On June 22-23 German Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer (in the photo) assured President Kuchma in Kyiv that Germany could be Ukraine’s advocate in the West, and that his country is still interested in not only strengthening all aspects of its relationship with Ukraine, but also in its integration into the European Union. Precisely how far Germany will go to defend Ukraine’s interests will become clear after President Kuchma meets with Chancellor Schroeder in Leipzig, July 11-12. Another aspect will be clarified a week before the summit; at a conference in Berlin on July 5 donor countries are expected to clarify whether or not enough funds will be raised to close Chornobyl. Another fateful event awaits.
Joschka Fischer, as befits a member of the Greens, welcomed Ukraine’s final decision to close its ill-famed nuclear power station on December 15, 2000, but hastened to add that “Germany and Ukraine retain different approaches toward nuclear energy uses.” In other words, Germany will continue to oppose the idea of completing the two power units at the Rivne and Khmelnytsky stations. Because of this the European Commission is still unable to give a clear answer about whether it will abide by the 1995 Ottawa Memorandum on the closure of Chornobyl, and the document seems to be crystal clear. At the beginning of June, Leonid Kuchma noted that acting in accordance with the commitments assumed should be a matter of honor for all parties concerned.
Germany’s Green will shortly discuss the problem of financing the Chornobyl closure at their party congress. Mr. Fischer said it would be “highly unwise” at this stage to state precisely how much every donor country will contribute, lest those capable of providing the required funds should “relax.” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Borys Tarasiuk pointed out that the Chornobyl Containment Project requires $768 million US, while only $393 million has been collected to date, along with a declared possibility of allocating another $300 million.
In addition, Joschka Fischer tried diplomatically to sugar the pill of the frustrated AN-7X project in Western Europe (which Germany had wholeheartedly supported), stating that Ukraine should take part in the middle- range aircraft project, even though no one has seen or heard of any actual proposals to that end.
Also, Ukraine is likely to be involved in Germany’s employment program for 20,000 computer experts.
As always, emphasis was made on maintaining the tempo of Ukraine’s reforms, strengthening its economy, and among other things, honoring its liabilities, so Ukrainian-German relationships could be made still better.
However, it will be some time before such good words are translated into good deeds — e.g., soft visa procedures, Ukraine’s adequate involvement in European politics (particularly European security projects), and a breakthrough in relations between Kyiv and EU.
