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vol. 22, issue 9 www.kyivpost.com March 3, 2017 Comrade Trump’s Politburo US President Donald J. Trump is facing greater scrutiny because of associates with unsavory ties to Russian President or Kremlin loyalists. Such connections have troubling implications for . Among the questions: Does Putin have compromising

information with which to blackmail Trump to achieve Felix Sater the Kremlin’s policy aims? A Russian immigrant with organized Jeff Sessions crime ties reportedly acted as courier The U.S. attorney general met with for a Kremlin peace plan for Ukraine. Russia’s ambassador to the U.S. twice during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Paul Manafort The former adviser to ex-President was removed as Trump campaign manager after he was linked to $12.7 million in payments. Michael T. Flynn The ex-national security adviser got caught lying about his contacts with Russia.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump.

Dmitry Rybolovlev The Russian billionaire paid $95 million for a Trump Carter Page property in Palm Beach, The former Trump foreign policy Florida. adviser is under investigation for his business ties to Gazprom.

Michael D. Cohen Wilbur Ross Trump’s personal lawyer passed on a The U.S. commerce secretary is a former vice pro-Kremlin peace plan to Trump. Michael Caputo chairman of the Bank of Cyprus, a tax haven The former Trump campaign favored by Russians and many others. consultant did extensive PR work for Photos by AFP Story starts on page 10. Russian President Vladimir Putin.

National 2, 7 – 11 Business 3, 6 Follow the on CURRENCY WATCH Facebook at Opinion 4, 5 Lifestyle 12 – 14 www.facebook.com/ KyivPost, and on Twitter Hr 27.45 to $1 Inside: Employment/Real Estate/Classifieds 14, 15 at @KyivPost. March 2 market rate Advertising: +380 44 591-7788 [email protected] Subscriptions: +380 44 591-7788 [email protected] Editorial staff: +380 44 591-3344 [email protected] 2 National March 3, 2017 www.kyivpost.com MARCH 3, 2017 Vol. 22, Issue 9 Copyright © 2017 by Kyiv Post The material published in the Kyiv Post may not be reproduced without the written consent Economy relies heavily of the publisher. All material in the Kyiv Post is protected by Ukrainian and international laws. The views expressed in the Kyiv Post are not necessarily the views of the publisher nor does on Avdiyivka coke plant the publisher carry any responsibility for those views. Газета “Kyiv Post” видається ТОВ “Паблік-Ме- BY WILL PONOMARENKO [email protected] діа”. Щотижневий наклад 9,500 прим. Ціна за домовленістю. Матерiали, надрукованi в AVDIYIVKA, Ukraine – Avdiyivka газетi “Kyiv Post” є власнiстю видавництва, Coke Plant plays a big role in захищенi мiжнародним та українським Ukraine’s economy. Without it, steel законодавством i не можуть бути вiдтворенi and metals production – two key exports – can’t take place and the у будь(якiй формi без письмового дозволу economy tumbles again. Видавця. Думки, висловленi у дописах не But the plant, the biggest one завжди збiгаються з поглядами видавця, of this kind in Europe, and owned який не бере на себе вiдповiдальнiсть за by billionaire ’s наслiдки публiкацiй. Metinvest company, is in a very dan- gerous spot – only a few kilometers Засновник ТОВ “Паблік-Медіа” from Russian-controlled . Головний редактор Брайан Боннер With Russia’s three-year war heat- Відповідальний за випуск ing up again, the plant’s operations Люк Шеньє remain in danger. Since the war Адреса видавця та засновника began, 10 plant employees have співпадають: Україна, м. Київ, 01004, been killed and 50 wounded as the plant has been hit by as many as вул. Пушкінська, 31А, 6-й поверх. 320 shells. Реєстрацiйне свiдоцтво Moreover, there are dangers on Кв № 15261(3833ПР від 19.06.09. the economic front as well: A month- Передплатний індекс ДП Преса 40528 long blockade of the occupied terri- Надруковано ТОВ «Новий друк», tories, led by Ukrainian Donbas war veterans and lawmakers, has cut off 02660, Київ, вулиця Магнітогорська, 1, vital supplies of coking coal to the тел.: 559-9147 enterprise, bringing its stocks to An employee warms his hands in the Avdiyivka Coke Plant on Feb. 21. Only a few kilometers from Russian- occupied Donetsk, the vital supplier to Ukraine’s steel mills is in perpetual danger of being shut down if Замовлення № 13-8040 worryingly low levels. Russia’s war against Ukraine escalates. (Volodymyr Petrov) З приводу розміщення реклами Avdiyivka Coke Plant is typical of звертайтесь: +380 44 591-77-88 such struggling enterprises, because and producing huge metal exports down due to shortages of fuel and Weak hopes it was designed to do business with for Ukraine.” raw materials. The latest surge of fighting, as with Відповідальність за зміст реклами industries that are now separated The plant is a key element of the blockade, has come as a blow несе замовник. by a war front, its director general, Trade in blood Ukraine’s steel industry, accounting to the plant, which was starting to Musa Magomedov, explains. Over 95,000 wagons loaded with for over 20 percent of the country’s recover slightly from the economic Mailing address: “The blockade activists do not industrial commodities have been coke output. It also produces ben- turmoil brought by Russia’s war. Kyiv Post, 31A Pushkinska, Suite 600, 6th floor understand this complicated, bal- halted by the activists’ blockade on zene, coal tar, coal oil ammonium “But now, because of the block- Kyiv, Ukraine, 01004 anced and very interdependent three rail lines that cross the front sulphate and coal gas. ade we’re working at only up to 50 Advertising network of industries here in the line. The activists are demanding It takes the output of the local coal percent of capacity, which means tel. +380 44 591-7788 Donbas,” Magomedov says. “These that the government stop what they mines and converts it into an input we’re operating at a loss. We’re fax +380 44 591-3345 [email protected] are highly populistic and com- call “a trade in blood,” and accuse for metals production in producing only up to 5,000 tons of Editorial staff pletely irresponsible actions. It the nation’s top officials and oli- and Zaporizhia. Coke not only pro- coke per day. The plant isn’t earning tel. +380 44 591-3344 sounds good – ‘stop trading with garchs of taking part in corrupt vides a source of fuel to fire blast money, so as a result we’re paying fax +380 44 591-3345 [email protected] the occupants.’ But nobody wants deals with Russian-backed forces furnaces, its carbon is a reducing even fewer taxes to Ukraine’s state Subscriptions&Distribution to face the real consequences. even as the nation wages war with agent and an alloying constituent budget.” tel. +380 44 591-3344 Whole industries in the region them. in steel. Up to 20 percent of the coking fax +380 44 591-3345 are collapsing, as vital supply and The blockade is already having If the plant stops operating, coal coal needed by the Avdiyivka plant [email protected] production chains are broken. And an effect. In the occupied territories, mining and steelmaking will face used to come from the now-occu- Employment Advertising tel. +380 44 591-3408 many of these enterprises in the a metal works in Yenakievo and the a downturn strong enough have pied zone – in particular from the fax +380 44 591-3345 occupied zone are registered in Krasnodonugol coal mining complex economic effects that will be felt far [email protected] Ukraine, paying taxes to Ukraine, in have already shut beyond the Donbas. more Avdiyivka on page 8

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BY OLEG SUKHOV forces also took over Akhmetov’s BY OLENA GONCHAROVA, Foreign direct investment into Ukraine in 2016 AND DENYS KRASNIKOV Donbas Arena stadium in Donetsk, OLGA RUDENKO by country [email protected] a distribution point for humanitarian AND ANNA YAKUTENKO Other AND [email protected] aid. [email protected], Sergey Palkin, director of Shakhtar [email protected] AND USA The five-week blockade by Football Club, which is also owned [email protected] Turkey Ukrainian activists of trade with by Akhmetov, says nobody from Switzerland Russian-occupied areas of the east- Akhmetov’s side will negotiate with After three years of Russia’s war 37.8% Russia ern Donbas is ratcheting up political Kremlin-backed separatists. “We against Ukraine, the two nations Virgin Islands tensions and may be contributing to won’t talk with them, and there’s no still find it impossible to sever eco- Hungary $4.4 an escalation of the war. point in laying down conditions to nomic ties. In fact, Ukraine’s No 1 The blockade could end in us,” Palkin told the Kyiv Post. enemy is also its No. 1 investor. billion Ukraine ceasing economic ties In 2016, Russia invested $1.67 Italy with the Russian-occupied territo- Economic impact billion in Ukraine – 38 percent of ries. Other possibilities include the The blockade is already harming the the country’s total foreign direct Kremlin stepping up its war or rec- economy on both sides of the war investment, according to the data ognizing its Donbas proxies as sov- front by disrupting energy supplies released by the State Statistics Netherlands ereign entities. and tax payments. Service on March 1. Cyprus On the domestic front, the block- The implications could be even The second-biggest source of for- UK ade may trigger a political crisis if greater. eign money, Cyprus, pumped in Without data from Crimea and war zone in eastern Ukraine. Source: Ukrstat. the authorities decide to crack down National Bank of Ukraine Governor $427 million, four times less than on the activists. Another option Valeria Gontareva said on March 2 Russia. But with Cyprus’ status as Three years into Russia’s war against Ukraine, Russia remains is that Ukrainian President Petro that an extended blockade could cut an offshore tax haven, much of that the runaway investment leader in Ukraine. The United States and Poroshenko will reach a compromise Ukraine’s projected gross domestic money is simply recycling back to Canada, two of Ukraine’s best Western allies, are minor investors by comparison. on restricting trade with separat- produc growth in half – to as little as the nation of origin. ist-held areas. a 1.3 percent increase in 2017. Prime In total, Ukraine received $4.4 fortunes much. 1994, Russia is in fourth place, Minister , billion in direct investment in The dominance of Russia in for- behind Cyprus, the Netherlands Blockade meanwhile, said on March 2 that the 2016 – some 17 percent more than eign investment is a new trend. and Germany. Ukrainian activists spearheaded by blockade could trigger “destructive the $3.7 billion in 2015 – but still In the ranking of biggest foreign Samopomich Party lawmaker Semen processes in the national economy.” too paltry to improve its economic direct investor countries since more Investor on page 11 Semenchenko are blocking railways Supporters of the blockade argue, and roads connecting Ukrainian- however, that Ukraine should reduce held and Russian-occupied areas its economic dependence on Russia and preventing the supplies of some and re-orient its trade elsewhere. products, including coal deliveries to Meanwhile, Kremlin-backed sep- Ukraine. aratists in the Donbas want tighter The activists include war veterans links to Russia. -based sepa- who demand that the government ratists made the ruble their sole offi- halt all trade with the occupied areas cial currency starting from March 1, and pass a law that would formalize while Donetsk-based separatists had the status of these areas as “occupied already done so in 2015. territories.” They also demand that Russian- Escalation separatist forces release Ukrainian Political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko prisoners of war. said Russian military escalation or formal recognition of the Donbas Separatist response separatists may lie ahead. On Feb. Kremlin-backed forces on March 18, Russia recognized the passports 1 said they had started seizing issued by its proxies in the Donbas. Ukrainian companies, including Fesenko said that the blockade could those of billionaire oligarch Rinat also disrupt negotiations to carry Akhmetov, in response to the block- out the Feb. 11, 2015, Minsk peace ade. The separatists said only com- agreement. panies registered in the Russian- The blockade has been backed puppet entities would be allowed to by opposition politicians, includ- function. ing Samopomich Party lawmak- But Akhmetov’s System Capital ers, ex-Georgian President Mikheil Management said on March 2 that Saakashvili and Poroshenko Bloc it would never register in sepa- lawmakers Mustafa Nayyem and ratist-controlled areas, calling the Sergii Leshchenko. They have demands “unacceptable.” criticized smuggling and alleged The SCM Group claims it has rent-seeking schemes in the Donbas paid Hr 100 billion in taxes to the run by Akhmetov and allies of national budget since Russia’s war Poroshenko, who deny them. started, with 10 percent from assets Oleksandr Onyshchenko, a fugitive in Russian-held areas. The group lawmaker charged with theft, claimed has also said that if separatists take in December that Poroshenko’s top control of mills or mines, it would be ally and lawmaker Ihor Kononenko forced to halt production. had been getting $20 per ton on coal supplies from Russian-occupied Ukrtelecom fiasco Donbas, which Kononenko denies. Monopoly fixed-phone operator “Political tensions have risen Ukrtelecom, owned by Akhmetov, because of the blockade,” Fesenko switched off part of its network in said. “This shows how fragile the after Russian-backed political situation in the country is.” forces seized control of the company’s Vitaly Bala, head of the Situation 900-employee Donetsk office on March Modeling Agency, said that 1. Some 200,000 people remain affected. Poroshenko should try to reach a On Feb. 28, Russian-separatist compromise with the activists.  4 Opinion March 3, 2017 www.kyivpost.com

