KIEV, Ukraine -- Former Olympic pole vault champion Serhiy Bubka tells UEFA.com why co-hosting UEFA EURO 2012 will prove "extremely important" for Ukraine in terms of prestige and development.
As a one-time Olympic champion, Serhiy Bubka knows all about the impact a major sporting event can make. Hence the former gold medal-winning pole vaulter is keen to stress the significance of co-hosting UEFA EURO 2012 for Ukraine, describing the tournament as "extremely important for our country" in terms of prestige and development.
Speaking as one of the Friends of UEFA EURO 2012 selected to help promote the finals, the 46-year-old Bubka told UEFA.com that the 2012 championship had the potential to be "a wonderful thing" for Ukraine and Poland.
UEFA.com: What motivated you to get involved in UEFA EURO 2012?
Serhiy Bubka: This is a great event for the nation, for the sport, and it is wonderful that an event like EURO 2012 will take place in Ukraine.
UEFA.com: How are preparations going?
Bubka: Economically, in terms of preparations for the tournament, we are working hard to make it happen. "This is extremely important for our country and also for the economic development and infrastructure. This will mean a major boost for the development of Ukraine, perhaps in terms of 20 to 30 years".
UEFA.com: How will co-hosting UEFA EURO 2012 help improve the sporting image of Ukraine?
Bubka: Overall Ukraine is known as a sporting nation. We have had a number of Olympic achievements. So we are representing a sporting nation and in order to keep our successes going, it is important to develop adequate infrastructure and to make sure we can achieve the goals we are setting.
UEFA.com: What impact will hosting this event have on Ukraine?
Bubka: It is very important for our country that the staging of the tournament is done at the highest level possible – hotels, airports, train stations, restaurants, stadiums.
It is the whole organisation, it's how we receive our guests, and what feeling they leave with after it is over. Since we have taken it upon ourselves to host this event, it is our joint responsibility to ensure that it has a very high level of organisation.
We are talking about the international prestige of Ukraine, of our people. Since EURO 2012 is a great happening, I hope we will do our best to portray a positive image, so that the event will be a wonderful thing in Poland as well as Ukraine.
UEFA.com: Do you think hosting the EURO will also have an influence on the development of sport for children in Ukraine?
Bubka: It will have a very positive influence on children and young people. Holding a major tournament in our country will touch every citizen, every child and adult, everyone. It will lead to great interest in sport and physical activity in general, and in football in particular.
Wednesday, 13 October 2010
43 Killed In Bus, Train Collision In Ukraine
DNIPROPETROVSK, Ukraine -- A collision between a bus and a train in the Ukraine on Tuesday left 43 people dead, officials said.
The crash took place when a commuter bus and a railway locomotive collided in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region, according to Ukraine's Emergency Situations Ministry.
The collision occurred at an unguarded train crossing near the village of Maksimovka on the stretch between the cities of Nikopol and Marhanets, the ministry said.
According to preliminary information, the bus was carrying about 50 people as it was driving over the crossing.
Several others were also wounded in the crash.
Railway officials told Ukrainian news agencies that the crossing was closed for cars, and the warning lights were on
A preliminary investigation showed that the bus driver ignored the warning light signals and violated safety rules by crossing the passage at a time when the train was approaching it, the officials told local agencies.
The crash took place when a commuter bus and a railway locomotive collided in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region, according to Ukraine's Emergency Situations Ministry.
The collision occurred at an unguarded train crossing near the village of Maksimovka on the stretch between the cities of Nikopol and Marhanets, the ministry said.
According to preliminary information, the bus was carrying about 50 people as it was driving over the crossing.
Several others were also wounded in the crash.
Railway officials told Ukrainian news agencies that the crossing was closed for cars, and the warning lights were on
A preliminary investigation showed that the bus driver ignored the warning light signals and violated safety rules by crossing the passage at a time when the train was approaching it, the officials told local agencies.
Ukraine – Important Partner In The EU Regional Cooperation
Ukraine – Important Partner In The EU Regional Cooperation
VILNIUS, Lithuania -- President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia GrybauskaitÄ— received Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Volodymyr Lytvyn, who is currently in Lithuania on a working visit.
