New Minister of Defense Needs Political Support

The appointment of General of the Army Volodymyr Shkidchenko as the new Minister of Defense on November 12 did not put an end to the current reshuffle of Ukraine’s weapons carrying structures. On the same day, Mykola Lytvyn, who had earlier commanded Ukraine’s internal security troops, was appointed chairman of the State Border Security Committee. The President dismissed Borys Aleksieyenko from this office “in connection with his reaching age limit for military service.” Also relieved of his duties was Chairman of State Customs Service Yury Solovkov “in connection with other work.” It will be recalled that Mr. Solovkov’s chair was unsteady during the cassette scandal, but the former customs chief still managed to keep it.

Commenting on the head of state’s decree on the appointment of Gen. Shkidchenko, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security and Defense Borys Andresiuk noted that the new minister of defense “will certainly do his duty,” which makes it “quite realistic” to carry out a rapid reform of the armed forces. “ Shkidchenko is a deft general and a deft staff officer. What is new for him is political activity and the political coverage of the Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces,” Mr. Andresiuk said. In addition, Andresiuk emphasized that the parliamentary committee he heads “had developed a good relationship with Gen. Shkidchenko, as far as legal support for the Ministry of Defense is concerned... We were and still are working very fruitfully in drafting a lot of laws,” he added. Anatoly Hrytsenko, president of the Razumkov Ukrainian Center for Economic and Political Research, also forecasts improvements in the situation with the nation’s armed forces. The expert considers it an important factor that Leonid Kuchma is rendering “firm daily support,” without which, he says, it would be impossible “either to pass the necessary bills or to ensure the required budgetary funding for the military reform,” Dmytro ZHYRENKO reports.