Editorials Come live Borders harden here! Best schools, great After three years of war, the Russians are hardening their stance towards healthcare Ukraine. Without a stronger response from the West and Ukraine’s lead- ers, Ukraine stands to forever lose parts of the eastern Donbas now NEWS ITEM: At a press conference in under Russian-separatist control. The area amounts to 2.5 percent of February, Ihor Plotnitsky, head of Russian- backed separatists in Luhansk, called on Ukraine’s territory or 15,341 square kilometers. Ukrainians who live in the government- The Russian side has begun a campaign to nationalize Ukrainian busi- controlled territories to move to Luhansk – nesses in areas it controls, including the regional capitals of Donetsk and among other reasons, for supposedly better Luhansk, which together had pre-war populations of 1.5 million people. healthcare and education. Ukrainian billionaire Rinat Akhmetov and other Donbas oligarchs, with heavy investments in steel, coal and chemical plants, stand to lose the most. But Akhmetov appears to be striking back. Akhmetov countered this week in two ways: On March 2, the owner of fixed-phone monopoly Ukrtelecom switched off part of its network, cutting internet and telephone services for almost 200,000 people, after a separatist takeover of his Donetsk office. The office and its 900 employees had continued working even after Russian- backed forces occupied those territories, because the regulator – the Ukrainian State Centre of Radio Frequencies – told them to keep going. Additionally, Akhmetov’s charitable foundation also announced it would stop distributing aid and warned of a humanitarian catastrophe. Hang in there, The Russian-backed actions come in response to a blockade for the buddy! I’m tired last several weeks of rail lines by Ukrainian nationalists who want to too disrupt transport, particularly of coal, from separatist areas to Ukrainian- government controlled ones. The escalating enmity has also seen Russia agree to recognize “pass- ports” issued by their puppet proxies who insist on calling their territo- ries the “Luhansk People’s Republic” and “Donetsk People’s Republic.” NEWS ITEM: Kyiv mayor Vitali Additionally, the Luhansk areas under Russian control are switching Klitschko made headlines when he officially to the Russian ruble as currency. said that the overpass in Shulyavsky Some argue that Ukrainian citizens living under Russian-occupied neighborhood in Kyiv that partly territory should be treated no differently than any other citizens, when collapsed on Feb. 27, did so because it comes to public services and pensions. We disagree. Ukraine should “it was tired.” not be trading with the enemy or helping to prop up the international lawlessness of the armed occupiers. The only solution to the problem is to go back to the basics: Russian withdrawal of troops, arms and financial support for their instigated war and a retreat to their internationally recognized borders – meaning with- drawal from the east and Crimea.

Losing Gontareva Welcome back, Nadiya! Without reservation, Valeria Gontareva was the finest central bank gov- ernor in the nation’s history. But if reports are true that she wants out by summer, she’d be the first one to admit that the nation hasn’t done everything it needs to do to clean up the corrupt banking sector and make sure it stays clean. Much of the blame for the National Bank of Ukraine’s shortcomings, however, also rest with the broken-by-design criminal justice system. This means the fault lies squarely with President , who clings to the authoritarian/Soviet impulse that he as the top elected NEWS ITEM: Lawmaker and ex-military official decides who goes to jail and who doesn’t. He controls the events pilot surprised through his appointment of the general prosecutor, currently the useless many when on Feb. 24 visited , and by delaying reform that would rid the nation of its Donetsk, the stronghold of the 7,000 useless and corrupt judges. Russian-backed separatists, to Gontareva and the central bank have made great strides in closing see the Ukrainian captives. half the nation’s banks, most of them used for insider embezzlement Savchenk was captured by schemes, and for bringing a measure of transparency to ownership and separatists in 2014 and financial statements. spent nearly two years But that’s pretty much where the success ends. Those who defaulted in prison in Russia. on multimillion-loans are still walking the streets of Ukraine (and halls of parliament), protected by political patronage and banking secrecy. Not a single case of bank fraud has been prosecuted in Ukraine, despite losses that will top $20 billion – 20 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product! – once the losses of billionaire Ihor Kolomoisky’s now state-owned PrivatBank are factored in. The biggest future danger is that Poroshenko will replace Gontareva with another of his loyalist political hacks, who will proceed to reverse the limited progress made by the admirable team that Gontareva has led I hate it when for the last three years. cases are destroyed

NEWS ITEM: Prosecutor General Mohammad Zahoor, Publisher Case Yuriy Lutsenko on Feb. 28 accused Luc Chénier, Chief Executive Offi cer the Supreme Court of Ukraine Brian Bonner, Chief Editor of ordering his office to close Editors: Euan MacDonald, Olga Rudenko the corruption investigation Staff Writers: Olena Goncharova, Oksana Grytsenko, Isobel Koshiw, Josh Kovensky, against Yuriy Ivaniushchenko, aka Denys Krasnikov, Vlad Lavrov, Veronika Melkozerova, Victoria Petrenko, Will Ponomarenko, Yura Yenakievskiy, a key ally of Maria Romanenko, Yuliana Romanyshyn, Elena Serdyuk, Oleg Sukhov, Nataliya Trach, Natalie Vikhrov, Anna Yakutenko, Alyona Zhuk ex-President Viktor Yanukovych and Photo Editor: Pavlo Podufalov. former lawmaker. Activists argued Photographers: Kostyantyn Chernichkin, Volodymyr Petrov, Anastasia Vlasova that Lutsenko‘d office sabotaged the Chief Designer: Vladyslav Zakharenko investigation and its closure couldn’t Social Media Manager: Iryna Savchuk have come as surprise. Commercial Director: Alyona Nevmerzhytska Transport Manager: Mykola Andrusha Special Events Director: Alisa Berezutska Chief Accountant: Galyna Rogachova Sales Managers: Yulia Kovalenko, Accountant: Yana Chernik Yulia Krus, Vita Shvets, Elena Symonenko IT Managers: Oleksiy Bondarchuk, Designer: Anton Ekle Oleksandr Slipachenko Subscription Manager: Svitlana Kolesnikova Graphic Artist: Stella Shabliovska Feel strongly about an issue? Agree or disagree with editorial positions in this newspaper? Offi ce Manager: Olena Koval. Digital Strategy: Anton Nedzvedsky The Kyiv Post welcomes letters to the editors and opinion pieces, usually 800 to 1,000 words in length. Please email all corre- To inquire about distribution of the Kyiv Post, please contact Svitlana Kolesnikova spondence to Brian Bonner chief editor, at [email protected]. All correspondence must include an email address and at [email protected] or by phone at 591-3344 contact phone number for verifi cation. www.kyivpost.com March 3, 2017 OpinionOpinip on 5

Reformer of the week Anti-reformer of the week Dmytro Neskoromny Oleksandr Tereshchuk VOXX Dmytro Neskoromny, a deputy head of Ex-Kyiv Police Chief Oleksandr Tereshchuk the Security Service of Ukraine’s anti-cor- on Feb. 27 won the competition for the job of populipuli

