Response from Ukraine?
Next to none. Prime Minister Mykola Azarov told the media not to blow it out of proportion. The ministry for revenues and duties, which also oversees customs in Ukraine, failed to notice the queues at the border, issuing a statement equivalent to “everything is fine.”
The president continued his vacation in southern Crimea, apparently oblivious to the problems businesses face with the nation’s second-largest export market behind the EU A handful of parliament members came out with lukewarm statements condemning Russia’s actions.
Former President Viktor Yushchenko emerged from hibernation and said Russia’s trade wars are a threat to national security.
He is right, but these are all nothing more than toothless political statements. Ukraine has been way too tame it its dealing with Russia, not just in the issue of trade bans. Take any industry in Ukraine where Russia has a significant presence, which it often uses to bully, and you will find that Ukraine has never stood up to it.
This has been the case with the expensive gas deal signed in 2009, which has never been challenged in court, despite the fact that Yulia Tymoshenko was convicted for improperly signing it. This has been the case with TVEL, the supplier of faulty nuclear fuel to Ukraine, which gets no wrath for its misdeeds from the regulators, unlike its American competitors.
Ukrainians just keep their mouths shut, hoping not to anger the Russian bear any further. But that approach simply doesn’t work.
Instead, the nation should grow some teeth and start biting back. You ban our exports? Oops, we happen to do the same to your books which have monopolized the market. Our chief health inspector now views it as health hazard. Oh, and your TV can no longer broadcast on our territory.
Did we mention that we’re applying for NATO membership again? Also, we happened to challenge the current gas price in Stockholm. We were rather inspired by Italy, Germany and – most recently – Lithuania, who did just the same.
And, by the way, here is the updated list of Russia’s undesirables in Ukraine. Nothing personal, we’re simply defending our national interests.