Underlining the traditionally close relations between Lithuania and Ukraine, the President urged Ukraine to demonstrate more efficiency in pursuing euro-integration reforms.
The President expressed hope that the ongoing misunderstandings in Ukraine about its Constitution would be cleared in a transparent and democratic manner and by involving all parties concerned.
"Ukraine is an important partner of Lithuania and the European Union. We support the Europe-bound path chosen by Ukraine and hope your country will continue following this path and will successfully implement the required democratic and structural reforms. Lithuania is ready to help and share its euro-integration experience," President Dalia GrybauskaitÄ— said at the meeting.
According to the President, Ukraine's trade with Europe accounts for one-third of Ukraine's overall foreign trade, and for this reason alone, Ukraine should be interested in maximally close integration with the European Union and successful negotiations for a free trade agreement.
Noting that international business companies were highly interested in cargo transportation between KlaipÄ—da and Odessa Seaports by a shuttle-train "Viking", the President underlined this would open up vast possibilities to increase cargo flows between the Baltic and the Black Sea regions.
But, the President said, over-lengthy and complicated customs procedures in Ukraine are an obstacle. According to the President, if customs' work is made more efficient and more stations are established in other Ukrainian seaports and are subject to special tariffs, the opportunity to increase shipments by the shuttle-train will be real.
VILNIUS, Lithuania -- President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia GrybauskaitÄ— received Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Volodymyr Lytvyn, who is currently in Lithuania on a working visit.
Underlining the traditionally close relations between Lithuania and Ukraine, the President urged Ukraine to demonstrate more efficiency in pursuing euro-integration reforms.
The President expressed hope that the ongoing misunderstandings in Ukraine about its Constitution would be cleared in a transparent and democratic manner and by involving all parties concerned.
"Ukraine is an important partner of Lithuania and the European Union. We support the Europe-bound path chosen by Ukraine and hope your country will continue following this path and will successfully implement the required democratic and structural reforms. Lithuania is ready to help and share its euro-integration experience," President Dalia GrybauskaitÄ— said at the meeting.
According to the President, Ukraine's trade with Europe accounts for one-third of Ukraine's overall foreign trade, and for this reason alone, Ukraine should be interested in maximally close integration with the European Union and successful negotiations for a free trade agreement.
Noting that international business companies were highly interested in cargo transportation between KlaipÄ—da and Odessa Seaports by a shuttle-train "Viking", the President underlined this would open up vast possibilities to increase cargo flows between the Baltic and the Black Sea regions.
But, the President said, over-lengthy and complicated customs procedures in Ukraine are an obstacle. According to the President, if customs' work is made more efficient and more stations are established in other Ukrainian seaports and are subject to special tariffs, the opportunity to increase shipments by the shuttle-train will be real.
'Let's Return Lazarenko's Money To Ukraine' Public Movement Created In Ukraine
KIEV, Ukraine -- Representatives of political parties and public organizations have created a movement titled Let's Return Lazarenko's Money to Ukraine.
"We are establishing this organization to unite all concerned people, who want, together with us, to achieve one aim – to return money that at present is on the accounts of [former Prime Minister Pavlo] Lazarenko to the Ukrainian public," the former deputy prosecutor general and co-chairman of the public organization "Strength and Honor," Mykola Obykhod, said at a press conference in Interfax-Ukraine on Oct. 8.
According to him, the movement will carry out its work "openly and transparently," and it plans to release relevant documents.
Explaining the reasons for the creation of such a movement, Obykhod said: "It became clear that Ukraine has dissociated itself from active participation in the U.S. trial [on the case against Lazarenko] where the U.S. raised the issue of confiscating the funds of Pavlo Lazarenko that are in blocked accounts outside Ukraine."
MP from the Regions Party Yuriy Boldyrev, in turn, said he sent an inquiry at the end of July of the current year to Chairman of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Vasyl Onopenko, with a request to confirm whether charges brought by the Prosecutor General’s Office in 2000-2005 against former Premier Yulia Tymoshenko had been dismissed.
"The reply by the Supreme Court reads that as I did not specify which personal rights of mine were infringed… it refuses to give such information to me," the MP said.
He added that in this case he "could only call on the prosecutor’s office to request the court to give it the information, and then the prosecutor’s office will decide whether to give this information to me."