ruption department, was fired on Feb. 27. Odesa Oblast’s first deputy governor. WITH WILL PONOMARENKO Neskoromny participated in the arrest Tereshchuk headed Volyn Oblast’s police on bribery charges in 2015 of top prosecu- under ex-President Viktor Yanukovych in 2012– Is it in Ukraine’s best tors Oleksandr Korniyets and Volodymyr 2014 and has no right to hold state jobs under Shapakin – protégés of ex-Prosecutor the lustration law on the firing of Yanukovych- interests to keep up General known as “diamond era officials. He has been criticized for cracking prosecutors” due to the gems found in down on protesters in the oblast during the Donbas blockade? Korniyets’ house. 2013–2014 Revolution. Roman All top officials who participated in the He was later appointed chief of Kyiv police Diordiyach, case against the “diamond prosecutors” and fired in June 2015. But a month later charity worker have been forced out of government President Petro Poroshenko exempted him “We have to or suspended, with most facing criminal cases. These include ex-SBU from lustration. stop the war Deputy Chief Viktor Trepak, former deputy prosecutor generals Davit The Justice Ministry’s lustration department and the Civic Lustration in the Donbas Sakvarelidze and Vitaly Kasko, and prosecutors Vitaly Opanasenko and Committee believe Poroshenko’s decree was illegal because such exemptions first to resume Yanis Simonov. can only apply to top military officials, which Poroshenko denies. In late 2015 normal trade. Kyiv’s Holosiivsky Court has been dragging its feet on the Korniyets- Tereshchuk was fired again. Both sides Shapakin case for a year and has been accused of sabotaging it. The Poroshenko has also sabotaged the lustration law by refusing to fire his have to pull diamond prosecutors are not under arrest, and their assets have been Deputy Chief of Staff Oleksiy Dniprov, Kirovohrad Oblast Governor Serhiy their troops back from the front unfrozen. Kuzmenko, Governor Yuriy Harbuz and the Security Service line and do whatever it takes to Neskoromny was fired by SBU Deputy Chief Pavlo Demchyna, who is of Ukraine’s top investigator, Grigory Ostafiychuk, according to the lustration ensure there is a stable peace. That is what we must do instead of an ally of President Petro Poroshenko’s grey cardinals Ihor Kononenko department. those blockades. Peace is the only and Oleksandr Hranovsky and is reportedly being considered as a can- Tereshchuk’s appointment comes as critics dismiss ongoing competitions possible option.” didate to head the SBU. Meanwhile, Vasyl Burba, a former SBU official for top state jobs as sham procedures manipulated by top officials and argue who took part in the crackdown on EuroMaidan protesters in 2014, was that old corrupt cadres and graft schemes are making a comeback in Odesa Igor appointed by Poroshenko as chief of military intelligence last year and is after Odesa Oblast’s Governor ’s resignation last year and Zhezheyan, also allegedly a candidate to become the SBU’s chief. the appointment of his successor Maxim Stepanov in January. university grad- — Oleg Sukhov — Oleg Sukhov uate “On the one hand, the blockade of the occupied Donbass is logical. One Ukraine’s Friend & Foe Of The Week just can’t trade and wage war with Editor’s Note: This feature separates Ukraine’s friends from its enemies The Order of Yaroslav the Wise has been given since 1995 for distin- someone at the same time. On the guished service to the nation. It is named after the Kyivan Rus leader from 1019-1054, when the medieval empire reached its zenith. The Order of other hand, someone definitely has a vested interest in this block- Lenin was the highest decoration bestowed by the , whose demise Russian President Vladimir Putin mourns. It is named after Vladimir ade, and we can’t trust our own Lenin, whose corpse still rots on the Kremlin’s Red Square, 100 years after the October Revolution he led. authorities.”

Elizaveta Sydelnykova, student (AFP) (AFP) “Because of this blockade, enterprises are shutting down and thousands of people could lose their jobs. I think Ukraine must resume trad- ing industrial commodities across the frontline, so the plants can go on working. But nothing more - let the occupant feed and support the people living there.”

Volodymyr Marine Le Pen Luzhkovsky, pensioner Russia interferes in many elections seek a meeting with Le Pen in Paris “Relations abroad, from the United States to in May to try to change her mind between It will take knowledgeable and prin- on foreign aid. In short, considering France and elsewhere, so why about Crimea. Ukraine and cipled Republicans, who control the Pentagon has covered up $125 can’t Ukraine at least take sides?des? Le Pen also thinks Ukraine’s its occupied the American government now, to billlion in waste in recent years, it’s One of the next electionsns EuroMaidanE Revolution zone in the Donbas are so stop the destructive impulses of a disastrous plan. American needs in Europe with a big stakee that ousted dictator Viktor untransparent U. S. President Donaldonald diplomacydiplo and foreign aid as for Ukraine is the Frenchh Yanukovych was a “coup.” that it is very complicated to get J. Trump. partpart of its arsenal, not just presidential election on She also is critical of a clue about what is going on. But Unfortunately, therehere thethe heavy-handed “do as we April 23 and, barring a NATO and threatens to one thing is crystal clear for me - aren’t enough of them.hem. say”say or we’ll go to war. majority victory by any of withdraw France from the all of us living in this country must But one shining lightlight Also,A in a town forum the candidates, a runoff twowo eurozonee and possibly the stop thinking of building walls and has been U. S. SSen.en. broadcastbro by CNN, weeks later on May 7. EuropeanE Union. cutting our own territories off - Lindsey Graham of GrahamGra -- with another Marine Le Pen, thee She is, in short, a disaster. otherwise nobody in the Donbas South Carolina, who titimeme stalwartstalw Ukrainian friend National Front leader withh But there are other politi- will want to come back to Ukraine and again has arguedued for U. S. SSen. John McCain of financial backing from thehe calc storm clouds in Europe. after the war.” stronger U.S. supportrt of ArizonaAriz at his side -- said Kremlin, is favored Far-right, EU-bashing Ukraine. thattha the U.S. should by polls to make it and Ukraine-bashing Liudmila First this week,k, imposeim harder sanctions into the runoff elec- Order of Lenin Geert Wilders has a Kalan, Graham called on Russia for inter- tion. This would be chance, according to painter “Blockades Trump’s budget ference in the U.S. a disaster for France, we think, but polls, of emerging victorious in the always inhibit proposal “dead presidential elections particularly for Ukraine. March 15 parliamentary elections in economic on arrival.” It wouldd andan Ukraine. She is another politician who has the Netherlands. development, have gutted foreigngn “I“ want the Russians to expressed admiration for Russian It was Wilders who used a which is vital aid and cut be sanctioned more dictator Vladimir Putin (what is non-binding referendum on wheth- for us all. The the U. S. State Orderdf of Yaroslav l for interfering in the fetish so many politicians in er to accept or reject the EU trade war won’t go Department The Wise our election and the democracies have with dictators?) deal with Ukraine as a publicity on forever, and someday Ukraine budget 37 last thing Trump and who supports Russia’s illegal drive for his nationalist and protec- will get the Donbas back. If we percent while should ever envision annexation of Crimea. tionist views. go on blocking those plants, even boosting defense spending an addi- is relieving sanctions that would All of this leaves some heavy dip- And if these elections aren’t more people will lose their jobs, tional $54 billion (on top of the reward them for taking Crimea by lomatic lifting ahead for Ukrainian enough to keep Ukraine fans up and will blame Ukraine for that. $662 billion already spent). The force because Putin will not stop Ambassador to France Oleg at night, the German parliamentary We’re deliberately cutting off our one-year increase sought by Trump until somebody makes him stop,” Shamshur and Foreign Minister elections are Sept. 24 – with their greatest industrial center - this is is more than the State Department Graham said. , who is quoted as own Euroskeptic candidates running. economic suicide for Ukraine.” spends and more than gets spent — Brian Bonner telling 1+1 TV channel that he will — Brian Bonner 6 Business March 3, 2017 www.kyivpost.com CEO Watch Lifecell’s Ersoy identifies obstacles to competition

BY RAHIM RAHEMTULLA But the influx of users switching [email protected] from competitors failed to material- ize. According to data, in the Like any good business leader, Burak fourth quarter of 2105, lifecell could Ersoy wants to his company to grow. boast of 13.5 million subscribers. By But as the CEO of lifecell, Ukraine’s the fourth quarter of 2016 that num- smallest mobile operator in terms of ber had fallen to 12.4 million, a drop market share, the native of Ankara, of 8.1 percent. Turkey, says his task is made a lot more difficult by a market distorted Portability problem to benefit his competitors. A significant part of the problem, A case in point: the auctioning off said Ersoy, is Ukraine’s lack of by Ukraine of 3G licenses in 2015. mobile number portability, which Lifecell spent Hr 3.36 billion ($103 means users cannot move between million) on acquiring what its parent networks without also changing their company, Turkcell, describes on its phone number. This disproportion- website as “the number one pack- ately benefits and Vodafone, age.” The outlay was approximately both of whom entered the Ukrainian $20 million more than that made by mobile communications market either Kyivstar or more than a decade before lifecell. (known as MTS until a 2015 rebrand- Kyivstar and Vodafone have ing) – the number one and number together “more than 45 million sub- two firms respectively in the coun- scribers,” Ersoy said. “These sub- try’s mobile telecoms market. scribers are captive. Between net- Following the auction, lifecell work operators the market is not moved fast to roll out 3G nationwide liberated. As a customer you have in a bid to get ahead of the other your number, but you don’t have the players. By the middle of 2016, said right to transfer from one operator Ersoy, the company was the market to another. People have numbers CEO Burak Ersoy of lifecell speaks during a Feb. 15 interview with the Kyiv Post. The Ankara, Turkey, native leader in terms of mobile internet they’ve been using for the last twenty says he strives for a level playing field so all mobile network operators can compete fairly on the Ukrainian speed as well as geographical and years, it’s like an address for them market. (Volodymyr Petrov) population coverage. This forced the now. Even if they’re not happy with relevant legislation by lawmakers, tion come from inside to outside,” we will support them. It’s a coaching other providers to step up their own the service they are receiving, they suspected of protected vested inter- said Ersoy. process.” investments in order to keep pace. cannot move.” ests, and legal challenges in tender “We, as a team, cook, and hope “If we hadn’t acted as we did, A standard feature of most cellular processes. the customers will love and eat what Lifelong learning the coverage and speed across the communications markets globally, Ersoy, meanwhile, suggests that we produce. But actually you have to Ersoy is now into his second year industry wouldn’t be what it is today,” mobile number portability has been the issue lies with the Ukrainian ask the customers what they want to as CEO at lifecell after a decade Ersoy told the Kyiv Post in an inter- on the agenda in Ukraine for a num- government and market regula- eat. Here in Ukraine there is another of working in his home country at view. “As a challenger, we did this ber of years. tor, which are failing to put the position: even the people do not Turkcell. with some hope; the others then It hasn’t happened because of needs of consumers at the heart of know what they want to eat.” He said coming to Ukraine made followed us.” habitual delays in passing of the policymaking. The CEO says changing this state sense as part of his professional phi- “The rights of customers are not of affairs is a key part of his personal losophy to always seek new oppor- what is being followed,” he said. mission. He likes to spend as much tunities to learn. Although working Advertisement “Now those who are strong are being time as possible “out in the field,” in Turkey gave him a thorough edu- ON THE MOVE followed. This is very unusual and talking to customers to better under- cation in how to operate in mar- should be corrected.” stand their tastes and buying habits. kets where business and politics EVERLEGAL has a new partner Ersoy drew the Kyiv Post’s atten- The problem of the passive consum- are deeply entwined, the Ukrainian tion to a vote on a draft law on er, he believes, is not only confined mobile telecoms sector can still offer market regulation that was due to to mobile communications. many lessons. (YHUOHJDODODZˋUPIURP8NUDLQH V7RSODZ have taken place in the Cabinet of “It happens wherever you see “I might be a very good cook,” he ˋUPV OLVWLVKDSS\WRDQQRXQFHDERXWWKHSUR- Ministers earlier this month, but the service business,” Ersoy said. said. “I have the recipe. It might be PRWLRQRI2OHNVDQGU5X]K\WVN\LIRUPHU&RXQ- which was ultimately delayed. “When I see the interaction between the best recipe. But the ingredients VHOWRSDUWQHUVKLS “Somehow they postponed it,” said the seller and the buyer, the seller is of the recipe are not the same as ,QKLVQHZUROHDVDSDUWQHU2OHNVDQGUZLOOFRQ- the lifecell CEO. “We have to under- still the king. This is not right. We those you get used to.” stand why. It’s lobbying, it’s conflicts have to shift it. I’m on it, and the He told the Kyiv Post that one of WLQXH IRFXVLQJ RQ 'LVSXWH 5HVROXWLRQ /LWLJD- of interest, you might call it anything. company is on it.” his biggest challenges is convincing WLRQ $UELWUDWLRQ(XURSHDQ&RXUWRI+XPDQ For sure it might be very beneficial Ersoy takes a similarly active Turkcell of the continued need to 5LJKWV DQG&RPPHUFLDO0DWWHUVSUDFWLFHDUHDV for some people – but not for the approach in his interactions with the invest in Ukraine. That task would Oleksandr 2OHNVDQGUKDVDSURYHQWUDFNUHFRUGLQDGYLVLQJ Ruzhytskyi customers.” employees at lifecell, who number undoubtedly be made easier if the IRUHLJQDQGORFDOFOLHQWVRQFRPSOH[OHJDOLVVXHV about 1,000. He says he likes to walk rules governing the marketplace – in Partner at EVERLEGAL UHODWHGWREXVLQHVVRSHUDWLRQVDQGLQVXFFHVV- Customer education around and be inspired by their ideas, business and in life – were made the IXOO\UHSUHVHQWLQJWKHFOLHQWVEHIRUHFRXUWVDQG When it comes to making Ukraine’s and gain insights from their work. same for all players. DUELWUDOWULEXQDOV+HbKDVSDUWLFXODUO\GHHSDQGEURDGH[SHUWLVHLQHPSOR\- mobile market more valuable and Still, he admits to being unhappy Ersoy says leveling the playing PHQWDQGWD[GLVSXWHVDVZHOODV(&+5ˋOLQJV better functioning, Ersoy says con- with productivity levels, and says he field is his top aim. sumers – not just the government is trying to foster a mindset where “What’s going wrong in this coun- 2OHNVDQGU UHFHLYHG KLV PDVWHU RI ODZV GHJUHH IURP /YLY 8QLYHUVLW\/DZ and regulators – have an important workers take more responsibility in try? It’s about monopoly of any- 6FKRROLQDQGFRPSOHWHGWKH+XPDQ5LJKWV(GXFDWLRQIRU/DZ\HUV role to play. For too long, he believes, their areas of expertise. thing,” he said. “If you have power – SURJUDPLQ%HVLGHVWULDOVDQGEXVLQHVVODZ2OHNVDQGULVSDVVLRQDWH Ukrainians have been settling for “What I see is that the culture is it might be legislative, it might be DERXWVSRUWVSURERQRZRUNIRU1*2VDQGbJUHHQHQHUJ\ whatever is being offered, instead of too process-oriented,” he explained. customer-based, it might be your demanding more and better services “People don’t care about the results. dominant market position – it should from suppliers. In fact, at times, they If the process is going well, then not be abused. What I see is that it’s do not even know what it is they everyone is happy, regardless of time being abused. We need legislation T. +380 44 337 0016 4 Rylskyi Lane, Sofiyska square should be asking for. and the quality. We have to give the and regulation to liberate the cus- F. +380 44 337 0018 Kyiv 01001, Ukraine  [email protected] www.everlegal.ua “The most fatal error for any com- confidence to people to tell them tomers’ ideas.” pany is that all the ideas and execu- they can do it. We have to tell them www.kyivpost.com March 3, 2017 National 7 The spectacular rise and fall of Ihor Kolomoisky’s steel empire

