http://www.kommersant.com/page.asp?id=560205
Viktor Yushenko Will Open Himself to America Yesterday, Viktor Yushenko, the president of Ukraine left to the USA for an official visit, that will lasts 5 days. One of the expected results of the visit should become the removal of Jackson-Vanik Amendment. But the most politically important event should be held in the very first day of the visit. Yushenko and George Bush will make a joint political declaration which supposes to establish the framework of the Ukraine and US relationship. That is, of course, if Yushenko's itinerary would not be changed because of the American president's possible visit to the Pope's funeral. The Yushenko visit to the USA was in preparation practically since the day of the Ukrainian president's inauguration. Senator Hillary Clinton visited Kiev in February and promised to help with the removal of Jackson-Vanik Amendment. And in the middle of March, Boris Tarasyuk, head of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, flew to Washington to prepare the summit. Tarasyuk came with Yushenko this time as well. Besides his foreign minister, the Ukrainian president brought with him Alexander Zinchenko, Secretary of State; Petro Poroshenko, Secretary of National Security and Defense; Anatoly Gritsenko, Minister of Defense; Sergei Terekhin, Minister of Economy; and Evegeniy Chervonennko, Minister of Transportation. Today Bush met Yushenko in the Oval Office. It is a first time in history when a Ukranian president was invited to the White House for a "one to one" meeting. The previous Ukrainian leader did not receive such honor. Besides, two years ago on a NATO summit in Prague, two presidents were not sitting next to each other according the English alphabetical order. To avoid "close" contact, the organizers of the summit gave guests seats in accordance with French alphabet that helped to keep Bush and Leonid Kuchma apart. Zinchenko stated that the Ukrainian leader's visit to the USA will become "extremely important" because "it will be a move ahead toward real collaboration as strategical partnership." But the real results and importance of the summit could be assessed only after the two presidents sign and proclaim the political declaration. According to a Kommersant source in the Secretariat of Ukrainian president, this document will not be understood as an official agreement, but only as a promise to maintain democratic principles of freedom and equality, and not to step aside from the Euro-Atlantic political vector. "It means Yushenko will be promising more, than Bush" – thinks the source. Overall, the presidents will discuss more than 10 questions, that have "enough political weights" said Zinchenko. Three of these are known: removal Jackson-Vanik amendment, help to Ukrain to join the WTO and receiving status of market economy country. Zinchenko thinks that all these questions on the agenda will bring positive results. Republican Senator Richard Lugar (he was present during the Ukraine election as a personal US President's envoy) and Democratic Senator Carl Levin, members of the Armed Forces Committee, proposed to review the removal of Jackson-Vanik Amendment to the Senate back in January. As the authors of the document think, removal of the amendment would definitely help Ukraine to get a "normal trade status on a constant basis" and help "to promote Ukraine in WTO." Viktor Yushenko, according to the plans, should be received by Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld . But because of the Pope's death the program of the visit might change, said Irina Gerashenko, Ukrainian president press-secretary. The Ukrainian leader also plans to visit Chicago and Boston. In Chicago, he will be received by the mayor and representatives of the businesses and local Ukrainian Diaspora. Yushenko will visit Boston only for one reason. Here, Nastya Ovchar, a 5- year-old Ukrainian girl is being treated in Shriners Hospital. Two weeks ago she saved her little brother by taking him out from a burning house. She saved his life but received burns on 80% of her skin. On the next day, Yushenko called the mother of the children and told her: "I will help you. But don't leave kids home alone anymore." This girl's story got immediate resonance in Ukraine and the Ukrainian Diaspora in US. A philanthropistthe decided to send girl to Boston on a rented passenger aircraft. And Shriners Hospital decided to treat the little girl for free. The doctors say that patient's condition is serious, but stable. Yushenko will not meet with Major Melnichenko, who wase secretly recording conversations in Kuchma's office from 1999 till 2000. Zinchenko explained that "this meeting has to be conducted by people who investigate this case. To make this meeting utmost effective, all the services who were working in this case should be involved. Without any doubts, the General Prosecutor of Ukraine and all those people who investigated the case of journalist Gia Gongadze," said Zinchenko. We will remind readers that on March 16 Yushenko told the Russian media that he is ready to meet the Ukrainian major and that president gave all the guarantees of safety in case the major decide to come back home. But in exchange, Yushenko asked Melnichenko to give up all the tapes, the recording device and to answer all possible questions to law enforcement, so this way the tapes could be used in the court as evidence. by Andrei Chernikov, Kiev Russian Article as of Apr. 04, 2005 ------------------------ Yahoo! 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