Prosecutor General Svyatoslav Pyskun has never been known for lack of persistence, particularly when it comes to his seemingly endless quest to get Yulia Tymoshenko out of the parliament and into court with the hope that he may eventually see her back in a jail cell.
ell.
On May 14, the day after the Kyiv Appeals Court quashed charges against Tymoshenko and her associates in United Energy Systems of Ukraine, Tymoshenko bloc spokesman Oleksandr Turchynov told parliament that right after the ruling, Pyskun was before the Supreme Court asking for it to be overturned and for him to be allowed to keep four former UES employees in jail. Two of the four are Tymoshenko family members.
Flights of migratory birds slowed, but not stopped
With the change in the law in 2002 restricting the ability of members of parliament to change factional and party affiliations, the flood of changes that previously prevailed has slowed to a trickle. However, apparently evidencing the continued pressure on Our Ukraine members to renounce their affiliation, Pavlo Sulkovsky announced in parliament on May 14 that he will move to the Regions of Ukraine faction.
A high security zone becomes a quiet corner
The days when the Iraqi Embassy boasted more security protection than virtually any other diplomatic mission in town seem to be over. As recently as two weeks ago, there were never less than six militiamen patrolling the area at the corner of Kovpaka and Henri Barbusse not far from the Lybidska metro station.
Although the embassy had at its front two large glass display windows filled with photographs of Saddam Hussein and of children showing horrible burns, allegedly from U.S. bombing, few were able to get through the security screen to see the pictures or anything else.
Now, the picture has changed markedly, perhaps reflecting the fortunes of Saddam’s government. There is now never more than a single militiaman sauntering slowly up and down in front, if he is to be seen at all.
Instead of a covey of embassy vehicles scurrying to and fro, there is seldom more than one embassy car in view and often none. The front entrance security door, a pull-down accordion-type affair, is kept pulled most of the way down, apparently to discourage visitors. However, a large Iraqi flags still flies from a staff implanted in a second-story wall.
It is unclear just what the embassy’s function may be now that the government that appointed it no longer exists.
Ukraine’s role in Iraq continues to develop
Ukraine’s role in post-war Iraq is still in the development stage, but even the Communists in the parliament who fought so hard against sending a decontamination battalion to the region now seem quite happy to support the dispatch of Ukrainian troops for peacekeeping and the bids of Ukrainian companies for reconstruction contracts.
All may become clearer after a London conference on rebuilding Iraq later this month to which Ukraine has been invited to send representatives. At least talking about possible contracts is much more pleasant than arguing about the Kolchuga issue, which both sides now seem quite happy to forget.
Bondar case taken on by Our Ukraine
Our Ukraine spokesman Volodymyr Filenko said in parliament on May 14 that the Our Ukraine faction believes the conviction of Volodymyr Bondar, former first deputy chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine, was entirely political in nature and that OU will now take a very active interest in the case. Filenko claimed that the court file contains major errors.
In particular, Filenko pointed out that the $20 million figure that has been widely publicized as the amount of losses the NBU incurred does not appear in the case file. Filenko suggested that the PGO is unable to prove that any loss occurred.
Antonov betting on new regional passenger jet
In spite of a number of disasters with other aircraft in its line, Antonov design bureau is forging ahead with the pre-production model of its new regional passenger jet, the An-148.
Rada sources suggest that the An-148 also carries an even heavier load – that of reviving the country’s aircraft production possibilities after crashes in Siberia and Iran.
The most remarkable recent result is that Antonov may have greater success as a partner with Iran’s aircraft production plant than in producing jobs for domestic aircraft plants. The so-called Iran-140 at this point appears to have much greater possibilities than the original version.
The world market for the An-148 is estimated at 300-500 aircraft with as many as 160-180 units possible for CIS sales. Antonov’s realistic prospects for the An-148 are tied to its ability to make good on claims that the aircraft will be 25-30 percent more economically efficient than other planes of its class.
Small and medium enterprises don’t add up
Government Day in the parliament on May 14 examined the role of small and medium enterprises in the Ukrainian economy.
Serhy Tretuakov, deputy head of the State Committee on Regulatory Policies, pointed out that state budget funding of SMEs in Ukraine is 10 times lower than in Russia.
Yury Yekhanurov, chair of the Rada Industrial Policies Committee, said that SMEs in the United States account for about 30 percent of GDP and 25 to 30 percent in Europe, while in Ukraine that figure is only about 5 percent.
