[Ohio UZO News] Ukraine: NYT (2); WoE (2); EDM; RFE/RL

[Deychak, Orest]

The New York Times

THE SATURDAY PROFILE

Is the Mayor Fit for Office? Some Say Yes, Some Say No 

By CLIFFORD J. LEVY 

15 August 2009

Late Edition - Final

10

KIEV, Ukraine -- LEONID M. CHERNOVETSKY, this city's unpredictable
mayor, likes to answer his critics in his own special way.

When Parliament members said he was acting bizarrely and needed a
psychiatric exam, he went to a stadium where he jogged for the cameras
before yanking off his shirt and doing pull-ups. He swam laps and flexed
his muscles like Charles Atlas. Then he held a news conference -- in his
tiny bathing suit.

''They are judging me today and want me to spend the rest of my life
behind the bars of a psychiatric hospital,'' Mr. Chernovetsky said.
''Look at my body, at how I express my thoughts. I am absolutely
healthy. I think logically and philosophically.''

True, he was in fine physical shape for a man of 57, though perhaps this
was not the wisest strategy for proving one's competence.

But that is Mr. Chernovetsky. Think New York City has had its share of
outsize personalities as mayor? They have got nothing on Mr.
Chernovetsky, who is also known as Lenny Cosmos because sometimes his
head seems to be someplace far, far away.

He makes eccentric suggestions (a statue of Ukraine's most famous poet
should be erected in Africa) and staffing decisions (firing a zoo
director for not finding a mate for an elephant), and personal gestures
(offering to sell his kisses in a lottery).

He interrupts meetings by warbling melancholy Soviet ballads, and even
issued a CD on which he covers his favorites. ''Who sings better than
me?'' he asked. ''Nobody does, besides God.''

And time after time, he does loopy things to prove that he is not loopy.

Politics in Ukraine is already a bit of a sideshow, what with the
president and his rivals so estranged that the country still lacks a
finance minister, which might be good to have in, say, a financial
crisis.

Mr. Chernovetsky's ability to retain his job, though, may be an
especially telling sign of the breakdown in the political culture since
the Orange Revolution of 2004, which brought to power a pro-Western
government that has increasingly exasperated the public.

He is widely regarded as a problem. But the nation's leaders cannot stop
squabbling long enough to agree on what to do about him.

In an interview at his office, Mr. Chernovetsky dismissed complaints
about his behavior, maintaining that he was misunderstood and had wide
popularity.

He spoke of what he said were his accomplishments in Kiev, a city of
nearly three million people: nurturing development, combating corruption
and helping the poor.

He said he had carried out innovations like setting up an information
hot line that has received millions of calls. He is given credit for
improving the city's greenery and restoring its historic sites. His
backers say that as a result, Kiev, with its lovely cathedrals and old
neighborhoods, has remained a charming city that continues to draw
businesses and tourists, no matter the tough times.

''Everyone wants me to leave, except the people who elected me,'' Mr.
Chernovetsky said. ''My voters are ordinary people, and I speak to them
in one language, the language of ordinary people, even though, of
course, I am not an ordinary person.''

Mr. Chernovetsky repeatedly returned to that theme, noting that he used
to be an exceptionally talented businessman and lawyer who became a
millionaire in banking.

''They have always called me crazy,'' he said. ''The thing is, crazy are
the people who don't understand that the future belongs to those who are
not standard, who are open and vulnerable.''

Still, even in a relatively tame, 45-minute discussion in his office in
Kiev, Mr. Chernovetsky seemed a little off. For much of the interview,
he would not look at his questioner, speaking in almost a monotone while
staring at the floor.

In public appearances, this bearing -- combined with occasional bursts
of exuberance -- has prompted speculation that he abuses alcohol or
drugs, or is on heavy medication. At one event promoting religious
diversity, he slurred his language, pausing at length as he fumbled for
the words for Judaism and Hinduism.

HE has denied the rumors about drugs and alcohol use, though it has not
helped that he has taken short, unexplained leaves of absence.

