Новости за 10.09.2015

ODESA, Ukraine - Maria Gaidar's father, once the prime minister of Russia, dreamed of his country becoming a European-style democracy governed by the rule of law.

Ukraine’s customs offices, long a cash cow for corrupt officials, have come under attack from two directions – Konstyantyn Likarchuk, deputy head of the State Fiscal Service, and Mikheil Saakashvili, the ex-Georgian president and reformist governor of Odesa Oblast.

Odesa Oblast Governor Mikheil Saakashvili on Sept. 3 lashed out at Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and the government he leads in an interview with Channel 5, owned by President Petro Poroshenko.

MOSCOW - A Russian court has sentenced a man to more than two years in prison for painting a star on the spire of a Moscow skyscraper in the colors of the Ukrainian flag. Four co-defendants were acquitted.

Forge ahead, pay no heed to your enemies. That’s the best way to describe how Davit Sakvarelidze is moving to overhaul Ukraine’s public prosecution system.

Overview

Parliament’s autumn session began with tragedy on Aug. 31, as three National Guardsmen were killed in a grenade blast near the Verkhovna Rada after lawmakers gave preliminary approval to changes to the Constitution. Some claim the changes will lead to recognition of Russia’s proxies in occupied Donbas. One of the junior partners, the Radical Party, left the governing coalition because of the vote. Parliament also approved other important bills like on e-commerce, media ownership and road-repair financing. Читать дальше...

BRATISLAVA - Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk on Sept. 10 criticised as "anti-Ukrainian and anti-European" a deal between Russia's energy giant Gazprom and several Western firms to build a second gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea.

Despite war and recession, the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development sees value in Ukrainian assets and continues to invest. The EBRD, a multinational investment agency, is Ukraine’s single largest investor with a portfolio of €5.1 billion and involvement in 344 projects, ranging from agriculture to energy and high technology.

Russian forces have begun participating in military operations in Syria in support of its government troops.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde visited Ukraine, meeting with President Petro Poroshenko on Sept. 6.

French President Francois Hollande said on Sept. 7 that since the “ceasefire has almost been respected” in eastern Ukraine, “I will ask for sanctions to be lifted” against Russia if local elections are held on Oct. 25 and decentralization reform is successful in Ukraine, BBC reported.

One of the things Denys Goiko worries about the most is that he won’t be able to put on a suit at his own wedding.

Meeting with International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde on Sept 6, President Petro Poroshenko emphasized his determination to eliminate corruption in Ukraine.

The chairman of Russia’s Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, claimed this week that Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk fought against Russian forces in Chechnya in December 1994-February 1995.

Does the state have to produce fertilizer and breed horses at taxpayers’ expense? Common sense and the Economy Ministry strongly suggest the answer is no.

A Russian court on Sept. 10 convicted a Ukrainian man of helping try to paint his country's national flag on a Moscow skyscraper as an act of protest against the Kremlin's foreign policy and sentenced him to two years and three months in jail.

Ukraine’s beautiful castles and fortresses have witnessed dramatic historical events, many of which have attained a shroud of mystery and legend over the centuries. Located in some of the country’s most picturesque landscapes, their charm is highlighted by the rich colors of autumn. The Kyiv Post offers a guide to some of Ukraine’s best castles and fortresses.

Champagne-filled glasses and a full-band orchestra playing Chinese and Ukrainian folk music provided an upbeat opening to the Chinese Commerce Association in Ukraine on Sept. 7 at Kyiv's President Hotel.

The Kyiv Lions Club's Kozak Night took place on Sept. 5 outside of Kyiv, raising an estimated net amount of $38,000 for charity on gross revenue of roughly $70,000.

Representatives of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) will soon participate in the mine clearance of Ukrainian villages in the military operation area so that people will be able to come back to their homes, OSCE Secretary-General Lamberto Zannier said.

Ukraine’s revolution and war have put the nation in the spotlight internationally, and foreign filmmakers are now turning their lenses on the country’s recent events, as well as its history.

The first thing to notice about artist Serhiy Zakharov is his calm smile and the next is a black bracelet on his right wrist with the inscription: “Fuck you, Putin.”

Russian military serviceman Alexander Alexandrov is to remain in custody until Oct. 17; the preliminary investigation has been extended until the same date, said Oksana Sokolovska, the lawyer for another Russian military serviceman charged in Ukraine, Yevgeny Yerofeyev.

Co-working places, essentially business studios for rent, are sprouting up in Kyiv as an inexpensive office space option. Students, tech entrepreneurs and administrative professionals rub shoulders in the spaces, without having to put up with the noisy atmosphere of working in cafes or the distractions of working at home.

French President Francois Hollande might as well build a replica of the armistice railway carriage in which France surrendered to Germany in 1940 to hold meetings in when Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko visits Paris on Oct. 2 along with Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.