans who have dual citizenship with Russia by itself
points to a possible South Ossetian scenario for that peninsula (
www.vlasti.net/news/20236).

            Moreover, he continued, unlike in South Ossetia, "there is
no need [for Russia] to introduce forces [because] there is a
sufficiently large and not badly armed contingent of the Russian Black
Sea Fleet already there." Consequently, Moscow could move even more
quickly than in did in Georgia, he said.

            "In order to preserve the territorial integrity of Ukraine,"
the Crimean Tatar leader said, Kyiv should "close Russian consulates
which are violating the law by handing out to citizens of Ukraine
Russian passports." Indeed, Ukrainian officials should force those "who
have illegal dual citizenship to annul one of the passports."

            Moreover, Ukrainian officials must focus on the activities
of pro-Russian organizations whose statements and activities are
exacerbating interethnic tensions and creating the conditions for a
Russian move. And Dzhemilyev said, Kyiv should insist that the Black Sea
Fleet leave Sevastopol long before the 2017 date established by
agreement.       
            The third event was the release, also today, of a report by
the Kyiv Center for Research on the Army, Conversion and Disarmament,
which argued that "Russia has created in the Crimea all the
preconditions" for a military operation to keep control of Sevastopol,
detach Crimea from Ukraine, and weaken the rest of the country as well (
www.nr2.ru/kiev/192334.html).

            "For the achievement of these goals, Russia doesn't need a
major military conflict with Ukraine," the center's analysts said.
Instead, "it is sufficient to destabilize the situation in a single
Crimean region" through the use of precisely targeted operations using
"the forces of the Russian special services and particular units of the
Black Sea Fleet."

            Moreover, they continued, Moscow will build on "to the
maximum extent possible" the pro-Russian segments of the population and
the pro-Russian social and political organizations that Moscow and its
friends in Ukraine have been promoting ever since Ukraine gained its
independence in 1991.  

            The center's analysts suggested that the first stage of such
a conflict might consist of "actions directed at the sharpening of
relations between personnel of the Black Sea Fleet and representatives
of  Ukrainian authority in nearby areas," possibly by means of "a
provocation" taking the form of a supposed Ukrainian attack on the
fleet. 

            After that happens, according to the center's scenario, "the
pro-Russian population will rise to the defense of the Russian
personnel" and then there "will begin clashes with the law enforcement
bodies of Ukraine." That in turn will lead both countries to increase
their military presence in Crimea, at which time Moscow will raise the
issue of Ukraine's right to Crimea.

            Kyiv would then appeal to the West, the center said, but its
analysts argued that Ukraine would not be any more successful in
attracting anything more from Western countries than verbal support. And
consequently, Russia could then "swallow" Crimea at its leisure,
confident that Ukraine by itself would not be able to block its moves. 

The center's director added that he does not believe that Moscow is
likely to follow such a scenario, but he added that "Russia has already
created all the necessary conditions for its realization," including
official statements questioning Ukraine's right to control Crimea,
ramping up anti-Ukrainian feelings among Russians, and "also dominating
Ukraine's information space." 

            Today also, Ukrainian media carried the assessments of five
political analysts. Sergei Dzherdzh, the president of the Ukraine-NATO
League, agreed that Russia could move in Crimea, but he suggested that
"more sober" heads in Moscow were likely to act with restraint given
Moscow's experiences in Chechnya and Georgia (
www.vlasti.net/news/20336).

            Vadim Grechaninov, president of the Atlantic Council in
Kyiv, said that Russia will launch "not a real war but an information
one" and will seek to dominate Ukraine by creating "a fifth column," a
powerful pro-Russian lobby within the government, the leaders of the
country's political parties, and in the regions.

            Political scientist Viktor Nebozheno said that Ukraine was
entering a dangerous period because both Russian and Georgian "hawks"
might seek to stage provocations in Sevastopol in order to achieve their
goals elsewhere, a view echoed by the Ukrainian Diplomatic Academy's
Aleksandr Paliy, who said Russia has constantly been staging
provocations in Ukraine.

            But Vadim Karasev, a political scientist, said that Ukraine
is in fact in a good position to counter any Russian moves of this kind.
If it blocks the formation of "unrecognized formations" and "separatist
groups" prepared to help Russia and if it adopts "a new regional policy"
to ensure that Crimea develops, then Moscow will have a much harder time
in pursuing its goals.

            But "the main thing," Karasev said, is for Ukraine "not to
do anything stupid" that Moscow would then exploit. 

 


PRESS RELEASE


 

OSCE Project Co-ordinator visits Ukraine's Zaporizhya region to assess
projects 

 

ZAPORIZHYA, Ukraine, 21 August 2008 - The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in
Ukraine, Ambassador Lubomir Kopaj, is visiting Zaporizhya region this
week to evaluate the effectiveness of existing OSCE projects and discuss
developing new ones.

 

During the three-day visit, Kopaj meet Zaporizhya local authorities to
discuss the results of a project on retraining military officers, as
well as activities aimed at economic development and improving awareness
of energy efficiency. He also discusses a project aimed at promoting
gender equality in the decision-making process.

 

Ambassador Kopaj visited the Novobogdanivka ammunition site, where the
OSCE has assisted Ukraine in removing unexploded ordnance under a
project completed in 2007.

 

"This project has received a lot of attention from OSCE delegations, and
we are looking at the possibility of implementing similar projects in
other regions of Ukraine. We came to Novobogdanivka to study how
effectively the equipment provided by the OSCE has been used and to
learn about the progress made by Ukraine's Ministry for Emergency
Situations in cleaning up the ammunition site," said Kopaj.

 

For PDF attachments or links to sources of further information, please
visit: http://www.osce.org/item/32629.html

 

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