Mr. Chernovetsky, who is married with two children, was elected in 2006
after supporting the Orange Revolution, and became known for courting
retired people by strolling neighborhoods and handing out flour and
other food.

There are three major political factions in Ukraine, led by President
Viktor A. Yushchenko, Prime Minister Yulia V. Tymoshenko and Viktor F.
Yanukovich, a former prime minister. Mr. Chernovetsky, an independent,
has at times built alliances with each. All three factions covet the
mayor's office but fear that removing Mr. Chernovetsky through something
akin to impeachment would allow a rival's candidate to take over.

In 2008, the Parliament, led by Ms. Tymoshenko, tried to unseat Mr.
Chernovetsky by calling a special election. He won, after his opponents
could not unify around a candidate and split the vote. He has since
suggested that he might run for president.

His rivals have not let up, assailing him for supposedly mistreating
city workers, bungling real estate projects and allowing utilities and
other services to deteriorate. At one point, the subway system was
threatened with closing because it was running out of money.

Above all, they said, his behavior makes Kiev look ridiculous.

At a protest in front of City Hall in the spring, Dr. Larisa Kanarovska,
head of a doctors' union, led hundreds of workers in calling for the
mayor's ouster. She recalled that when she met with him to describe
troubles at hospitals and clinics, including the city's failure to pay
salaries, he responded harshly.

''He called us money-grubbing wolves, thieves and bandits,'' Dr.
Kanarovska said.

SHE said she had an inkling of why he did not like the doctors' union.
''We have diagnosed him as having some sort of mental illness,'' she
said.

Mr. Chernovetsky acknowledged that such attacks were unpleasant, but he
said that he relied on his faith to bolster him, reading the Bible
daily. He said he attends a Ukrainian Orthodox Church, though he said he
was attracted to Protestantism.

The interview with Mr. Chernovetsky was over, though not before a little
small talk. He imparted the secret of his full head of hair, explaining
that the key was to rub it aggressively with a towel after a daily
shower.

Then he said goodbye with a few parting words.

''I am not going to abandon politics,'' he said. ''I am not crazy. The
pressure on me, that is the thing that is crazy.''

The New York Times

WORLD BRIEFING EUROPE

Russia And Ukraine Trade Barbs 

By CLIFFORD J. LEVY 

14 August 2009

Late Edition - Final

9

Ukraine's president, Viktor A. Yushchenko, defended himself on Thursday
against criticism from his Russian counterpart, Dmitri A. Medvedev. Mr.
Yushchenko said it was unfair for Russia to not take any responsibility
for the decline in relations with Ukraine. This week, Mr. Medvedev said
Russia would not send an ambassador to Ukraine because of what he said
were Mr. Yushchenko's ''anti-Russia'' policies, including his efforts to
seek NATO membership and his support for the Georgian government, which
fought a brief war with Russia last year. In response, Mr. Yushchenko on
Thursday released his own letter to Mr. Medvedev. ''Our government has
never deviated from the principles of friendship and partnership,''
specified in accords between the countries, he wrote.

Window on Eurasia: Ukraine Has Nearly 3,000 Russian-Language Schools,
but Russia Doesn't Have Even a Single Ukrainian-Language One

 

Paul Goble

 

            Vienna, August 17 - Despite Moscow's frequent charges and
complaints, Kyiv pays for the operation of nearly 3,000 Russian-language
schools as well as other Russian-language institutions in Ukraine, a
level of support especially striking  given that Russia does not pay for
the operation of even one Ukrainian-language school on its territory.

            And that absence of Russian support for Ukrainian-language
schools not only violates the Russian constitution but also makes it
harder for Ukrainian officials to justify continuing their backing of
Russian-language schools while providing evidence for those Ukrainians
who argue that Russia doesn't respect Ukrainians and that Kyiv should
pursue a more independent course.