BY JOSH KOVENSKY – in the same A view of the Petrovsky Metallurgical Plant in AND NATALIE VIKHROV way that they fought over Ukraine’s in November 2011. Privat [email protected] Soviet-built industrial plants in Group acquired an AND [email protected] the 1990s and 2000s. One deal, Ohio steel mill in 2001 involving Russian oligarch Roman with the hopes of Few people in Warren, Ohio or Abramovich, bled into the sale of a using its equipment Mason County, West Virginia have Warren, Ohio steel mill. to fill out Petrovsky. ever heard of Ihor Kolomoisky. Yet Much of this is revealed through () both U.S. cities are home to steel legal filings made by Vadim Shulman, plants that have been run by a Krivyi Rih businessman and the Ukrainian oligarch for partner of Kolomoisky, who more than 10 years. fell out with him over a Kolomoisky used the deal gone wrong involving plants as keystones of Warren, and who has filed an attempt to corner the subpoenas in several U.S. global ferroalloy market, states as apparent warn- building an empire ing shots in preparation that extended from the for a potential later law- American Midwest to suit. Shulman also sued the Australian outback and Kolomoisky directly in the back to the ferroalloy plants United States, demanding $3 along the Dnipro River. million in damages before a judge The buyouts led Kolomoisky’s dismissed the case. companies to, at one point, control Kolomoisky, whose network of more than 40 percent of the world companies is called Privat Group, manganese trade and more than is undergoing financial troubles that half of the United States’ output of echo those of the communities where silicomanganese – a crucial resource he ran factories. Many of his assets for forging structural steel. have now shut down or scaled back Shulman, a Krivyi Rih business- nese miners, Australia’s Consolidated able (bidder),” Stedman said. But with the recent fall in glob- production as Privat Group under- man with Jewish roots, had built a Minerals (Consmin). Between its Bogolyubov then set out to expand al commodities prices and the goes financial tremors in the wake of coke fuel fiefdom over the course of Australian and operations, it his share of the global manganese Ukrainian government intent on the nationalization of PrivatBank, the the decade. In 1999, Shulman told controlled around 10 percent of the market through OM Holdings, which reining in oligarchs, Kolomoisky has empire’s “core,” Fesenko said. Forbes in a November 2012 inter- world’s manganese ore supply. held five percent of the world supply been put on the retreat. Pat Gallagher of United view, he was the main coke supplier Bogolyubov bought the company through its Bootu Creek mine. One of the main holding compa- Steelworkers in Warren, Ohio, said for Dnipro’s Evraz metallurgic facto- for $1.1 billion after defeating former In November 2008, Bogolyubov nies for the Dnipro, Ukraine, native’s Warren supplied around 200 jobs. ry, then known as Petrovsky. BHP Billiton CEO Brian Gilbertson’s spent a reported $27 million to buy U.S. factories has declared bank- “It’s a loss to any community when Kolomoisky and Shulman went in Pallinghurst Resources in a 2007 an 11 percent stake in OM Holdings. ruptcy, while his biggest Australian you lose that,” he said. together to buy a stake in the plant bidding war. But OM Holdings beat back the mining venture, which included An employee of Felman from the government in 2001, after Glenn Stedman, a Queensland takeover attempt. Privat Group sued operations in Ghana, was sold to Production, a West Virginia sili- befriending each other on a trip to shareholder with a then-sizeable OM Holdings to force the takeover Chinese investors in November last comanganese plant controlled by . Consmin stake, launched a campaign through a subsidiary called Stratford year – along with the company’s Kolomoisky, said that the company But they faced a problem: against Pallinghurst’s bid, calling on Sun Limited, but lost that case as $400 million debt. doesn’t receive enough money to Petrovsky was full of dilapidated, shareholders to hold out for a better well. “Kolomoisky has suffered signifi- operate safely. Soviet-era equipment, making it hard offer. OM Holdings executive chairman cant losses, but he hasn’t lost every- Kolomoisky did not comment. to run. Bogolyubov swooped in with that Low Ngee Tong, in a 2012 interview thing,” said Volodymyr Fesenko, head Jason Chudoba, a spokesman for his The Ukrainian businessmen rival offer through an offshore com- with The Edge Markets, said the of the PENTA political research cen- U.S. firms, declined to comment. looked to America’s industri- pany called Palmary Enterprises, Ukrainian billionaire planned to ‘gain ter in Kyiv. al Midwest. At the time, an Ohio winning shareholders over by sweet- significant control over Australia’s Court filings reveal that Kolomoisky American empire steelmaker called CSC had declared ening the deal to $5 per share. manganese output’ by combining was divvying up and fighting over The story of Kolomoisky’s American bankruptcy after investing $100 mil- “It was a hostile takeover but the rusting U.S. steel mills with other empire begins in the late 1990s. lion into its Warren, Ohio plant. I think Palmary was the most honor- more Kolomoisky on page 9 According to a U.S. court filing, the two businessmen, along with Advertisement Kolomoisky's American Kolomoisky partner Gennadiy ON THE MOVE Industrial Empire Bogolyubov, saw the purchase as a chance to “break the plant down, and transport it to Ukraine where it Vitaliy Kasko joins Vasil Kisil & Partners would be reconstructed and there- ODZˋUPDVbDbSDUWQHU after carry on the steel-making business.” Shulman bought the plant for $13.5 9LWDOL\ .DVNR MRLQV9DVLO.LVLO  3DUW- million in 2001, before he, along with QHUVODZˋUPDVDSDUWQHU9LWDOL\ZLOO Kolomoisky and Bogolyubov, each KHDG DQG GHYHORS WKH :KLWH &ROODU Ihor Kolomoisky Gennadiy Bogolyubov Mordechai ‘Motti’ Korf invested $30 million. &ULPH SUDFWLFH WR DQWLFLSDWH LQWHUQD- Yet years later, Shulman would WLRQDODQGORFDOFOLHQWVH[SHFWDWLRQV come to regret the venture. He later 33% 33% 33% alleged in court that he had been 6LQFH  0U .DVNR KDV EHHQ DFW- cheated out of his stake through Optima Acquistions LLC LQJ DGYLVHU WR WKH &RXQFLO RI (XURSH a campaign of insider lending that DQGRWKHULQWHUQDWLRQDORUJDQL]DWLRQV saddled him with tens of millions Vitaliy Kasko in debt, while Kolomoisky and ZRUNLQJ RQ FULPLQDO MXVWLFH DQG KX- Bogolyubov robbed the company. Vasil Kisil & Partners, PDQ ULJKWV 6LQFH 6HSWHPEHU  KH Optima Felman Steel CC Metals Warren Felman partner LVD0HPEHURIWKH([HFXWLYH&RPPLW- Speciality Trading Rolling and Alloys, Steel Production Silicon ambitions [email protected] WHHRIWKH,QWHUQDWLRQDO$VVRFLDWLRQRI Steel Holding Inc. LLC Holdings By the late 2000s, Privat Group ǭǭ 3URVHFXWRUV ,$3 DQGVLQFH$SULO had all but consolidated its hold on KHLVD0HPEHURIWKH%RDUGRI7UDQV- Ukraine’s ferroalloy market, taking www.vkp.ua 33%% SDUHQF\ ,QWHUQDWLRQDO 8NUDLQH 6LQFH total control of the country’s man- ganese supply, as well as that of  KH LV D 0HPEHU RI WKH &RQVWL- Corey Niagara Kentucky Michigan WXWLRQDO &RPPLVVLRQ 8QWLO )HEUXDU\ Steel LaSalle Electic Seamless . Company Steel Tube Vadim Shulman The businessmen began to look 0U.DVNRZDV'HSXW\3URVHFXWRU abroad. *HQHUDORI8NUDLQH Privat Group acquired dozens of assets in the United States starting in In 2008, Privat Group bought 2001, leading to a multi-state steel empire. one of the world’s largest manga- 8 National March 3, 2017 www.kyivpost.com If Avdiyivka plant closes, nation’s economy suffers