MP from the Communist Party of Ukraine Oleksandr Holub noted that the founders of the movement do not plan to initiate proceedings against Yulia Tymoshenko.
"The relevant law enforcement agencies should do this if there are reasons. Our task is to [ensure] that the law receives support at the level of law enforcement agencies and the state. This is our main task," he said.
Lazarenko was convicted in the United States of embezzling funds illegally received and transferring them to foreign accounts in 1994-1999.
In 2004, a U.S. court dismissed a number of charges against Lazarenko, including all counts related to the corporation Unified Energy System of Ukraine, which was earlier headed by Ukrainian Premier Yulia Tymoshenko, and all charges related to the energy provider Itera.
The official indictment retained the fraud charges related to the Naukova agricultural company and the extortion charges related to businessman Petro Kyrychenko's testimony.
A Californian court sentenced Lazarenko to nine years in prison in August 2006. He remained in his apartment in San Francisco under house arrest pending the consideration of the appeal against his conviction.
On April 10, 2009, a panel of judges of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reconsidered its previous ruling and exonerated Lazarenko from charges of "shifting of stolen funds using computer transfers," said Maryna Dolhopola, who was Lazarenko's attorney at the time.
"We are establishing this organization to unite all concerned people, who want, together with us, to achieve one aim – to return money that at present is on the accounts of [former Prime Minister Pavlo] Lazarenko to the Ukrainian public," the former deputy prosecutor general and co-chairman of the public organization "Strength and Honor," Mykola Obykhod, said at a press conference in Interfax-Ukraine on Oct. 8.
According to him, the movement will carry out its work "openly and transparently," and it plans to release relevant documents.
Explaining the reasons for the creation of such a movement, Obykhod said: "It became clear that Ukraine has dissociated itself from active participation in the U.S. trial [on the case against Lazarenko] where the U.S. raised the issue of confiscating the funds of Pavlo Lazarenko that are in blocked accounts outside Ukraine."
MP from the Regions Party Yuriy Boldyrev, in turn, said he sent an inquiry at the end of July of the current year to Chairman of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Vasyl Onopenko, with a request to confirm whether charges brought by the Prosecutor General’s Office in 2000-2005 against former Premier Yulia Tymoshenko had been dismissed.
"The reply by the Supreme Court reads that as I did not specify which personal rights of mine were infringed… it refuses to give such information to me," the MP said.
He added that in this case he "could only call on the prosecutor’s office to request the court to give it the information, and then the prosecutor’s office will decide whether to give this information to me."
MP from the Communist Party of Ukraine Oleksandr Holub noted that the founders of the movement do not plan to initiate proceedings against Yulia Tymoshenko.
"The relevant law enforcement agencies should do this if there are reasons. Our task is to [ensure] that the law receives support at the level of law enforcement agencies and the state. This is our main task," he said.
Lazarenko was convicted in the United States of embezzling funds illegally received and transferring them to foreign accounts in 1994-1999.
In 2004, a U.S. court dismissed a number of charges against Lazarenko, including all counts related to the corporation Unified Energy System of Ukraine, which was earlier headed by Ukrainian Premier Yulia Tymoshenko, and all charges related to the energy provider Itera.
The official indictment retained the fraud charges related to the Naukova agricultural company and the extortion charges related to businessman Petro Kyrychenko's testimony.
A Californian court sentenced Lazarenko to nine years in prison in August 2006. He remained in his apartment in San Francisco under house arrest pending the consideration of the appeal against his conviction.
On April 10, 2009, a panel of judges of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reconsidered its previous ruling and exonerated Lazarenko from charges of "shifting of stolen funds using computer transfers," said Maryna Dolhopola, who was Lazarenko's attorney at the time.
Tymoshenko Initiates New Development Project For Ukraine
KIEV, Ukraine -- The leader of the opposition party All-Ukrainian Union "Batkivshchyna", Yulia Tymoshenko, considers it necessary to unite all the intellectual forces of the country in order to create a new project on the development of Ukraine.
By the next elections it is necessary to create a project of Ukraine of the 21st century, which will consist of a new Constitution and a number of key, system-making laws, which will take into account all the mistakes and achievements of successful countries from all over the world.
