How Leonid Kuchma Put New Luster on an Old Saying:

Leonid Kravchuk thus answered The Day's question: "I'll tell you straight: I don't know the President's friends, both present and past. He never tells me who his friends are. I'd rather tell you a joke. Two men are talking about what politics is. They suggest various formulae and argue. One of them says: "You don't know anything! Do you see a mosquito on that tree? " "No, I don't," answers the other. "And do you see its proboscis?" "No!" "So politics is even finer."

Ihor Ostash, replying to our question "What could it mean?," explains to The Day's correspondent: "They must have identical viewpoints on the development of the the international community, and they are people who are ready to support each other in need."

Roman Zvarych laughed for some reason I could not fathom: "This means our President is not aware of the world he lives in because he has not looked at the calendar for a long time. Mr. Arafat, who has lived most of his life outside the law, breaking all the standards of civilization, who is responsible for lots of human lives claimed by the terrorist groups he sponsored, then became a little respectable and suddenly turned out to be the friend of a European head of state. This is very unwise on the part of Mr. Kuchma. It only testifies to the level of... I'd better not say what."

But Ihor Havrylov, on the contrary, was more serious: "If the President says Arafat is his personal friend, why should he deceive people and say he is not his friend? He only said the truth, that's all."

Dmytro Tabachnyk was very surprised: "I haven't heard this and so I can't believe that, having worked five years to establish a strategic partnership with the United States, the President of Ukraine may have Yasir Arafat as an 'good old friend.' It is clear why 'old.' But if he is also 'good,' this somewhat runs counter to all the basic provisions of Ukraine's multidirectional policy."

Mykhailo Brodsky gave a totally unexpected version: "I think the situation the President got in by proposing Boris Berezovsky as a CIS functionary compels him to try to find a way out. For example, to show allegiance to some anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli sentiments. But what arouses interest is a different thing: what will the President say next time, for instance, about Mr. Osyka whom he, as far as I know, recommended as CIS deputy executive secretary. He came unstuck with Mr. Lazarenko and kissed the Communists. He also came unstuck with Mr. Berezovsky and kissed Mr. Arafat. And I don't know who he will kiss when he gets messed up with Mr. Osyka."

"I wish you were't laughing," said an informed source, "Mr. Arafat, whose visit had not been planned, went to Kyiv from Moscow after a phone call from Boris Yeltsin who had been discussing with Arafat some weapons supply issues that could have been settled with Ukrainian participation." The version seems absolutely incredible, so let Mr. Arafat remain a friend of only Leonid Kuchma.