            Indeed, on his Ekho Moskvy radio talk show Friday night,
Sergey Parkhomenko argued that the Russian attitudes this absence
reflects, is an important reason for antipathy toward Moscow among
Russia's neighbors and hence Russia's increasing isolation in the former
Soviet space (www.echo.msk.ru/programs/sut/612419-echo.phtml).

            According to the most recent national censuses in the two
countries - and Parkhomenko notes that these enumerations are neither
recent nor completely reliable - there are 8.3 million ethnic Russians
in Ukraine, and 2.9 million ethnic Ukrainians in Russia. Of the latter,
1.8 million told Russian census workers that Ukrainian was their native
language.

            That provides the basis, he suggests, for comparing
Ukrainian support of Russian-language schools with the absence of
Russian support for Ukrainian-language schools. According to a recent
survey, there are 983 Russian-language pre-schools in Ukraine with
164,000 children enrolled; in Russia, there are no Ukrainian-language
pre-schools.

            In Ukraine, there are 1199 general education schools with
Russian as the language of instruction, with 779,500 pupils.  In Russia,
there are no Ukrainian-language schools and hence no pupils in them. At
the same time, there are another 1755 schools in Ukraine in which
Russian is a language of instruction alongside Ukrainian; in Russia,
there is not one such school.

            Another measure of the difference concerns the number of
people studying one of these languages in the two countries: In Ukraine,
1.3 million children are studying Russian; but in Russia, only 205 are
studying Ukrainian.  According to Parkhomenko, that number is so low
that it must involve students at a school attached to the Ukrainian
embassy.

            And yet a third of the comparative figures he offers shows
that Ukraine currently publishes 1.5 million Russian-language textbooks
and 125,000 Russian-Ukrainian dictionaries each year, whereas the
Russian Federation government is not paying for the publication of a
single copy of a Ukrainian-language book for students in that country.


What this points to, the Ekho Moskvy host says, is the existence of "two
state policies. There is the state policy in Ukraine of financing the
Russian language. And there is ... [ellipsis in the original]. Fine,
there are problems. It would be possible for there to be more
[Russian-language schools in Ukraine]. Certainly, earlier, there were
more, and now there are fewer."

But Parkhomenko notes, "the state policy of Russia is ... clear, direct,
precise, thought-out, systematic, and consistent. It is that there is no
Ukrainian language and no Ukrainian culture on the territory of Russia,"
despite Ukrainians being the third largest nationality in Russia and
despite nearly two million of them saying Ukrainian is their native
language.

And this policy, he continues, ignores the provisions of the Russian
Constitution which says in Paragraph 26 that every Russian citizen has
the right to use his native language and to choose it as the language of
instruction as well as of the Russian education law which declares the
same thing.

            In Soviet times, the slogan, "Fulfill the Provisions of the
Constitution!" was the basis for "the entire dissent movement," the Ekho
Moskvy broadcaster says.  But "today this slogan has disappeared" from
the scene.  And relatively few Russian citizens demand that the
provisions of the Constitution or of the laws be realized - or even
expect them to be.

            Obviously, as Russian callers to Parkhomenko's program
insisted and as he admitted, the international status of Russian is very
different than that of Ukrainian, and hence many Ukrainian parents may
prefer to have their children study Russian rather than their native
language. But the imbalance in the number of schools does not reflect
just that.

            Instead, it is the product of Russian attitudes, Parkhomenko
says, which have helped over the last decade to "destroy the
interrelationship of Russia with the countries around it." Russia, he
says, "remains alone, entirely alone ... and not because of conspiracies
or because someone is pursuing anti-Russian interests."   

            And he concludes that this unfortunate situation reflects
the even more unfortunate fact that "the Russian leadership treats its
responsibilities [to its own citizens] with such sincere contempt," an
attitude that the citizens of neighboring countries can see and one that
they recognize is directed against their co-ethnics in Russia itself.

Window on Eurasia: For Ukrainians, 'Ukraine is Ukraine;' for Russians,
'Russia is Russia Plus Ukraine,' Radzikhovsky Says

 

Paul Goble

 

            Vienna, August 15 - Underlying the current escalation of
tensions between Moscow and Kyiv is a fundamental difference in the way
the two nations define themselves, a leading Moscow commentator says.
For Ukrainians, "Ukraine is Ukraine," but for Russians, "Russia is
Russia plus Ukraine."

