Axioms and Theorems

At his first press conference this year, President Leonid Kuchma made a number of significant statements. He expressed the belief that the coalition government headed by Viktor Yanukovych will work until the 2004 presidential elections. The head of state also opined that the parliamentary majority will also continue, although some changes in its ranks are not ruled out. Perhaps the majority may be joined by some other blocs. The president also expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of political reform and said he has no option but to submit to Verkhovna Rada his own amendments to the constitution, drafted with the advice of scholars, government officials, and deputies. He says he is not going to delay this action any further. It would help to find out what the citizenry thinks about his reforms through a referendum.

POLITICAL REFORM

Why, in the president’s view, is the parliamentary majority dragging its feet on the political reform he initiated five months ago? Meanwhile, the Opposition insists that bills calling for switching to the proportionate electoral system and changing the system of power be considered. Answering this question of The Day , the head of state criticized the changes to the constitution proposed by the Opposition and spoke in defense of the Majority, whose representatives have submitted a new bill on the proportionate electoral system. “I do not know the details, but I am sure they took the European model into account,” said the president. Simultaneously, having admitted there is a viable opposition in the Ukrainian parliament, the head of state went on to say that in this respect Ukraine is arguably the most democratic among the former Soviet republics. He also said that he has not changed his mind about the need of a law to ensure the proper functioning of the majority in Verkhovna Rada. But he stressed that such a law should specifically stipulate the rights, duties, and responsibility of the Majority as well as of Opposition. “These are also European rules, so why don’t we play according to them?” the president asked.

ECONOMY

President Kuchma devoted much attention to the analysis of the situation in the economy. According to him, the past year saw continuing economic growth. All the same, structural deformations and the tax burden on citizens continue. He went on to say that last year saw little cooperation between the government and the National Bank of Ukraine. This problem led to a lack of reliable economic forecasts. The NBU loan policy is a cause of much concern because it does not meet the present-day requirements of the economy. The fulfillment of the state budget is a separate issue. According to the president, last year was one of the worst in this respect. The deficit in 2002 totaled UAH 5.5 billion. The president stressed that some UAH 35 billion remains in the shadow economy. Thus, bringing the economy into the light is another major assignment.

“EAST — WEST”

The Kyiv summit of Commonwealth of Independent States heads of state is evidence that the CIS has not exhausted its potential. According to the president, “If everybody could see that it is time the discussion shifted from political to economic issues, this would be a positive phenomenon in the post- Soviet space.” He continued, “Ukraine is using a mere 10% of the common CIS market potential,” stressing that “we have neither a moral, nor economic, nor political right to waste such opportunities, as these niches will be soon occupied by others.” Thus Leonid Kuchma sees his main goal of the chairman of the Council of CIS Heads of State in shifting relations within the CIS framework into the economic sphere. “Our goal is to bring to its logical conclusion what Ukraine has been insisting on all these years, namely to create a free trade zone within the Commonwealth,” the president stressed.

Kuchma believes that the main objective of the Year of Russia in Ukraine should be eliminating economic barriers. He referred to the agreement on the Russo-Ukrainian state border as the biggest political victory since the signing of the Extensive Bilateral Agreement on May 31, 1997.

Isn’t all of the above evidence of the state leadership’s intention to deviate from the declared course of European integration? “The European path of development is an axiom,” he replied. But first, “Euro pe needs an economically developed, and not weak, Ukraine.” Secondly, on the issue of Ukraine’s accession to the EU, the president believes, this item will reach the agenda in perhaps ten or more years.

The president’s assessment of the situation resulting from the FATF sanctions imposed on Ukraine proved unexpectedly harsh. “I don’t see the point of blaming the FATF, since we are guilty as charged,” he stated. Sanctions were looming two years ago. However, we should not shift economic problems into the political sphere and would be better advised to make amendments to our laws in keeping with FATF requirements. According to Kuchma, the parliament should do it without fail this week.

On the whole, the first press conference of the head of state in 2003, and the third in the new press center of the Presidential Administration, lasted over half an hour. President Kuchma fielded two dozen questions. According to an Interfax-Ukraine journalist, about ninety journalists representing the national and foreign mass media attended the press conference and seventeen cameras provided televised coverage.