Last week a presentation: "Interpreting Ukraine: A Discussion of Recent Developments; [Ukraine after the March Parliamentary Elections: A New Trajectory for the Orange Revolution?]" was held at the Center for Strategic & International Studies, Washington DC.
Taras Kuzio, Anders Aslund, and Steven Pifer all spoke, speculated, and answered questions from the floor.
A transcript, and an audio recording of the proceedings can be read and heard here.
If you have an hour or two spare, might be worth giving it a listen..
In my opinion, not enough was made of where much power now really resides in Ukraine - in the Financial-Industrial Groups of the east.
The respectable 'Korespondent' periodical has just published a list of 100 most influential people in Ukraine.
Top of the 'muck-heap' - Rinat Akhmetov.
Then Yu, Yuliya T, Yanuk, and Moroz. Businessmen Poroshenko, Kolomoyskyi, and Taruta also make the top ten [as does Mykola Azarov - fu!]
The new gov's economic policy will be primarily dictated by the requirements of these FIGs. Maybe it will be new finance minister Azarov's job, [and that of men from the past now re-appointed to the State Tax Administration] to provide the mechanisms for recouping alleged financial bribes paid out in order to get a 'result' for PoR. [Aslund commented in his presentation on what went on when Azarov was last in government. Similar allegations against Azarov were made recently by Yuliya T in a radio interview.]
Aslund used to be a well-respected academic in my PhD days (a long time ago). But he got it badly wrong over the RosUkrEnergo deal: http://orangeukraine.squarespace.com/journal/2006/1/5/gas-conflict-deal-not-a-bad-one.html
ReplyDeleteso I don't have so much faith. His opinion NOW seems to be around only on that link, apparently posted by LEvko. He's obviously changed his mind.
I shouted a YES when I read the following - "not enough was made of where much power now really resides in Ukraine - in the Financial-Industrial Groups of the east." You are SO on the money. :) That should have been the centre-piece with the rest as trimmings.
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