 RFE/RL Belarus, Ukraine, and Moldova Report 4/27/2010 7:45:49 PM 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  Lukashenka Raps Russia Over Bases Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka today berated ally Russia for not paying for its military bases deployed in his country and warned that he could snub the summit of a Moscow-dominated security pact next month. More  Belarusian Opposition Activist Arrested An activist of the Belarusian opposition United Civic Party (AHP) was detained by police in the western town of Vaukavysk. More  Voting 'Off To Slow Start' In Belarusian Local Elections Belarusian officials say there has been low turnout at the start of early voting in nationwide local elections. More U.S. law enforcement authorities have announced the arrest in the Czech Republic of Dmitry M. Naskovets, a Belarusian national accused as a co-conspirator in over 2,000 instances of identity theft and over 5,000 instances of fraud over the Internet. More  Kyrgyz President 'Not In Belarus' Belarusian Ambassador Viktar Dyanisenka told protesters in front of the Belarusian Embassy in Bishkek today that former Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev is not in Belarus. More Romania Rallies Behind Moldova EU Bid Romania and Moldova today agreed to deepen bilateral economic, political, and cultural cooperation to boost Chisinau's bid to join the European Union. More  Moldovan Leader To Skip WWII Parade Moldovan interim President Mihai Ghimpu has agreed to send 70 Moldovan soldiers to participate in the May 9 military parade on Moscow's Red Square but will not attend himself, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports. More  U.S. Speaks Out On Jailed Journalist The U.S. Embassy in Chisinau has said it remains "deeply concerned" by the arrest of an independent journalist in Moldova's separatist Transdniester region. More  Karabakh Official Pleads For Arrested Moldovan Journalist A senior Nagorno-Karabakh official said he has asked authorities in Moldova's breakaway Transdniester region to improve conditions for a local Armenian-born journalist detained there. More  Moldova Ex-Minister, Police Chief On Trial A Moldovan court today began the first high-profile trial over the violent protests that followed the country's disputed April 2009 parliamentary elections. More  Moldovan Constitution Change Agreed Moldova's ruling coalition says it will seek to change just one article in the country's constitution and not press for more ambitious changes, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports. More U.S. Voices Concern At Journalist's Arrest In Transdniester U.S. Ambassador to Moldova Asif J. Chaudhry says he has spoken to the leader of Moldova's breakaway Transdniester region about last week's arrest of an independent journalist. More  Skepticism On Transdniester Progress The Moldovan government official responsible for affairs in the breakaway region of Transdniester says the chances of achieving any progress on that conflict this year are slim. More  Moldova Arrests Ex-Police Chief Chisinau's former police chief was arrested today in connection with the violent protests that led to hundreds of arrests of demonstrators in April 2009. More Last year, after Joe Wilson's "liar" comments in the U.S. generated news for a couple of days, we put together the "Top Five Breaches Of Parliamentary Protocol." More  Singer Recalls Performing In Ukraine After Chornobyl A well-known Tajik singer who was on tour in Ukraine at the time of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant disaster says many of the members of her band have died at young ages. More  Ukraine, Russia MPs Approve Black Sea Deal The Russian and Ukrainian parliaments have ratified a deal that will keep Russia's Navy based in Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula until 2042, as thousands protested outside Ukraine's parliament building against the accord. More  Ukraine, Neighbors Recall Chornobyl Ceremonies were held today in Moscow and St. Petersburg to commemorate the people who died from radiation exposure at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant disaster in Ukraine. More  Boxing Champ Klitschko Launches New Political Party In Ukraine Former world boxing champion Vitaly Klitschko has announced the launch of a new political party named OUDAR, an acronym that translates as "punch." More  Ukrainians Protest Russia Fleet Deal Several thousand Ukrainians have rallied in front of parliament to protest against a deal allowing Russia to keep its navy in Ukraine's Crimea for another 25 years. More  NATO Looks To Evolve Without Shedding DNA The first day of the NATO foreign ministers meeting in Tallinn, Estonia, was dedicated to the future of the alliance. Day two will tackle Afghanistan in talks conducted together with non-NATO nations contributing ISAF forces and relations with Russia -- albeit with no Russian officials in attendance. More Communists in the Black Sea city of Odesa plan to erect a monument to Soviet leader Josef Stalin later this year. More  Yanukovych Defends Naval Base Deal Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has defended his decision to grant a 25-year lease extension to Russia's Black Sea Fleet base in Crimea. More  Russia, Ukraine Leaders To Talk Gas Ukraine has agreed to a lengthy extension for the Russian Black Sea Fleet's base in Crimea in exchange for a major discount on Kyiv's imports of Russian gas. More  What's In A National Anthem? A country's national anthem is linked to questions of political legitimacy, citizenship, and national identity. In Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine's third-largest city, citizens are talking about changing the country's national anthem, which they say is too depressing. More  Nigerian Wins Ukrainian Poetry Recital Contest A 20-year-old Nigerian college student, Ayo Osikoya, has stunned the residents of the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk with his talent for reading poetry -- so much so that he defeated native Ukrainian speakers in a poetry recitation contest. More  Polish President's Remains Arrive in Krakow The coffins holding the bodies of Poland's President Lech Kaczynski and his wife were today flown from Warsaw to Krakow for burial in that city's historic cathedral. More  Ukraine's Fractured Opposition Looks Back To 2004 The last time Ukraine faced a slide toward authoritarianism led by the president, in 2004, the opposition united to counteract it. Can the opposition do the same this time around? More  Ukrainian Opposition See Biased Media Since Presidential Election Ukrainian opposition figures are urging a popular talk show to invite opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko as a guest. More The international human rights group Amnesty International has urged Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to ensure accountability for human rights abuses. More  Ukrainian TV Journalist Attacked In Dnipropetrovsk Ukrainian journalist Borys Brahinskiy has said he was attacked on April 12 in the eastern city of Dnipropetrovsk. More  Obama: Nuclear Terror Threat Rising U.S. President Barack Obama has warned that the threat of terrorists using a nuclear weapon has risen. More  Russia, U.S. To Sign Deal On Plutonium Russia and the United States are expected to sign a deal today on reducing stocks of weapons-grade plutonium. More  Ukraine In Summit Uranium Pledge Ukraine has announced that it will eliminate its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, the material that can be used to make nuclear weapons. Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych made the announcement following his first face-to-face meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama at the nuclear security summit in Washington. More |