            In his Ekho Moskvy blog, Leonid Radzikhovsky argues that
this difference in national self-conceptions is more important than any
other factor in explaining why Moscow "again and again" acts as if
Ukraine is Russia's "INTERNAL affair," something Ukrainians quite
naturally view as outside inference in their own
(echo.msk.ru/blog/radzihovski/612611-echo/).  

            Obviously, President Dmitry Medvedev hopes to win support at
home by his attacks on Ukraine and Ukrainian officials, the Moscow
commentator continues, but that is "SECONDARY" as an explanation for
what is going on.  The "PRIMARY" factor is "THE DEMAND OF SOCIETY."

            And that demand, Radzikhovsky continues, is not so much
about rebuilding the empire or supporting Yanukovich whom, the Moscow
writer suggests, "80 percent of the population of the Russian
Federation" haven't heard of,  but rather about the feeling among most
Russians that "WITHOUT UKRAINE, RUSSIA IS INCOMPLETE!" 

To feel itself whole, he says, "Russian society doesn't need alien
Central Asia.  And it doesn't need the alien Baltic. And it does not
need the unloved Transcaucasus" - although the North Caucasus,
Radzikhovsky continues, is "an anything but simple" matter.  "But
[Russian society] NEEDS Ukraine! Even more than it does Belarus."

Given their interwoven history as Slavs, given Russia's self-definition
of its history as beginning with Kievan Rus', and given their religion,
Russians are inclined to see Ukraine and Ukrainians as part of
themselves, failing to acknowledge to anyone including themselves that
Ukrainians do not see the Russians in the same way.

Because Ukraine means so much more for Russians than Moscow means for
Ukrainians, he continues, Russians feel that their love is "unrequited,"
and consequently, their feelings have shifted toward "a cruel jealousy"
in which Russians are demanding something that the Ukrainians are not in
a position to give.

"Note," Radzikhovsky continues, "Russia is not able to formulate its
REAL pretensions toward Ukraine ... The transit of gas, NATO, the Black
Sea fleet, and the terror famine are just details. With whom are there
no such details?" But Russia's obsession with them is because it cannot
say in full voice "'Love me!'" 

And because this cannot be said openly, there is all the continuing
blather about "'fraternal peoples' or even about 'a DIVIDED people.'"
What makes this so disturbing is that it is not just a question of
Kremlin PR.  This is how millions, even TENS OF MILLIONS of people in
Russia feel."

But the situation in the Ukraine is very different. Despite frequent
Russian suggestions that Ukraine will fall into pieces, that has not
happened. And while "the Russian and Russian- speaking population of
Ukraine does not want to join NATO, [those same people] do not want to
join RUSSIA either." Instead, they like others in Ukraine WANT TO JOIN
EUROPE."

"Many Ukrainians do business in Russia, and all want to travel there
without visas, but with this, the 'list of their desires' is exhausted."
They do not want more from Russia, but Russia very much wants more from
them, Radzikhovsky says.

"Russia and the Russian people need Ukraine for their own
SELF-IDENTIFICATION. Russia equals GREAT Russia equals Russia plus
Ukraine," the Moscow analyst suggests. "They are consumed with an
unsatisfied feeling of GREAT POWERNESS. Given Russian history, it could
not be otherwise." 

But "Ukraine and its people including both ethnic Russians and 'Russian
Ukrainians' for their SELF-IDENTIFICATION need ... only Ukraine." For
them, "Ukraine equals Ukraine. They do not have a Great Power sense of
themselves.  They are satisfied with the sense of being a 'middle size
power.'"

            As a result, the Ukrainians will 'NEVER UNIFY WITH ANYONE
ELSE into a single whole."  (Joining the EU is an entirely different
thing, Radzikhovsky says.) "Russia in general understands this.  But it
cannot accept it," and consequently, Moscow will continue to talk about
a "divided" nation when Russia should be talking about two.

