TOP STATE EXECUTIVES IN UKRAINE ARE SUPPOSED TO SUBMIT TO A THOROUGH MEDICAL CHECKUP

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TOP STATE EXECUTIVES IN UKRAINE ARE SUPPOSED TO SUBMIT TO A THOROUGH MEDICAL CHECKUP

Tribuna, November 30, 1999, p. 1

Right after his inauguration, Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma is supposed to oust the Cabinet and promote new candidates for the government at the Supreme Rada.

Kuchma already assured the country that most ministers would retain their posts. Nevertheless, now all candidates for the Cabinet and other central power structures and departments are supposed to provide results of a thorough medical checkup. Without these results, the candidates will not even be considered by the parliament.

A document cannot be obtained in an ordinary clinic: it is handed out by the Health Care Ministry and the Main Directorate of State Service.

The same rule applies to governors as well. Heads of regional administration are supposed to go to Kiev and apply for medical examination.

SELEZNEV HAS RESERVATIONS ABOUT A MEETING WITH CHECHEN PARLIAMENTARIANS

Parlamentskaya Gazeta, November 30, 1999, p. 1

Before his probable meeting with a delegation of Chechen parliamentarians, Duma Chairman Gennadi Seleznev “would like to know whether or not they agree to abide by the Russian constitution and the acting legislation.”

Seleznev made it quite clear commenting on the resolution of the Chechen “parliament” which advocated an immediate meeting of Russian and Chechen deputies without any preliminary conditions.

THE WORK OF THE MOSCOW MUNICIPAL INTERNAL AFFAIRS DIRECTORATE WAS SUMMED UP…

Moskovsky Komsomolets, November 30, 1999, p. 2

… at the operational sitting, yesterday.

Chairman of the Moscow municipal legislature Vladimir Platonov has sent a letter to President Yeltsin to the effect that “Since the Moscow government and the municipal legislature were not informed of the results of the inspection, we cannot get ready for the sitting. Approached with the request to postpone the sitting, Interior Minister Vladimir Rushailo denied the postponement. Regarding the haste with which the sitting is being implemented as having political undertones and eager to avoid deterioration of the political situation in Moscow on the eve of the election, the Moscow government and municipal legislature appeal to you … to intervene and prevent the discussion of the matter for the time being…”

It is common knowledge that the Kremlin heartily dislikes Moscow top cop Kulikov. His resignation must have been demanded at the sitting yesterday but no information on that score is available at this point. Hence the haste with which the sitting was organized…

PUTIN WILL ATTEND KUCHMA’S INAUGURATION

Trud, November 30, 1999, p. 1

Premier Vladimir Putin will visit Kiev on Tuesday to attend inauguration of Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, a source in the Governmental Information Department tells reporters.

This is going Putin’s first meeting with Kuchma after the latter’s reelection.

Putin is also supposed to meet with other CIS leaders attending the inauguration. Particularly, he is scheduled to have a talk with Georgian State Minister Vaja Lordkipanidze.

DEPUTIES WERE SHOWN THE TEXT OF THE TREATY

Izvestia, November 30, 1999, p. 2

On November 29, Duma deputies received the text of the draft treaty on creation of a union Russian-Belarussian state, INTERFAX news agency reports. The draft treaty stipulates adoption of the constitution of the union state and emphasizes that the future state will be established on the principles of sovereign equality: both states will retain their sovereignty, state flag and the coat of arms. The new state will have a common monetary unit. The supreme state council will be chaired by the head of a union state (on the basis of regular rotation). According to the draft, the Union House will include 36 Russians and 36 Belarussians. The House of Representatives will comprise 75 deputies of the Russian Federation and 28 of Belarus.

EVERY THIRD RUSSIAN VIEWS PUTIN AS THE NEXT PRESIDENT

Izvestia, November 30, 1999, p. 2

Thirty-seven per cent of Russians believe that Premier Vladimir Putin will become the next president of the Russian Federation, according to the data the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center forwarded to INTERFAX news agency on November 29. In the previous sociological poll conducted between November 12 and 16, this confidence was displayed by 33 per cent. Eight per cent more advocate the candidature of communist leader Gennadi Zyuganov (against 7 per cent a week ago), 3 per cent opted for ex-premier Yevgeny Primakov (against 5 per cent a week ago).

UPDATE ON YELTSIN’S STATE OF HEALTH

NTV (Independent Television), “Segodnya” program, November 29, 1999, 14:00

Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Yakushkin says that the state of health of President Boris Yeltsin, recovering at his Gorki-9 residence, is satisfactory. Today, Yeltsin is reported to have received Alexander Voloshin, Director of the Presidential Administration.

According to Yakushkin, Yeltsin and Voloshin discussed pressing issues.

A SESSION OF THE SECURITY COUNCIL HAS BEEN HELD

ORT (Russian Public Television), News program, November 29, 1999, 15:00

In the absence of the president, Premier Vladimir Putin chaired the session of the Security Council which discussed combating crime in the country.

The Security Council mapped out four major areas in which crime fighting efforts should be intensified. They include the area of economic and organized crime, corruption, and terrorism. According to Putin, the state has all it needs to handle these problems.

Putin: If we focus all our attention to dragging only drunkards into police precincts and prosecuting them so as to improve our records, it won’t do us any good either in terms of combating crime in general or in filing reports. Moreover, we will crowd up our prisons with persons whose danger to society is questionable, to put it mildly.

Interior Minister Vladimir Rushailo: Cooperation of all law enforcement agencies has improved greatly, and particularly cooperation in the Caucasus. As for the figures, the number of registered crimes went up 20 per cent but the number of solved crimes rose accordingly too. Between January and October, 1999, we uncovered 15,000 organizers and active participants of the organized underworld. That’s a 10 per cent growth compared to the figures registered in the same period of 1998.

According to the Secretary of the Security Council, Sergei Ivanov, the debate over specific measures was rather heated. When asked to elaborate on government plans Ivanov refused to comment.

CAMDESUSS RENEGES ON HIS PROMISES

ORT (Russian Public Television), News program, November 9, 1999, 12:00

Michael Camdessus of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has released a statement according to which the IMF could not continue its sponsorship program in Russia because of the continuing military operation in Chechnya. The statement was made literally two weeks before the sitting of the IMF Board of Directors which is to consider making another installment of $640 million available to Moscow.

Russian Finance Minister Mikhail Kasianov is clearly perplexed by this turn of events.

Kasianov: We do not understand what this is. As a matter of fact, Russia is implementing all aspects of the program faithfully. Moreover, Russia has enough by way of additional revenues which are spent on national defense and, specifically, on the military operation in the Caucasus. We do not perceive any reasons why these economic concerns should have any effect on the decision-making. Of course, there must be some political reasons and concerns at play here.

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