 RFE/RL Belarus, Ukraine, and Moldova Report 12.06.2009 A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about Belarus, Ukraine, and Moldova. For more stories on Eastern Europe, please visit and bookmark our Eastern Europe page . |
| Belarus  'Engagement' Best Way To Promote Rights, Democracy Engagement and dialogue will be the hallmarks of the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama in its approach to regimes struggling with democracy and human rights, according to Karen Stewart, the principal assistant deputy secretary at the U.S. State Department's bureau of democracy, human rights, and labor. Stewart recently spoke with RFE/RL's Brussels correspondent, Ahto Lobjakas, about the Middle East, Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Belarus, and well as attempts by the United Nations to tackle global rights issues. More  Moldovan Centrist Party Courts Communist Defector A popular Moldovan politician who left the ruling Communist Party has received an offer to join a centrist party, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports. More  Russian Public Health Chief Shows Clout Russia has banned hundreds of dairy products from Belarus, citing health concerns. But the move is widely seen as retaliation for Minsk's defiant tone and recent coziness with Europe. Not for the first time, Russia has allowed its public health chief to flex his muscles amid high-profile diplomatic spats with its neighbors. More  Moldova Crisis Is An Opportunity For The EU Events in Moldova have provided the European Union’s fledgling Eastern Partnership an early and excellent opportunity to prove its relevance and responsiveness to the six participants. More  Ukrainian President Considers Nominees For Defense Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko is considering two candidates for the vacant defense minister's post, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More  Lenin Monuments Stand Firm In Kyiv At least a dozen statues of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin remain standing in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Some residents see them as simple historical monuments; others have tried to take down the statues with their own hands. But as disputes continue at the municipal and national levels, Lenin isn't likely to disappear from the city any time soon. More  Ukraine Nationalizes Three Banks Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko has announced that the government will bail out three of five banks hit particularly hard by the financial crisis, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More  Protesters Demand Kyiv Mayor's Resignation Some 300 NGO members and business owners in Kyiv picketed the Ukrainian parliament to demand the resignation of the capital's controversial mayor, Leonid Chernovetsky, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More Inspired by The Atlantic's mock "World Leaders" Facebook group, RFE/RL presents a Facebook-style summary of last week's events. More  Are EU's Russian Energy Supplies Perpetually At Risk? An EU delegation embarks on a two-day mission to Kyiv and Moscow in a bid to avert a future gas spat with Russia and Ukraine. Kyiv recently prevented an immediate crisis, but five months after Russia's shock cutoff, the threat of a new disruption looms large. More  Crimean Mufti Urges End To Registering Islamic Groups Crimean Muslim Mufti Emirali Hajji Ablayev says the local government should stop registering "radical Islamic groups," RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More  Timothy Garton Ash On The Meaning Of Europe As voters went to cast their ballots in European Parliament elections, RFE/RL spoke to British historian Timothy Garton Ash about the definition of Europe. Garton Ash explained how a common vision defines Europe as much as geography, and why the EU must stay true to its philosophy of expansion. More  Societies Susceptible To Racism As Eastern Europe prepares to mark 20 years since the fall of communism, many countries find themselves grappling with spiraling racist violence. Why have ultranationalist groups been gaining momentum and claiming a rising number of victims? More  Ukraine's President Attacks Rumored Grand Coalition Ukraine's President Viktor Yushchenko has said he will not allow Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and opposition leader Viktor Yanukovych to change the constitution, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More  Lviv, A Town Of Many Mayors The western Ukrainian city of Lviv has found itself with two mayors after a Kyiv court decision returned a previously sacked mayor to office, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More  Ukraine Zoo Director Says Animal Poisonings Political The Ukrainian State Science and Research Institute in Kyiv confirms that 10 animals in the Crimean Zoo died earlier this year as a result of poisoning, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More |