            Radzikhovsky says that talk of that kind could have "AN
ENORMOUSLY POSITIVE MEANING" if it were directed to dealing with "the
various forms of separatism 'INSIDE RUSSIA'" because then it would
promote a sense of the "SOLIDITY OF THE NATION" and  the "VALUE OF EACH
INDIVIDUAL."

            But if such discussions among Russians remain focused on
Ukraine, not only will the Russians further alienate the Ukrainians,
Radzikhovsky suggests, but they will fail to address the very problems
within their own borders that a more adequate understanding of
themselves and of Ukrainians would permit.

 

Eurasia Daily Monitor

August 14, 2009

Russian Military Weakness Could Delay Conflict with Ukraine 

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has publicly attacked his Ukrainian
counterpart Victor Yushchenko and called his administration's policies
deliberately anti-Russian. In an open letter and in a video posting on
his official Kremlin blog, Medvedev accused Ukraine of supporting
"barbaric attacks" by the pro-Western regime of President Mikheil
Saakashvili during the Russian invasion of Georgia in August of last
year. Medvedev alleged that "civilians and Russian peacekeepers were
killed by Ukrainian weapons," while Kyiv is continuing to supply the
Georgian military with more arms and "shares responsibility for the
crimes committed." Medvedev accused the Ukrainian leadership of
conspiring with the E.U. on natural gas trade issues against Russian
interests, blocking the activities of its Black Sea Fleet in Crimea,
suppressing the use of the Russian language and the Ukrainian Orthodox
Church element that is subordinate to Moscow. Medvedev castigated
Ukraine for aspiring to join NATO, "falsifying history" by emphasizing
the crimes of totalitarian communist rule, and promoting nationalist
leaders that collaborated with the Nazis as well as disrupting economic
ties (www.kremlin.ru, August 11).

Medvedev expressed his disgust with Ukraine in a highly aggressive tone,
implying that the Kremlin is fed up in dealing with Kyiv. Tension
between Russia and Ukraine, according to Medvedev, is very high. A
number of recent tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions were described as
outrageous. After listing the negative Ukrainian actions, Medvedev
announced that Moscow will not send the newly appointed Ambassador
Mikhail Zurabov to Kyiv until Ukrainian policies change, in effect
downgrading diplomatic relations. Medvedev emphasized that the Kremlin's
disgust is not against "brotherly Ukrainian people," but Yushchenko and
his government. Commentators in Moscow believe that the Kremlin will
refuse to have any dealings with Kyiv until there is regime change and
Yushchenko is ousted. The Russian policy in dealing with Yushchenko
seems to be in essence the same as with Saakashvili. The hope apparently
is that the coming Ukrainian presidential election on January 17, 2010
will oust Yushchenko and a pro-Moscow administration will be elected
(Kommersant, August 12).

Last year Moscow announced that it had invaded Georgia to defend Russian
citizens. Ukraine has the largest Russian and Russian-speaking
population outside of Russia itself. Soon after the Russo-Georgian war,
the French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner suggested that Russia might
next move against Ukraine or Moldova under the same pretext (Reuters,
August 27, 2008). The former Ukrainian ambassador in Washington Yuri
Sherbak believes that Moscow might be contemplating a possible invasion
of Ukraine to partition its territory, arguing that Ukraine is a "failed
and ungovernable state" (www.newsru.com, May 21).

After Medvedev's anti-Yushchenko broadside, the leader of the Eurasia
Movement (a Kremlin-connected nationalist think tank) Alexander Dugin
told reporters, "The downgrading of diplomatic relations has created a
pre-war situation," and that, "Russia is preparing to cease to recognize
Ukrainian territorial integrity, as it did with Georgia. An armed
conflict may soon begin in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine that will result
in these territories becoming a Russian protectorate." According to
Dugin, "war has been declared not against Ukraine, but America," that is
attacking Russian influence within the post-Soviet space. Yushchenko is
not important, stated Dugin, "a sick blister" while the real foe is the
United States (RIA Novi Region, August 11).