And then we should take all our national forces to elect 300 deputies to the Verkhovna Rada for the adoption of this package of laws - a constitutional majority, which, without changing even a comma in these laws, will adopt them, opening a fundamentally different path of development to Ukraine," Tymoshenko said in an interview with the Dzerkalo Tyzhnia (The Mirror Weekly) newspaper.
According to the politician, the implementation of a project of Ukraine of the 21st century is possible, "if it is done not for the next leader, but publicly, professionally and equitably with civil society and intellectual, competent people".
Previously, political analysts had criticized Tymoshenko, who claims to be a leader of the united opposition, for the absence of an opposition strategy and her own vision for the country's development.
By the next elections it is necessary to create a project of Ukraine of the 21st century, which will consist of a new Constitution and a number of key, system-making laws, which will take into account all the mistakes and achievements of successful countries from all over the world.
And then we should take all our national forces to elect 300 deputies to the Verkhovna Rada for the adoption of this package of laws - a constitutional majority, which, without changing even a comma in these laws, will adopt them, opening a fundamentally different path of development to Ukraine," Tymoshenko said in an interview with the Dzerkalo Tyzhnia (The Mirror Weekly) newspaper.
According to the politician, the implementation of a project of Ukraine of the 21st century is possible, "if it is done not for the next leader, but publicly, professionally and equitably with civil society and intellectual, competent people".
Previously, political analysts had criticized Tymoshenko, who claims to be a leader of the united opposition, for the absence of an opposition strategy and her own vision for the country's development.
Ukraine: Tracking Down The Hackers
KIEV, Ukraine -- Amid the steady drumbeat of dismal economic news from the former Soviet Union, one sector is exhibiting remarkable growth: cyber crime.
Industry experts say that the ex-communist republics are one of the world’s largest sources of malicious software, or malware — pernicious viruses that surreptitiously infect computers to extract personal financial information, such as credit card numbers, bank accounts and passwords.
The region’s pre-eminence in the world of e-crime was in full evidence last month, as law enforcement officials from four countries, including the FBI and Ukraine’s state security service (SBU), announced that they had broken a criminal ring responsible for some $70 million in thefts in the past few years. Five of the group’s ring leaders came from Ukraine.
The group used the Zeus Trojan virus, also known as the ZBot, and reportedly aimed to steal some $220 million worldwide. In the United States, 92 people have been charged and 39 arrested in connection with the scam, while a further 19 were nabbed in a dawn police raid in London.
“Operation Trident Breach,” as the FBI called the anti-cyber crime campaign, began in May 2009, when agents in Omaha, Neb. were alerted to suspicious transactions involving 46 separate bank accounts.
“We believe we have disrupted a highly organized criminal network, which has used sophisticated methods to siphon large amounts of cash from many innocent peoples’ accounts, causing immense personal anxiety and significant financial harm, which of course, banks have had to repay at considerable cost to the economy,” FBI Deputy Chief Inspector Terry Wilson said in an official statement.
At the same time, officials announced that Ukraine’s SBU had arrested five people who were “key subjects responsible for this overarching scheme.” SBU authorities later revealed that the five were based in the eastern city of Donetsk, and that another 15 individuals were under investigation, but it was still unclear their level of involvement.
The Russian author of the ZBot, however, still remains at large.
Trident Breach’s success gives hope that eastern Europe — long-considered a black hole for cyber crime enforcement — will now open up to further international efforts.
Ukrainian authorities deny that the former communist bloc in general, or their country specifically, has become a center for cyber bandits.
“We have reached absolutely no official conclusion that Ukraine has become a center for cyber crime,” said Alexander Zagrebelny, the SBU’s deputy chief of information security.
“The reason is simply that Ukrainian law enforcement bodies have begun to work more effectively in this sphere, and now come across such crimes more regularly. That’s why you are hearing more about it.”
But computer security experts maintain that the opposite is true: The former Soviet Union (FSU) has emerged as one of the largest producers of computer programs for cyber crime.
According to the software security firm Kaspersky, Brazil produces close to half of the world’s malicious software for banks, though this is targeted mostly at Brazilian and Latin American institutions.