Avdiyivka from page 2 recently shut down Krasnodonugol mining complex, which also belongs to Akhmetov’s Metinvest. “In order to be fully supplied with raw materials, we have been ordering coking coal from Australia, the United States and New Zealand. But foreign supplies take rather a long time to come, and are expensive, and there’s not enough coking coal for us from other parts of Ukraine. When we don’t get enough raw materials, we decrease our productivity and thus increase our losses,” Magomedov adds. Loss of earnings Just to break even, as many as 450 of the giant coke plant’s 520 coking ovens must be operating, consuming at least 10,000 tons of coal per day. But due to shortages, only 320 ovens are operating now. The shortages of materials ripple down the industrial chain – the steel plants, lacking enough coke (produc- ing a ton of cast iron requires at least 400 tons of coke) have been forced to cut production of steel and pig iron. According to the director general, On Feb. 20, a blockade activist the plant’s current stockpiles of raw stands on railway wagons loaded with coal from Russian-occupied materials and fuel will be exhausted in territories that have been only about nine days, and after that the stopped near , Ukraine. enterprise will have to switch to using (Volodymyr Petrov) expensive to maintain the temperatures of its coking ovens. If the ager at Metinvest, Yuriy Zinchenko, Oleksander Kalenkov, the head of soon be halved for all 4,000 work- shut down for good if conditions temperature of the ovens falls below said on Feb. 26. He said up to Ukraine’s biggest steel industry associ- ers. Besides, the city’s centralized don’t improve. 700 degrees Celsius (their operating 120,000 people would lose their jobs ation Ukrmetalyrgprom, is even more heating system depends completely temperature is 1,100 degrees), the in Mariupol alone. pessimistic. During a government on thermal power from the plant. Building a wall ovens could suffer irreparable damage According to Dmytro Solohub, the meeting hosted by Prime Minister At the height of the fighting, with Apart from the blockade on the when fired up again, and the plant will deputy head of the National Bank Volodymyr Groysman on Feb. 28, he the plant facing shutdown, Avdiyivka Ukrainian-controlled side of the front be impossible to restart. of Ukraine, the consequent slump estimated the probable losses at least was repeatedly on the brink of being line, the self-proclaimed authorities Once the Avdiyivka coke plant is in steel production in the Donbas $3.5 billion in 2017, calling the block- left without heating, even as tem- in the occupied territories are pro- stopped, the Azovstal and the Ilyich would cost the country $2 billion ade effect “a catastrophe”. peratures plunged to –20 degrees hibiting Metinvest from repairing all Steel and Iron Works, the two giant in foreign currency revenues, given And there are local effects from Celsius. Magomedov, who even in of the electricity wires getting to the metalworks industries in Mariupol, that the metallurgical industry still the disruption of the industry as his own office always wears red-and- coke plant. as well as the city’s cargo port, would accounts for up to 40 percent of the well. The production cutbacks mean gray work clothes like the other plant “We’re now facing two block- also shut down in days, a senior man- nation’s exports. that the salaries at the plant will workers, says the plant might even ades – Ukrainian activists are block- ing raw materials, and the separat- ists are preventing energy supplies,” Magomedov says. “I sometimes wonder if they all are acting in some coordinated plan to suffocate us.” However, Magomedov also lays the blame on the Ukrainian presi- dential administration and the gov- ernment. They have not offered a strategy either to develop the coun- try’s economy, or come up with spe- cific policies on the Donbas, he says. “First we need to decide if we real- ly want to bring the occupied Donbas back to Ukraine,” Magomedov says. “If we do, we must not abandon the millions of people living there, leav- ing them without jobs and any hope for a future in Ukraine. The nation has been at war for almost three years – why isn’t there a decent law on connections with the occupied zones?” “Just now this blockade, and the government’s reaction to it, makes it look as if we’re building a concrete wall segregating our own land from us. We’ve already lost Crimea, and we’re deliberately cutting part of the Donbas off. “What region will be next to be cut off in the same way?”  www.kyivpost.com March 3, 2017 National 9 Kolomoisky’s fortunes slip Kolomoisky's Australian Industrial Empire

because of insider dealing, 33%33 33%33% bad management of firms Gennadiy Bogolyubov Ihor Kolomoisky Kolomoisky from page 7 part of a deal between Kolomoisky $260 million in unpaid loans, taken and Russian oligarch Roman out to finance expansion that saw OM with Consmin. Abramovich, who owns international Optima buy out five separate facto- Stedman, who also has a stake steelmaker Evraz. ries across four states. Palmary Enterprises Consolidated Minerals OM Holdings in OM Holdings, agreed Privat was News reports from the time point Kolomoisky and Bogolyubov set (Belize) (Headquarters in Jersey) (Bermuda) trying to corner the country’s man- to the sale of Dnipro’s Petrovsky up Optima Acquisitions in June ganese industry. factory as the centerpiece of a pur- 2008 to manage the investments. After the Australian acquisitions, ported deal in which Kolomoisky According to a bankruptcy filing, Privat Group came to control up to and Shulman were to sell a stake the company is one third owned 40 percent of the world manganese in the plant to Evraz, along with by Kolomoisky, Bogolyubov, and Woodie Woodie Ghana Manganese Stratford Sun market, some estimates reported. other coking and iron enrichment a Florida man named Mordechai manganese mine Company Limited (BVI) shareholder plants. In exchange, Privat would get “Motti” Korf. (Australia) (90% shares) Back to Warren a significant, undisclosed stake in Korf, who did not reply to requests for Australia’s Consolidated Minerals gave Gennadiy Bogolyubov control Kolomoisky’s ferroalloy business Abramovich’s conglomerate. comment, appears to have been linked over 10 percent of the world’s manganese ore supply. Bogolyubov formed a large part of PrivatBank’s But a disagreement over share to Kolomoisky’s business in . and Kolomoisky no longer own PrivatBAnk, after the statedeclared it loan book, taking up around 20 payouts reportedly saw Kolomoisky Optima Management, a firm run by insolvent with loses of $6 billion and nationalized it. percent – Hr 35 billion ($1.3 bil- forcibly retain control over Ukraine’s Korf’s brother-in-law and two-thirds The billionaire met with U.S. fed- sure, two months before the sale. lion) – of the bank’s loans, according southern iron enrichment plant after owned by Privat Group, is the largest eral law enforcement while on a one- Peter O’Connor, an Australian to Anastasiya Tuyukova, a Dragon it was supposed to be transferred to property owner in central Cleveland. time visa in 2015, during which he investment analyst, called the sale Capital banking analyst. Abramovich, souring the deal. went to basketball games, according genius, saying the manganese mar- Though it is unclear exactly how Legal filings say that Kolomoisky Insider loans to a Facebook post by BPP deputy ket was recovering at the time. It’s much of that money sloshed around injected $30 million into Warren Many of Kolomoisky’s companies . not clear that Privat’s nationalization Privat Group’s U.S. and Australian Steel in 2008 as part of the deal with appear to have been mismanaged. Other events in recent months hurt Kolomoisky at all. businesses, court documents show Abramovich. Workers from Felman Production appear to have left Kolomoisky on Others argue that the bank’s web that the organization’s U.S. compa- But as the years went on, Shulman told the Kyiv Post that injuries at the the defensive. of inside loans has begun to catch up nies lent tens of millions of dollars to claims in the filings, Kolomoisky facility were common, due to a lack Warren Steel, deep in debt, closed with Kolomoisky. each other internally. began to use Warren to loan himself of maintenance and management’s in early 2016. Woodie Woodie in “Kolomoisky outsmarted himself,” According to an audit of Warren tens of millions of dollars from his refusal to supply them with equip- Australia closed nearly simultane- said one insider. Steel reviewed by the Kyiv Post, the other companies. ment, citing “cost concerns.” ously, as did one of Kolomoisky’s But for the oligarch’s West Virginia company accrued $60.8 million in Shulman, apparently unaware of Dozens of civil lawsuits were assets in Georgia. workers, that comes as little comfort. related party loans. this, found himself in September filed in West Virginia federal court Weeks before PrivatBank was “It’s a day to day question of, ‘are Shulman, the former Kolomoisky 2014 to be holding as much as $173 alleging malpractice in the compa- nationalized, Consmin was sold to a we gonna be working tomorrow?’” partner, alleges in court filings that million in debt through the company. ny’s treatment of workers before Chinese firm at an undisclosed price. said a Felman employee. the related party loans were used to Another of Kolomoisky’s U.S. com- the Occupational Safety and Health The company had an inside loan “Are there gonna be orders for rob him. panies, Optima Speciality Steel, filed Administration fined the firm for balance of $737.5 million at the time material? Or is it gonna end up In 2008, Shulman claims, he was for bankruptcy in December over malfeasance in 2009. of the most recent financial disclo- being, ‘Hey! You’re being laid off.’” 

CALENDAR March 10 March 17

BUSINESS FOCUS ON AUTOMOBILE BUSINESS IN UKRAINE BUSINESS FOCUS ON MADE IN UKRAINE

March 25 March 31

BUSINESS FOCUS ON INDUSTRIAL PARKS IN UKRAINE 10 National March 3, 2017 www.kyivpost.com What explains Trump’s adoration for Kremlin?