The Kremlin insists its conflict is with the regimes in Kyiv and
Tbilisi, but not with "our longtime Orthodox brothers" - the people of
Georgia and Ukraine. A recent public opinion poll by the independent
Levada Center showed a strong dislike of Ukraine, with 47 percent of the
population having a negative attitude and 44 percent - positive, while
Georgia scores even worse with 63 percent negative and 25 percent
positive. The U.S. scored slightly better with 40 percent negative and
47 percent positive. The pollsters believe that these public attitudes
are the direct result of state policies and propaganda (Kommersant,
August 12).

Medvedev has introduced legislation this week to legalize the use of
Russian forces abroad "to defend Russian soldiers and citizens, fight
piracy and defend foreign nations against threats." Medvedev announced
during a meeting with leaders of parliament that the legislation is
connected with the Georgia war, "so that in the future these questions
will be clearly regulated." Duma leaders promised to pass the amendments
as soon as possible (www.kremlin.ru, August 10). Medvedev in effect
acknowledged that the invasion of Georgia was illegal. Under present
legislation, Russia did not have the legal right to invade Georgia,
since its territorial integrity was not under threat and it did not have
any defense treaties with South Ossetia or Abkhazia. The upper house of
parliament did not decide to send troops into battle within Georgia, as
the constitution demands (Kommersant, August 11).

The legislation that may legalize a possible future invasion of Crimea
"to defend Russian soldiers and citizens" could be passed soon and
Medvedev's rhetoric sounds warlike, but the Russian military at present
is clearly not ready to take on an offensive "liberation" campaign deep
within Ukraine. The Ukrainian armed forces are ineffective, but the
territory of the possible theater of conflict is vast and densely
populated, requiring a massive deployment of well-prepared troops.
Russia needs at least three more years of radical military modernization
and some rearmament, before it may contemplate a Crimea and Ukraine
mission. Now a new bitter gas war with Kyiv is on the horizon, which
might once more cut supplies to Europe. While further Russian attempts
to influence domestic politics in Ukraine continue, the military threat
will linger in the background.

--Pavel Felgenhauer

 

 

RFE/RL's Ukraine Service Turns 55 

 
<http://gdb.rferl.org/9ACFA61C-3D37-4199-B731-5F4023F93DFF_mw800_mh600.g
if> 

August 14, 2009

(PRAGUE, Czech Republic) On August 16, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, known
locally as Radio Svoboda, will mark 55 years of broadcasting uncensored
news and information to the people of Ukraine. Radio Svoboda is
receiving many messages of congratulations from leading US
policymakers.and officials.

--------------------------

"As Chairman of the U.S. Helsinki Commission and a supporter of
U.S.-funded international broadcasting, I congratulate the Ukrainian
Service, Radio Svoboda, on its anniversary. For 55 years the service has
provided unbiased and professional news in Ukrainian to the people of
Ukraine and beyond. 

                                

During the period of Soviet domination, your service was a lifeline to
Ukrainians struggling for their basic human rights and freedoms.
Indeed, Radio Svoboda bolstered the spirits and resolve of imprisoned
Ukrainian rights activists. These courageous fighters of freedom knew
they were not alone when they heard of your broadcasts about Western
efforts, including those of the Helsinki Commission, being undertaken on
their behalf.

 

Since the demise of the Soviet Union and the restoration of Ukraine's
independence, the Ukrainian Service has continued to provide objective,
quality broadcasting as Ukraine consolidates democracy.  Your
independent voice has not always been welcomed by the Ukrainian
authorities, which particularly challenged the service in the months
leading up to the 2004 Orange Revolution.  But the Ukrainian Service has
always played and continues to play an important role in the country's
active media environment.   Again, I congratulate Radio Svoboda for both
its vital, historic and ongoing role." -- Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD),
Chairman, US Helsinki Commission

 

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