China is second with 18 percent — though a good deal of this is involved in online gaming — and the former Soviet Union third with 13 percent.
“We have good statistics where malware is created,” said Maksym Schipka, Kaspersky’s director of hosted and streaming technology research. “[Hackers from the former Soviet Union] go for high profile banks, and focus a lot on western banks.”
The FSU’s pole position in cyber crime can be attributed to two factors primarily: a lax legal atmosphere that allows hackers to work relatively unmolested, and an overabundance of highly-trained specialists.
“People in the FSU have very strong technical educations and understand various technical systems in depth,” said Schipka by telephone from Moscow. “It’s something about them that they want to understand every system in fine detail.”
If anything, the tools to copy financial data from another individual’s laptop or PC has become even easier, he says. New versions of the Zeus Trojan are readily available on the internet or in underground chatrooms even on You Tube. At last count, there were about 40,000 distinct versions of the ZBot.
Schipka says that he is not trying to excuse those who choose a life of crime — the vast majority of computer experts in the region choose not to steal other peoples’ money. Still, he understands where the impetus comes from.
“These are people with a university-level education, and when they look for work, they find that they cannot sustain themselves — and we are not even talking about a posh life,” he said. “When morals are relaxed, this leads to cyber crime and making money in shady ways.”
Industry experts say that the ex-communist republics are one of the world’s largest sources of malicious software, or malware — pernicious viruses that surreptitiously infect computers to extract personal financial information, such as credit card numbers, bank accounts and passwords.
The region’s pre-eminence in the world of e-crime was in full evidence last month, as law enforcement officials from four countries, including the FBI and Ukraine’s state security service (SBU), announced that they had broken a criminal ring responsible for some $70 million in thefts in the past few years. Five of the group’s ring leaders came from Ukraine.
The group used the Zeus Trojan virus, also known as the ZBot, and reportedly aimed to steal some $220 million worldwide. In the United States, 92 people have been charged and 39 arrested in connection with the scam, while a further 19 were nabbed in a dawn police raid in London.
“Operation Trident Breach,” as the FBI called the anti-cyber crime campaign, began in May 2009, when agents in Omaha, Neb. were alerted to suspicious transactions involving 46 separate bank accounts.
“We believe we have disrupted a highly organized criminal network, which has used sophisticated methods to siphon large amounts of cash from many innocent peoples’ accounts, causing immense personal anxiety and significant financial harm, which of course, banks have had to repay at considerable cost to the economy,” FBI Deputy Chief Inspector Terry Wilson said in an official statement.
At the same time, officials announced that Ukraine’s SBU had arrested five people who were “key subjects responsible for this overarching scheme.” SBU authorities later revealed that the five were based in the eastern city of Donetsk, and that another 15 individuals were under investigation, but it was still unclear their level of involvement.
The Russian author of the ZBot, however, still remains at large.
Trident Breach’s success gives hope that eastern Europe — long-considered a black hole for cyber crime enforcement — will now open up to further international efforts.
Ukrainian authorities deny that the former communist bloc in general, or their country specifically, has become a center for cyber bandits.
“We have reached absolutely no official conclusion that Ukraine has become a center for cyber crime,” said Alexander Zagrebelny, the SBU’s deputy chief of information security.
“The reason is simply that Ukrainian law enforcement bodies have begun to work more effectively in this sphere, and now come across such crimes more regularly. That’s why you are hearing more about it.”
But computer security experts maintain that the opposite is true: The former Soviet Union (FSU) has emerged as one of the largest producers of computer programs for cyber crime.
According to the software security firm Kaspersky, Brazil produces close to half of the world’s malicious software for banks, though this is targeted mostly at Brazilian and Latin American institutions.
China is second with 18 percent — though a good deal of this is involved in online gaming — and the former Soviet Union third with 13 percent.
“We have good statistics where malware is created,” said Maksym Schipka, Kaspersky’s director of hosted and streaming technology research. “[Hackers from the former Soviet Union] go for high profile banks, and focus a lot on western banks.”
The FSU’s pole position in cyber crime can be attributed to two factors primarily: a lax legal atmosphere that allows hackers to work relatively unmolested, and an overabundance of highly-trained specialists.