BY JOSH KOVENSKY [email protected]

U. S. President Donald J. Trump is surrounded by people with close business and political ties to Russia, sparking a scandal in Washington that has dogged his administration. Politicians on both sides of the aisle have called for an independent pros- ecutor amid talk of impeachment. Trump’s close ties to Russia are of grave concern in Ukraine, which lost its Crimean peninsula to the Kremlin’s military invasion in 2014. Kyiv has also been trying to expel Russia and its proxies from the east- ern Donbas for three years, in a war that has claimed 10,000 lives. To do so, Ukraine counts on strong support from the West. The record shows that, as a busi- nessman, Trump did business with Russian oligarchs, while receiving support from an alleged Russian e-mail hack of the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton’s campaign. U.S. President speaks on the phone with One starting point of Trump’s Russian President Vladimir Putin in the White House Russia dealings is a $640 million on Jan. 28. Former National Security Adviser Michael loan that Trump took out in 2005 to Flynn (seated across from Trump) resigned after it was revealed that he lied about discussing U.S. sanctions finance the construction of a down- with Russian ambassador to the United States Sergey town Chicago condominium and Kislyak. (AFP) hotel. As $340 million came due in November 2008, Trump was unable He started looking to buy luxury Trump.” But on Nov. 3, five days remained its chairman until he deposition. to pay, leading to speculation that he properties around the world and before the U.S. election, Rybolovlev’s joined the U.S. government. “I never really understood who looked to Russia for a bailout. hit upon Trump, who was selling a private Airbus 319 was registered as owned Bayrock,” Trump said. That same year, his son, Donald $125 million mansion in Palm Beach, stopping in Concord, North Carolina, Felix Sater Trump Jr., bragged that “Russians Florida, called Maison De l’Amitie. on the same day that Trump was One former business associate that Michael Cohen make up a pretty disproportionate Rybolovlev bought the estate for there for a rally. Trump has repeatedly denied know- In 2008, Trump acquired a mixed cross-section of all our assets.” $95 million in July 2008, breaking In 2010, as Bank of Cyprus was ing is Felix Sater, a Russian-American martial arts promotion company Many believe that Russian and a home sales record in the U.S. expanding because of its ties with businessman who, apart from direct- called Affliction Entertainment. other oligarchs have targeted New market. Russian clients, Rybolovlev acquired ing real estate fund Bayrock Group, Ilan Berman, senior vice presi- York and Miami real estate, where The windfall couldn’t have come a 9.7 percent stake in September spent a year in prison in the early dent of the American Foreign Policy Trump has major financial interests, at a better time for Trump. In through a British Virgin Islands- 1990s after stabbing an acquain- Council and a mixed martial arts to launder money. November 2008, Trump needed to registered offshore. tance in the face with the stem of a fan, said that the Russians saw the The president has denied any pay $334 million to Deutsche Bank margarita glass. growth of MMA as an opportunity connection to Russia. “I have no on the $640 million loan for his Wilbur Ross Sater is alleged to have connec- to translate their strength in wres- dealings with Russia,” Trump has Chicago tower. Rybolovlev’s involvement with Bank tions to organized crime. After being tling-related sports, like sambo, into said repeatedly. Kyiv-born Tetiana Bersheda, an of Cyprus coincided with that of released from prison, the New York- cultural power on the world stage. attorney for Rybolovlev, is named another Trump associate: Commerce based businessman participated in a “When mixed martial arts began Dmitry Rybolovlev in Ukrainian press reports as the Secretary Wilbur Ross. Ross served $40 million stock fraud scheme that to break big on the market, they Dmitry Rybolovlev earned his daughter of former Ukrainian as the bank’s vice chairman starting wound up in a criminal conviction translated that sambo rank into money by taking over Russia’s fertil- Ambassador to Switzerland Evhen in 2014, when his eponymous pri- in 1998. Sater agreed to cooperate being prominent MMA fighters, so izer sector, acquiring potash maker Bersheda. She did not respond to a vate equity fund WL Ross acquired with the U. S. Central Intelligence a lot of these guys were already Uralkali in 1995. Rybolovlev even- request for comment. a majority 18 percent stake. Agency in Asia as part of his guilty training in sambo,” Berman told the tually raised $1 billion from the A spokesman for Rybolovlev Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg plea, leading the government to seal Kyiv Post. firm through a London initial public dismissed any link, saying that went in with Ross’s firm on the deal, the relevant court records of his As more people flocked to the offering for Uralkali in 2007. Rybolovlev “has never met Donald taking a 5.5 percent stake in the conviction. sport in the late 2000s, Trump bank. Ross was also joined as a vice Sater joined Bayrock as a manag- began to invest in Affliction. He chairman by Vladimir Strzhalkovsky, ing director in 2003 reportedly on installed Michael D. Cohen, his per- a former KGB agent who is report- the invitation of the firm’s founder, sonal lawyer, as a chief executive to ed to have a close relationship to Kazakh developer Tevfik Arik. manage the firm. Russian President Vladimir Putin. Arif moved Bayrock’s head- Affliction brought in a Luhansk- The bank nearly collapsed in 2013 quarters into Trump Tower in New born fighter named Fedor after making tens of millions in bad York City. Bayrock played a role in Emelianenko, who was managed by a loans. The Kremlin is reported to financing a number of Trump’s U.S. firm called M1 Global. M1 is financed have taken a direct role in bailout projects, including Trump SoHo in by Sergey Matviyenko, the multi-mil- negotiations over the Bank of Cyprus New York, and a Florida hotel and lionaire son of former St. Petersburg in 2013. skyscraper. governor and Federation Council Ross reportedly suggested anoth- Sater left the firm in 2007 after Chair Valentina Matviyenko. er businessman to lead the bank a New York Times article highlight- Cohen remains Trump’s personal after its bailout: Josef Ackermann, ed his alleged connections to the lawyer and was allegedly involved a Swiss banker who ran Deutsche mob. But his presence has cast a in a pro-Kremlin peace agreement Bank from 2002 to 2012, during shadow on the firm, with numerous involving Ukraine that the presi- which it allegedly laundered money lawsuits alleging fraud filed against dent’s associates wanted him to out of its Moscow branch and lost the company. One lawsuit, filed by consider. but eventually regained Trump as two former employees of Bayrock in U.S. Preisdent Donald J. Trump poses with Mixed Martial Art (MMA) a client. After being investigated, it 2010, alleged that the company was Paul Manafort heavyweight fighters Josh Barnett and Russia’s Fedor Emelianenko in paid out $630 million in a settlement “covertly mob-owned and operated.” Paul Manafort was hired as Trump’s New York on June 3, 2009. At the time, Trump was funding an MMA with U.S. federal law enforcement. Even Trump recognized the company that brought born in Luhansk-Emelianenko to the U.S (AFP) Ross sold his fund in 2006, but firm’s opaque ownership in a 2011 more Trump on page 11 www.kyivpost.com March 3, 2017 National 11 Trade blockade deepens political tensions, could trigger Russian escalation of war

