“Nonfestive background”

On Dec. 22 the Ukrainian diplomatic corps marked its professional holiday — Day of the Diplomat. “Nowadays Ukrainian diplomats do not lack attention or respect,” Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Borys Tarasiuk told The Day on the eve of the holiday. He agreed to answer a number of questions, the first of which touches on the toughest issue today: the Russian direction in Ukraine’s foreign policy and the “gas complications.”

“The tensions in Ukrainian-Russian relations are at their peak. What has exacerbated them? Is Ukraine at fault in this situation?”

“I would not describe the current state of relations with Russia as tension. I have a lot of experience in developing relations with the Russian Federation — since 1990, when we just started working on our first bilateral agreement. I know all the stages in the development of Russo-Ukrainian relations. The present situation is not tension. In the past we have also had periods of sharp discussions with Russia. As a rule, periods of harsh exchanges would begin with the approach of winter, and it was time to conclude new protocols for natural gas shipments. Of course, during these periods the Russian side tried to use gas shipments to resolve other problems of an economic or political nature. But I don’t remember a single case in the history of Russo-Ukrainian relations when negotiations on new contracts for natural gas shipments would end without signing contracts and shipments of natural gas. Therefore, we should not over-dramatize the current situation: a normal process of negotiations is underway, in which each side is trying its utmost to secure its own national interests. This is not surprising.”

“Another quite symbolic event took place recently: the ceremonial welding of a juncture in the so-called bypass natural gas pipeline that will be laid across the bottom of the Baltic Sea. How did Kyiv perceive this signal? After all, it comes not only from Russia but from Western Europe. It was reported that Germany’s former chancellor Gerhard Schroeder will chair the committee of shareholders of the North-European Natural Gas Pipeline.”

“Just like we try to do away with our dependence on one or two suppliers, other countries want to shake off Ukraine’s monopoly. And we have to consider this pragmatically. We should not look for any signs, but only try to determine each country’s motives. Our motives come down to diversifying energy sources. Russia’s motives are those of a monopoly in the energy supplies market, which is looking for ways to reduce shipment costs. Therefore, I do not see anything unusual in this. At the same time, I would not overestimate the significance of this bypass route, since its first leg will be commissioned only five years from now, in 2010, at the earliest. All this time Ukraine’s gas transport system will continue to function as the major route for shipments of Russian and Turkmen natural gas. Last year alone the volume of shipments totaled 115 billion cubic meters. But Ukraine’s gas transport capacities are greater than that: close to 130 billion cubic meters per year. If modernized, these capacities will reach 150 billion cubic meters. If it is commissioned five years from now, the bypass pipeline will pump an additional 30 billion cubic meters. Just compare the Ukrainian capacities and the throughput of the bypass pipeline. Meanwhile, demand in the European Union is rising by 20 billion cubic meters every year. As you can see, neither that gas pipeline nor our capacities will fully meet the EU’s swelling demand for natural gas. Therefore, I would not exaggerate the significance of the bypass pipeline within the context of Ukraine’s important role as a transit country. Moreover, Ukraine is not trying to use its advantages as a transit country to secure some sort of preferences. The most important thing for us is to prove our status as a reliable partner of the EU, which Ukraine is doing. This is the purpose of our agreements, including the recent agreements that were reached during the Dec. 1 Ukraine-EU Summit in Kyiv.”

“Ukraine and the EU are negotiating a simplified visa procedure for Ukrainian citizens. Has any progress been made during the negotiations? Talks are also underway to sign a readmission agreement. Some experts fear that if such an agreement is signed without due consideration, it might turn Ukrainian into a haven for illegal migrants.”

“We should exercise great care, and so should the mass media, in order not to give rise to xenophobic sentiments by exaggerating this issue. If there is a problem of illegal migrants, it should be the subject of public attention and a matter of concern for the government. The first thing that should be done is to close the channels that bring illegal migrants here. Second, illegal migrants who have been detained must be provided with humane conditions. Third, we must pass legislation that would oblige countries from whose territory illegal migrants cross over to Ukrainian territory — and most of them come from Russia — to readmit such illegal migrants. For this reason we must conclude a readmission agreement with the EU member states. And this work has entered its final stage: we expect the talks aimed at signing a readmission agreement to be completed this January. We must also conclude a similar agreement with the Russian Federation. Negotiations with Russia are also nearing completion.

“As for the agreement on a simplified visa procedure for Ukrainian citizens, I would like to say that this is also one of the accomplishments of the new democratic Ukraine in its relations with the EU. I must remind you that Ukraine initiated the first round of talks in Brussels on Nov. 21-22. During this first round the EU explained its position, which does not satisfy us fully. We put forward our own proposals. Now the EC delegation has transmitted our proposals to all member states so that they can consider them and work out a coordinated position. The next round of talks will take place in the second half of January. Speaking of the link between the readmission agreement and the agreement on a simplified visa procedure for Ukrainians, I would say that the two sides have somewhat different positions here. Ukraine believes that there is no direct link between these two documents. If we were discussing visa-free travel for Ukrainian citizens, then the question of readmission would necessarily have to be resolved. In our case we are discussing a simplified procedure for issuing visas to Ukrainian citizens. Thus, there is no direct, fixed connection. We hope that in the first quarter of 2006 we will succeed in completing talks on the simplified visa procedure.”

“What do you consider the greatest accomplishment and biggest mistake of Ukrainian diplomacy in the last year?”

“I cannot knowingly look for mistakes in order to strike a balance between our accomplishments and mistakes. I will leave it to experts to point out our mistakes. As for accomplishments, I would like to mention our success in the European direction: the most successful summit in the history of our relations with the EU; Ukraine has been granted market economy status; negotiations on a simplified visa procedure have started; there has been progress toward talks on a free trade zone; progress in the question of the future format of relations between Ukraine and the EU, which, it appears, will be defined next year. There has been another successful development in the Euro-Atlantic direction: Ukraine’s relations with NATO have been promoted to a new level and additional progress has been made toward the next format (the Membership Action Plan). Much has been accomplished in Ukraine’s relations with the US, as reflected in our transition from relations based on mistrust to full relations. I have already mentioned Russo-Ukrainian relations. Here I would primarily like to underscore the fact that they have moved into a pragmatic dimension. On the whole, today Ukraine is perceived differently in the world. It is seen as a country that definitely belongs to the European civilization, as a country that shares European values. Another success has been in the sphere of regional politics. Throughout this year Ukraine has shown that it can be a regional leader. Ukraine helped revive GUAM. Thanks to Viktor Yushchenko’s initiative, Ukraine has shown that it can play a leading role in resolving frozen conflicts, in particular the Transdnistrian conflict. Ukraine has offered its mediation to its two neighbors, Poland and Belarus.”

“According to recent reports, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs plans to announce a tender to select companies that would shape Ukraine’s image in the world. What selection criteria will be used? What motivated this decision?”

“The Foreign Ministry has funds that were frozen for nearly 11 months and could not be used. These funds are intended for informational activities aimed at boosting Ukraine’s positions in the world. In order not to repeat the mistakes of the past, when orders would be placed with little-known companies and significant government funds were spent without any visible results, we decided to organize a tender to select companies that will be awarded these commissions on a competitive basis. They involve organizing a broad range of international seminars, workshops, and marketing products that will help represent Ukraine better abroad. The company that proves its ability to organize such an information campaign will win this tender along with the government order.”