“People in the FSU have very strong technical educations and understand various technical systems in depth,” said Schipka by telephone from Moscow. “It’s something about them that they want to understand every system in fine detail.”
If anything, the tools to copy financial data from another individual’s laptop or PC has become even easier, he says. New versions of the Zeus Trojan are readily available on the internet or in underground chatrooms even on You Tube. At last count, there were about 40,000 distinct versions of the ZBot.
Schipka says that he is not trying to excuse those who choose a life of crime — the vast majority of computer experts in the region choose not to steal other peoples’ money. Still, he understands where the impetus comes from.
“These are people with a university-level education, and when they look for work, they find that they cannot sustain themselves — and we are not even talking about a posh life,” he said. “When morals are relaxed, this leads to cyber crime and making money in shady ways.”
Yanukovych’s Opportunity
BRUSSELS, Belgium -- The recent decision by Ukraine’s Constitutional Court to cancel the amendments made to the Constitution in 2004 took many by surprise.
With the political system reverting to the 1996 Constitution – a Presidential system of power – alarm bells have begun to ring with claims of democracy being rolled-back and a return to the Kuchma era.
However, it is worth recalling that the changes made in 2004 were rushed through without proper consultation and in clear violation of legal and democratic procedures.
This resulted in heavy criticism both from Ukrainian political parties and international institutions including the Council of Europe and the European Parliament.
Indeed it was very much a trade-off undertaken when Ukraine was teetering on the brink of collapse.
The parties involved decided to repeal the results of the presidential run-off and set a third round of elections. As a precondition, it was agreed that whoever became the new president would shed part of the Presidential powers to the Parliament.
Unfortunately, the result of these changes was the creation of a dysfunctional hybrid system of governance. The increased stability, and prosperity promised by President Yushchenko, and longed for by the West, never materialized. Rather, within a few months, Ukraine spiraled into chaos with conflicts throwing the country into political deadlock.
Ukraine’s political elites turned the smallest political matter into a make-or-break issue with endless bickering, never-ending elections as one government after another collapsed; bitter conflicts with Russia and inconsistent reform efforts. Ukraine was simply a political circus.
Therefore it is little wonder that in January 2010 the Orange flame finally burned out and Yuschenko’s rival, Viktor Yanukovych and his Party of the Regions took over the Presidency.
So how can we be sure that Yanukovych will not abuse his new powers – particularly given his history as a close ally of the Kremlin with a taste for power - and where is the guarantee that the return to the 1996-2004 political model will be more successful than in the 1990s and early 2000s?
Clearly there are no water-tight guarantees and when Yanukovych first took up the Presidential reins little hope was expressed that he would deliver on his election promises: carrying out political and economic reforms and progressing Ukraine’s relations with the EU.
Most people were expecting him to quickly get back into bed with the men in the Kremlin. And while he has mended fences with Russia (some would say the extension of the stay of the Russian Black Sea Fleet at Sevastapol was going to far) he has also made some choices, such as Ukraine’s decision to join the EU Energy Community, which are not exactly favourable to Russia.
Furthermore, and quite surprisingly, Yanukovych already carried out more reforms than during the whole of Yuschenko term in office: creating a Committee on reforms, passing laws on state procurement and on the functioning of the domestic gas market, drafting a new tax code are a few.
The economy is slowing recovering and ties with the EU continue to strengthen as Kiev progresses in its Association Agreement talks. Indeed, in the list of reforms requested by the EU, constitutional reform was always top and the EU, along with other international partners, as well as Ukraine’s political parties have consistently raised this issue for the past five years.
While the the EU per se has no preference over the type of governance system, Brussels probably would have preferred the decision to have been taken by the Parliament and not the Court.
Therefore, it is crucial that this will not be the end of the road for constitutional reform and that Yanukovych will initiate, as he promised, an inclusive process of constitutional reform with democracy continuing to be up-held.
Ukraine is also not the same country it was in 2004 and it is highly unlikely the population would accept a return to an authoritarian regime. After-all thousands of Ukrainian’s did not stand out in the freezing cold with chattering teeth for nothing.
There is also a strong civil society which currently excels at doing its most natural job – being vigilant and critical of those in power even though it is not always an easy task.