Investor from page 3 banks will likely constitute a sig- nificant share of Ukraine’s foreign The news that Russia is Ukraine’s investment. biggest foreign investor broke amid In 2016, Russia’s Prominvest yet another escalation of the war in bank recapitalized with an addi- eastern Ukraine that has claimed tional Hr 20 billion ($740 mil- Demonstrators protest U.S. President Donald Trump outside Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago on 10,000 lives and led to the loss of lion), VTB – Hr 8.9 billion ($329 Feb. 20. Trump took out a $640 million loan from Deutsche Bank to finance the building’s construction. (AFP) Crimea and 15,000 square kilome- million) and Sberbank – Hr 4.3 ters of the Donbas. billion ($159 million), according Despite the eye-popping news to Aleksandr Paraschiy, the head of Russia’s striking dominance in of research at Concorde Capital, Ukraine’s foreign investment, there a Kyiv-based investment company. Ukraine and its supporters in is actually a simple explanation. However, Paraschiy said that the recapitalization can’t be considered Bank money real investment, since no money West are alarmed by Russian While the State Statistics Service actually came in. of Ukraine doesn’t say which coun- “There is an amazing situation: try invested in which industry, it de jure they have decreased their ties of many of Trump’s aides is safe to say that most of Russia’s debt and increased investments,” $1.67 billion went into the banking Paraschiy said. “But de facto noth- sector. ing really changed. The only pos- Trump from page 10 dered in an unsolved case that year. Russian diplomats over interference In late 2016, the National Bank itive effect on those banks is that Caputo worked for the Trump in the U.S. election. of Ukraine allowed Russian banks they don’t have to pay interest on campaign manager in 2016. He campaign until June, when he was reported that to recapitalize their Ukrainian those debts.” also served as an adviser to oust- fired for triumphantly tweeting about Flynn told Kislyak that the Trump subsidiaries by lifting restrictions But Paraschiy added that the ed Ukrainian President Viktor former Campaign Manager Corey administration would improve rela- introduced in 2014, when Russian difficulties faced by Russian banks Yanukovych, helping him get elected Lewandowski’s ouster. tions, urging the Kremlin not to banks were banned from increas- in Ukraine were mostly caused by in 2010. The PR manager started his career respond to Obama. ing their assets and deposits in the aggressive and risky credit pol- Manafort is the focus of reports in Moscow in the 1990s, working for A New Yorker profile argued that Ukraine. icies that the banks had pursued that Trump’s campaign coordinated Russian President Boris Yeltsin as an Flynn saw threats from the Middle At least eight Russian-owned in the recent past. While Russia’s with the Russian government to advisor from 1994 to 1999, before East as more dangerous than that of banks still operate in Ukraine, war in Ukraine led to a withdrawal influence the American election in being briefly hired by Gazprom Russia, leading him to advocate for including Prominvestbank (VEB), of deposits, unpaid loans hurt the Trump’s favor. Manafort has denied in 2001 to improve Putin and the a U.S. alliance with Moscow against VTB, Sberbank, BM Bank, Alfa finance even more. working on behalf of the Kremlin. Russian government’s image in the ISIS and other Islamic radical groups. Bank, Neos, Forward Bank and While Russian banks in Ukraine He has referred to his work for United States. In December 2015, Flynn went to VS Bank. Together, they make up are in slightly better condition now, Yanukovych, in Russian exile since Caputo said that he has not Moscow for a dinner celebrating the 8.8 percent of the Ukrainian bank- there are signs that trade between leaving power in 2014 on suspicion had any Eastern European clients anniversary of RT’s founding. Flynn ing sector. The National Bank of the two countries at war is declin- of mass murder and multibillion-dol- since early 2015, and added that received an undisclosed fee to speak Ukraine allowed their recapitaliza- ing. Ukrainian President Petro lar corruption, as trying “to bring Sheremet’s murder - along with hav- at the event. tion to prevent their insolvency. Poroshenko said only 8 percent Ukraine into Europe.” ing a Ukrainian wife - had connected Flynn resigned after it was revealed At the same time, the regulator of Ukrainian exports go to Russia. Manafort came to work for him to the country by “family and that he lied to Vice President Michael said that it wants Russian banks Before the war, it was 36 percent. Yanukovych after working for bil- heart.” Pence over his communications with out of Ukraine eventually. Until Kyiv Post staff writer Veronika lionaire oligarch Rinat Akhmetov Kislyak. then, the recapitalization of the Melkozerova contributed to this in 2003. He also helped billionaire Carter Page Ukrainian subsidiaries of Russian story.  oligarch , who is in During the campaign, Trump named Jeff Sessions Austria awaiting extradition over Carter Page as a key foreign policy The Russian ambassador made charges in Spain and the United adviser. waves again in recent days, as the Advertisement States, shop for New York real estate Page, a former U.S. marine intelli- Washington Post revealed that ON THE MOVE in 2008. gence officer, worked for U.S. banker Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a INTERNATIONAL LAW FIRM INTEGRITES STRENGTHENS ITS TEAM While working for Yanukovych, Merrill Lynch in Moscow in the former U.S. senator from Alabama, Manafort got involved in a deal with 2000s. During that stint, he report- spoke with the Russian ambassador Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska in edly worked on projects involving on two separate occasions during Odesa to buy out a local cable Gazprom, though on a low level. the campaign. provider from a company whose After leaving Merrill Lynch in One instance took place at a meet- executives were later arrested for 2008, Page set out to create an ing with more than a dozen other separatist activity in 2014. But the investment fund called Global ambassadors. But a second meet- deal went awry as $20 million van- Energy Capital. There, he part- ing was private and took place in ished and Manafort stopped replying nered with Sergei Yatsenko, a former Sessions’ office. to Deripaska, according to court Gazprom executive. A Sessions spokeswoman said that documents. Page, however, appeared to only he met with Kislyak as part of his In June, the so-called “black led- succeed in becoming a talking head duties as a member of the Senate ger” of the was on Russian television, speaking out Armed Services Committee, no leaked, appearing to show millions in support of Putin, Politico reported. other members of the committee has of dollars in bribe expenses from Page told Bloomberg last March reportedly spoken with the Russian the now-defunct political party. that he saw a potential Trump ambassador. Manafort’s name appeared next to administration as a chance to end During his confirmation hearing $12 million on the ledger, leading sanctions on Russia over its war to become attorney general, Sessions to his formal departure from the against Ukraine. denied that he had had any “commu- Trump campaign in August. nications with the Russians.” 7KH QHZ SDUWQHU 9DWVODY 7KH QHZ SDUWQHU 2OHNVL\ 7KHQHZFRXQVHO9RORG\P\U Sessions is under pressure to nom- 0DNDUVNL\OHDGVWKHFRP- 6OXFK LV D UHFRJQL]HG H[- 3DYOHQNR LV D ZHOONQRZQ Michael Flynn SHWLWLRQ DQG DQWLWUXVW SHUW LQ WKH ˋHOG RI GLVSXWH H[SHUWLQWKHˋHOGRIGLVSXWH Michael Caputo Michael Flynn’s tenure as national inate an independent special prose- SUDFWLFH DW ,17(*5,7(6 UHVROXWLRQ +H KHDGV WKH UHVROXWLRQ +H VSHFLDOLVHV LQ Michael Caputo, an American politi- security adviser was cut short on cutor to investigate Russian involve- 0RVFRZ +H KDV PRUH EDQNLQJ DQG FRPPHUFLDO LQVROYHQF\ DQG UHVWUXFWXU- cal consultant, worked for Volodymyr Feb. 13 after a scandal erupted over ment in the U.S. election. “If there’s WKDQ  \HDUVȢ H[SHULHQFH OLWLJDWLRQ WHDP 2OHNVL\ LQJ+HKDVH[WHQVLYHH[SHUL- Lytvyn, the former parliament Flynn calling the Russian ambas- something there that the FBI thinks LQFRPSHWLWLRQODZDGYLV- KDV EURDG H[SHULHQFH LQ HQFHZRUNLQJZLWK8NUDLQLDQ speaker and former chief of staff to sador to the United States Sergey is criminal in nature, then for sure LQJRQDQWLWUXVWFRUSRUDWH WKHEDQNLQJVHFWRUERWKLQ DQG LQWHUQDWLRQDO FRPSD- DQG FRPPHUFLDO LVVXHV DV 8NUDLQH DQG LQWHUQDWLRQ- QLHV DFWLQJ LQ GLVSXWHV LQ- ex-President , on his Kislyak multiple times over a 36-hour you need a special prosecutor,” said ZHOODVUHJXODWRU\LVVXHV DOO\ FOXGLQJFRPPHUFLDODQGGHEW 2007 campaign. Lytvyn’s campaign period. The calls came as former Senator Lindsey Graham, a South UHVWUXFWXULQJGLVSXWHV manager, Oleh Sheremet, was mur- President Barack Obama ejected Carolina Republican, on March 1.  British pop star Sophie Ellis-Bextor is coming to Kyiv on March 6. Check page 14 for details.

LifestylePlay | Food | Entertainment | Sports | Culture | Music | Movies | Art | Community Events March 3, 2017 www.kyivpost.com Film CriticC Top 5 places to enjoy WITH VERONIKA MELKOZEROVA [email protected] ‘Bitter Harvest’ spring’s lovely blooms may not be the best movie, but Visitors of Fomin Botanical Garden take pictures with magnolia trees in it’s important Kyiv on April 26. The early varieties of magnolias start blooming in April. Canadian-made love story “Bitter (Volodymyr Petrov) Harvest” was hardly among the most anticipated movies world- wide. But it certainly was in Ukraine. The movie features two young villagers struggling to survive in Ukraine during the Holodomor, the artificial famine created by the Soviet authorities that killed an estimated seven million Ukrainians in 1932–1933. “Bitter Harvest” was the first attempt of Western filmmakers to bring one of the most tragic pages of Ukrainian history to the big screen. But don’t expect the movie to provide a detailed vision of the Holodomor tragedy. George Mendeluk’s movie is more like a dynamic, cartoonish retelling of those events. That is not to say it is bad: In fact, a movie like this is necessary to bring an under- dog nation like Ukraine to the world’s mass culture, as I will explain. Many movies have been made about the Holodomor since Ukraine gained independence 1991, and the Soviet author- ities weren’t there to silence discussion of the topic anymore. BY NATALIYA TRACH just in March. Various flowers come reserve is rich with rare species of Askania-Nova Reserve Only after the fall of the Soviet [email protected] into blossom at different times over water plants like floating water nut, In spring, visitors to the Askania-Nova Union did it become known spring. The park is home to 52 rare Nymphoides peltata, wild orchids biosphere reserve will be especial- that there was a horrifying act Snowdrops will soon start their species, including anemone, grass of (Anacamptis palustris), summer ly delighted by the beauty of the of genocide in Soviet Ukraine bloom, marking the end of another Parnassus, lesser butterfly orchids, snowflake, Bessarabian clove pink Ukrainian steppe. Every year at the end in 1932–1933 – and how actual gloomy winter and the coming of verantrum, and many others. (Dianthus bessarabicus), water lilies, of April the reserve’s 33,000 hectares, history so starkly diverged from spring. In anticipation, the Kyiv Post Ichnia National Park. Ichnya, yellow water lily (Nuphar lutea), and Europe’s last virgin steppe area, is blan- the official Stalinist explanation has selected the best places to visit (164 kilometers many others. keted in a silvery bloom – feather grass of “a bad grain harvest” that in order to enjoy the beauty of spring northeast of Kyiv). 43 Lisova St. The reserve is also a good spot for blossoms. The springtime steppe is caused famine among millions flowers in Ukraine. Open daily 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Guided birdwatching: It boasts 263 bird spe- mesmerizing - the long and fluffy blos- of people in Ukraine, Belarus tours cost Hr 10 per person. Visit in cies living in marshlands and water soms of the feather grass twist in the and Kazakhstan. Ichnia National Park March or April to see the snowdrops. meadows, such as pink pelicans, the wind and look like foamy sea waves. Now we know that the Ichnia National Park in Chernihiv glossy ibis, yellow heron. Askania-Nova is also famous for its Holodomor was the mass mur- Oblast is especially beautiful in Danube Reserve Danube Biosphere Reserve. 170 hectares dendropark area, where derer Stalin’s way of crushing spring, when snowdrops and squills Ukraine’s marshlands become a riot Vylkove, Odesa Oblast (670 kilo- more than 170 plant species live. a possible rebellion among (Scilla bifolia) cover its 10,000 hect- of color as bog plants, attractive meters south of Kyiv). 132A Tourists can enjoy the blossoms of Ukrainian agrarians. ares like a blue-and-white carpet. for their bright shades and unusual Tatarbunarskoho Povstannya St. lilacs, Cercis Canadensis, Catalpa and From Oles Yanchuk’s vio- These tender flowers are an endan- forms, put on their springtime show. Open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Hr many other trees and bushes there. lent drama about cannibalism gered species in Ukraine, so it’s for- One of the best displays can be seen 20 for adults, Hr 10 for children. The Askania-Nova biosphere reserve. “Golod-33” in 1991, to Oles bidden to pick them. at the Danube Biosphere Reserve in best time to visit is June and July. Sanin’s epic tale of a blind The reserve is worth visiting not Odesa Oblast. The 50,000-hectare more Flowers on page 13 Kobzar “The Guide” in 2014, Holodomor movies have all had one thing in common – a scary and depressing atmo- sphere of the grief and distress of people who are forced to give everything, including their lives, to the insatiable Soviet Want to advertise in Lifestyle? machine. “Bitter Harvest” is a different kind of movie. It positions itself Please call (+38) 044 591-7788 or mail [email protected] as a historically accurate drama. But those coming to the theater expecting to see a powerful story

