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What we’re watching
- “International Finance Corporation: Moving Business in Ukraine Forward” is the latest U.S. Ukraine Business Council webinar. It takes place on July 15 at 9:30 a.m. Washington/4:30 p.m. Kyiv time.
- The State Property Fund of Ukraine in partnership with the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council will broadcast the public privatization action of the Dnipro Hotel in Kyiv, which will take place on July 15, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. at 1/2 Khreshchatyk Street. Watch it on the USUBC YouTube channel or Facebook page.
- The U.S-Ukraine Foundation is showing on July 15 at noon Washington/7 p.m. Kyiv time “Myth,” a documentary about Wassyl Slipak, a renowned opera star turned soldier, killed in Donbas by a Russian sniper. It will be shown in Ukrainian with English subtitles. Register here
Coronavirus news
- UNIAN: Quarantine in Kyiv may be extended until 2022
- Haaretz: No New Year pilgrimage to Ukraine for Israeli Jews this year
- Associated Press: First COVID-19 vaccine tested in US poised for final testing
Latest fallout from July 1 resignation of Yakiv Smolii, central bank governor
- After a telephone conversation with President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 14, Kristalina Georgieva, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, issued a statement worth quoting extensively: “I had an open discussion on concerns about the pressures being put on the National Bank of Ukraine. The reform of the NBU and its performance over the past five years is a clear success story for Ukraine. An independent central bank helps macroeconomic stability, supports investors’ confidence, and protects the financial system—all crucial preconditions for investment and growth. The credible policy actions of the NBU have been instrumental in stabilizing the economy. The successful clean-up of the financial sector – which was ravaged by fraud – is also credit to the supervisory work of the NBU. It is in the interest of Ukraine to preserve the independence of NBU and it is also a requirement under the current IMF-supported program. I urged President Zelensky to stay the course of sound monetary and financial policies – those are key to stronger investment and inclusive growth.”
- Afterward, Zelensky tweeted: Informed @KGeorgieva that by the end of the week I will have a new candidate for Head of the NBU for Parliament’s approval. S/he will be an independent technocrat and continue the Bank’s independent course. I make all my decisions only in the interests of the Ukrainian people.is expected to name a replacement this week to Yakiv Smolii, the central bank governor who quit on July 1 after complaining of relentless political pressure.
- Reuters: IMF leader tells Zelensky to keep central bank independent
Top news
- SBU arrests man who accused Zelensky’s chief of staff of corruption
- Music streaming giant Spotify becomes available in Ukraine
- Ukraine rejects Iran’s claims that human error caused PS752 downing
- Parliament passes law legalizing gambling in Ukraine
- Ukrainian security agency cracks down on illegal cryptocurrency operation
- France invests 64 million euros to bring drinkable tap water to Mariupol
- RFE/RL: Ukraine urged to protect journalist threatened over her reporting
Photos: Kyiv honors slain soldier
Junior Lieutenant Taras Matviyiv was killed in the eastern Donbas on July
Business Update
Ukrinform: Average salary in Ukraine in may tops Hr 9,500 ($350).
UNIAN: E-government ranking – Ukraine occupies 69th place
Opinions
Jaanika Merilo: Concession season starts in Ukraine
Viktor Dovhan: EU assistance to Donbas infrastructure
Paul Goble: Orthodox fundamentalism threatens Russian patriarchate and Kremlin
Walter Russell Mead: Biden’s foreign-policy blast from the past
Edward Lucas: Towering presence
David Phillips: Putin and Milosevic are blood brothers
Oleksandr Merezhko: Kremlin denials prevent progress towards peace
Halya Coynash: Russia’s puppet Crimean leader hides from Crimean Tatar veteran activists
Halya Coynash: 10-year sentence for seeking return of Crimea to Ukraine
Body Snatchers
The Kyiv Post published a major investigation on July 20, 2012, on the trade in human body parts involving Ukraine.