And lastly Ukraine’s opposition will also continue to do its job with relentless attacks on the President, Cabinet and the ruling coalition.
As to the question of the effectiveness of the presidency under the presidential-parliamentary system, it can be provided by staying focused and keeping eyes on the prize, which is to modernize the country, maintain democracy and freedoms and end Ukraine’s economic dry spell.
Now it is up to President Yanukovych. He has a big opportunity. With his credibility at stake the world, as well as the citizens of Ukraine will be watching him and how he handles his new power.
With the political system reverting to the 1996 Constitution – a Presidential system of power – alarm bells have begun to ring with claims of democracy being rolled-back and a return to the Kuchma era.
However, it is worth recalling that the changes made in 2004 were rushed through without proper consultation and in clear violation of legal and democratic procedures.
This resulted in heavy criticism both from Ukrainian political parties and international institutions including the Council of Europe and the European Parliament.
Indeed it was very much a trade-off undertaken when Ukraine was teetering on the brink of collapse.
The parties involved decided to repeal the results of the presidential run-off and set a third round of elections. As a precondition, it was agreed that whoever became the new president would shed part of the Presidential powers to the Parliament.
Unfortunately, the result of these changes was the creation of a dysfunctional hybrid system of governance. The increased stability, and prosperity promised by President Yushchenko, and longed for by the West, never materialized. Rather, within a few months, Ukraine spiraled into chaos with conflicts throwing the country into political deadlock.
Ukraine’s political elites turned the smallest political matter into a make-or-break issue with endless bickering, never-ending elections as one government after another collapsed; bitter conflicts with Russia and inconsistent reform efforts. Ukraine was simply a political circus.
Therefore it is little wonder that in January 2010 the Orange flame finally burned out and Yuschenko’s rival, Viktor Yanukovych and his Party of the Regions took over the Presidency.
So how can we be sure that Yanukovych will not abuse his new powers – particularly given his history as a close ally of the Kremlin with a taste for power - and where is the guarantee that the return to the 1996-2004 political model will be more successful than in the 1990s and early 2000s?
Clearly there are no water-tight guarantees and when Yanukovych first took up the Presidential reins little hope was expressed that he would deliver on his election promises: carrying out political and economic reforms and progressing Ukraine’s relations with the EU.
Most people were expecting him to quickly get back into bed with the men in the Kremlin. And while he has mended fences with Russia (some would say the extension of the stay of the Russian Black Sea Fleet at Sevastapol was going to far) he has also made some choices, such as Ukraine’s decision to join the EU Energy Community, which are not exactly favourable to Russia.
Furthermore, and quite surprisingly, Yanukovych already carried out more reforms than during the whole of Yuschenko term in office: creating a Committee on reforms, passing laws on state procurement and on the functioning of the domestic gas market, drafting a new tax code are a few.
The economy is slowing recovering and ties with the EU continue to strengthen as Kiev progresses in its Association Agreement talks. Indeed, in the list of reforms requested by the EU, constitutional reform was always top and the EU, along with other international partners, as well as Ukraine’s political parties have consistently raised this issue for the past five years.
While the the EU per se has no preference over the type of governance system, Brussels probably would have preferred the decision to have been taken by the Parliament and not the Court.
Therefore, it is crucial that this will not be the end of the road for constitutional reform and that Yanukovych will initiate, as he promised, an inclusive process of constitutional reform with democracy continuing to be up-held.
Ukraine is also not the same country it was in 2004 and it is highly unlikely the population would accept a return to an authoritarian regime. After-all thousands of Ukrainian’s did not stand out in the freezing cold with chattering teeth for nothing.
There is also a strong civil society which currently excels at doing its most natural job – being vigilant and critical of those in power even though it is not always an easy task.
And lastly Ukraine’s opposition will also continue to do its job with relentless attacks on the President, Cabinet and the ruling coalition.
As to the question of the effectiveness of the presidency under the presidential-parliamentary system, it can be provided by staying focused and keeping eyes on the prize, which is to modernize the country, maintain democracy and freedoms and end Ukraine’s economic dry spell.
Now it is up to President Yanukovych. He has a big opportunity. With his credibility at stake the world, as well as the citizens of Ukraine will be watching him and how he handles his new power.
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