more Film on page 13 www.kyivpost.com March 3, 2017 Lifestyle13 Film Critic: Spring comes Filmmaker alive in these deserves flower fields Flowers from page 12 credit for Askania-Nova, Kherson Oblast (695 kilometers south of Kyiv). 15 Parkova St. Open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m tackling from April 1 until Nov. 10. Hr 55 for adults, Hr 40 for children. The best time to visit is from late April until still-painful June. Tulip fields tragedy of In spring, the Kropyvnytsky Dendropark resembles the fields of the Netherlands – the park has a Holodomor vast plantation of tulips that occupies nearly a hectare. The flowers will astonish with their various colors and sizes – more than hundred tulip vari- Yuri (Max Irons) and Natalka eties, with white, red, pink, yellow and (Samantha Barks) pose for a “Bitter even green hues. The range of tulip Harvest” movie poster. (Courtesy) sizes is also impressive – the smallest grow to only 10 centimeters, while the tallest can be nearly 30 centimeters Film from page 12 I agree. Although “Bitter Harvest” join the “kolkhoz,” – a state-run col- For Ukrainians, the Holodomor high. The park is especially proud of was slammed by the critics, got 9 lective farms. is a painful topic to discuss. As a its Christmas Sweet tulip variety – an of love, honor and rebellion will be percent on Rotten Tomatoes, and However, the actors didn’t shine result, Ukrainian filmmakers shoot elegant flower with white blooms and disappointed. with its $20 million budget made just brightly. I can’t blame them: The Holodomor movies that are tragic a distinct pink hue on its petals. $200,000 on its first weekend, I still script was mediocre and made pronouncements, too dark or com- Kropyvnytsky Dendropark. Disney style advise everyone to go and see it. the characters seem flat and plicated for a mass (and foreign) Kropyvnytsky (301 kilometers south of “Bitter Harvest” is the story of a sen- inconsistent. audience to properly comprehend. Kyiv). 28 Yevhena Telnova Ave. Open sitive young artist, Yuri, who rebels Good actors in a bad The Soviets are one-dimensional- This is precisely why I liked daily 7 a.m. – 11 p.m. Entrance is free. against the Soviet system as he, his play ly portrayed as ugly monsters that Mendeluk’s movie. The best time to visit is from April to fiancée Natalka, and their families Unlike Ukrainian movies about the kill for pleasure. The movie’s Stalin It attempts to put a beautiful May. are forced to fight for their very Holodomor, “Bitter Harvest” uses a lives in a luxury apartment where Ukrainian rebel holding a gun and lives. tried-and-true formula for success in he orders his minions to kill the fighting for freedom on the same Kyiv’s magnolias However, the Soviets in the movie the West – well-known, good-look- rebellious Ukrainians. He looks like stage as Hollywood underdogs like When they come into bloom, the remind one more of the sultan’s ing Anglophone actors in leading a typical Bond villain, rather than Django from “Django Unchained” large white and pale pink flowers of guards from the 1992 Disney car- roles, some love scenes, a lot of the chilling psychopath that decades (2012). It mates Ukraine’s history the magnolia tree attract thousands toon “Aladdin” – chaotic and gri- action and explosions, and dynamic of historical research has revealed with mass culture – to the benefit to Kyiv’s two botanical gardens. macing minions who can do what- and colorful fighting scenes. him to have been. of both. The first magnolia trees were ever they want, with the approval of I was pleased to see Hollywood And at the same time it tells a planted in Kyiv botanical gardens in the almighty Stalin. heavyweights, like Steven Spielberg’s Good old action story that has long gone untold. It 1996, and now the gardens boast 10 , the direc- “Saving Private Ryan” star Barry The movie’s action scenes reminded will be told again, in better movies varieties of magnolia trees. The ear- tor of the Ukrainian Institute of Pepper, and Terence Stamp, a star me of the good old 1990s, when than “Bitter Harvest.” ly-blossoming varieties of magnolias National Remembrance, described of more than 60 Hollywood movies, nobody counted bullets. But for now, this movie gets the start flowing in mid-April, while the the movie as a “graphic novel,” – a portraying brave Ukrainian warriors In one of the scenes, the protag- job done.  late-blossoming ones stay in bloom comic book. Yaroslav (Yuri’s father) and Ivan onist, Yuri, makes his horse jump until the end of May. “This movie provides you with (Yuri’s grandfather). gracefully over a wagon full of “Bitter Harvest” is in wide release Hryshko National Botanical the dynamic and vivid image that British actor Max Irons plays the Soviets – in slow motion, of course – in most of the theaters in Kyiv. The Garden. Kyiv (1 Tymiryazevska St.). can get people who haven’t heard protagonist, Yuri, a young villager and he then throws a Molotov cock- screenings are in Ukrainian. Open daily from 8.30 a.m. to 9 p.m. about the Holodomor interested in with artistic skills, who turns into tail into the wagon. There is a Zhovten (26 Kostyantynivska St.). Hr 30 for adults, Hr 10 for children. that topic. It is the West’s first step an avenger after Soviet soldiers, massive blast, but Yuri is unharmed. 2:55 p.m. 7 p.m. Hr 60-80 To see magnolias, visit in mid-April towards experiencing our past, and led by their evil commander Sergei Neither is the horse. Oscar (Gulliver Mall, 1A Sportyvna or early May. the scary and strange word of the (Tammer Hassan), seize his village That said, I still liked “Bitter Square). 10 a.m., 12 p.m., 2 p.m., Fomina Botanical Garden. Kyiv (1 Holodomor,” Viatrovych said. of Smila and try to force locals to Harvest” despite its flaws. 7:10 p.m., 9:20 p.m. Hr 50-120 Petliury St.). Open daily. Free 

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THE NEW ENROLMENT SEASON 2017-2018 HAS STARTED. APPLY NOW 14 Entertainment Guide March 3, 2017 www.kyivpost.com ) Love. Sophie Ellis- March 6 Bextor Courtesy) ( Contemporary Ed Webster Sophie Ellis-Bextor is a British singer who ( exhibition rose to prominence with her hit “Groovejet,” featuring DJ Spiller. Since then, Ellis-Bextor Fifteen couples will offer their views on has released six studio albums including the love to visitors at Kyiv History Museum. most recent one – Familia. In Kyiv, the British An installation of a heart, made by special singer will perform songs from her new guest Roman Zhuk, will be placed on album along with old hits like “Heartbreak the fi rst fl oor. The “Love. Contemporary Make Me a Dancer” and “Catch you.” March 2 – April 2 exhibition” will feature art, graphics, Sophie Ellis-Bextor. March 6. 8 p.m. photography and videos. Sentrum (11 Shota Rustaveli St.). Hr Love. Contemporary exhibition. March 2 – April. 2. 11 a.m. – 7 890-2,000 p.m. Kyiv History Museum (7 Hmelnytskoho St.), Hr 40

March 10 ‘Jackie’ Closer jazz. Theo Museum of News comes alive This exhibition to celebrate 20 years of news program TSN has (Courtesy) Bleckmann ‘Elegy’ ten halls with interactive zones offering visitors the chance to Jackie is a biographical drama try being TV hosts, and view part of an engine of the giant An- fi lm about Jacqueline Kennedy, Jazz singer and 225 “Mriya” aircraft and ’s Eurovision award. A study the wife of President John F. composer Theo of 100 of the most important events in independent Ukraine, Kennedy, the U.S. president Bleckmann complied by 30 experts, will also be presented. assassinated in 1963. She is has received “Museum of News.” March 2-26. 6:30 p.m. Tue-Sun 11 played by Natalie Portman. numerous a.m. – 8 p.m. Mystetskiy Arsenal (10-12 Lavrska St.). Hr “Jackie.” March 10. 7 p.m. awards, including 60. “Ukraine” cinema (5 Horodetskoho St.) Hr 70-80 a Grammy nomination for (Amanda Stockwell)

the “Best Classical ) Crossover Vsi Svoi Market Album” in 2010. Some may (Vsi Svoi) This week’s Vsi Svoi market will present also recognize clothes, shoes and accessories. Three Bleckmann as the fl oors of Ukrainian-produced goods will Museum of News

voice of aliens in ( provide plenty of choice for those looking the fi lm “Men in to revamp their wardrobe for spring. March 5 Black.” On March Vsi Svoi Market. March 11-12. 10 a.m. 5, Bleckmann and four other musicians will – 8 p.m. Vsi Svoi (12 Desyatynna St.) March 11-12 present his new album “Elegy.” Free Closer jazz. Theo Bleckmann “Elegy.” March 5. 8 p.m. Closer (31 Compiled by Maria Romanenko Nyzhnioiurkivska St.) Hr 400-500 March 2-26

Employment U.S. EMBASSY, OFFICE OF U.S. EMBASSY IS LOOKING DEFENSE COOPERATION TO FILL THE POSITION OF UKRAINE, IS LOOKING TO PUBLIC HEALTH SPECIALIST FILL MULTIPLE TRANSLATOR/ (ADDICTION) Professionals for Reform INTERPRETER POSITIONS Support Mechanism (PRSM) provides human resource support – Basic Function of Position: Basic Function of Position: Position are located in the Office of Defense Cooperation (ODC) and serve from managers to technical experts Under supervision of the Regional Substance Abuse Treatment Attaché, the as designated translators/interpreters for U.S. Ministry of Defense Advisors – to critical reform initiatives under- Incumbent serves as the Public Health Specialist on addictions in Ukraine (MoDAs) assigned to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense (MOD) in Kyiv. Employ- taken by national governmental and Central Asia Region implemented by the Substance Abuse and Mental ees serve as primary translators/interpreters from English into Ukrainian and/ agencies. PRSM is currently seek- or Russian and vice versa. Employees regularly review and edit printed mate- Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The incumbent is responsible for ing candidates to fill the following rial created by ODC, MoDAs and other MoD representatives. The documents developing, organizing, implementing, coordinating, and supervising activi- translated may include official correspondence, technical manuals, laws, expert positions for the Govern- ties supported by SAMHSA-UA Region in collaboration with Offices of USAID government regulations, legal documents, financial reports, etc. Employees ment of Ukraine: also serves as interpreters (English/Ukrainian/Russian) for MoDA’s and other and CDC along with Host Country Counterparts and the region, NGOs and/ • HRM Expert (2 positions) for ODC staff in high-level meetings or one-on-one engagements. Incumbents or universities. The incumbent provides technical assistance, oversight, and the Secretariat of the Cabinet will provide interpreting services in various settings: conferences, seminars, management support. of Ministers of Ukraine – will be lectures, VIP office calls, social functions, press conferences, receptions, me- responsible for developing and dia programs, etc. Employees assists ODC staff and MoDA’s in routine office Required Qualifications: drafting regulations necessary to administrative tasks, such as making phone calls, drafting correspondence, • Master's degree in one of the following disciplines: Public Health, Health build modern and strong HRM researching information, coordinating meetings with the host government Policy, Health Management, Behavioral Sciences, Public Administration function within SCMU. officials and taking telephone messages. Position holders are responsible for or a Medical Doctor (MD) diploma is required; maintaining translation records, files and databases in accordance with U.S. • Communication Expert for Department of State regulations and ODC policies. Employees are supervised • Minimum of three years of experience with governmental and/or non- the Project Office for Sectoral by the ODC Chief and/or assigned Ministry of Defense Advisor. governmental institutions in implementation of public health projects in Decentralization – will pro- Required Qualifications: the field of chronic diseases related, but not limited to substance use vide communication support to • Bachelor's Degree in Translation/Interpreting, English linguistics, Eng- disorders and/or infectious diseases; activities of the POSD ensuring lish philology or closely related field. • Level IV (fluency in in speaking/reading/writing) in English; proper media coverage and pub- • Minimum of two years of work experience in Ukrainian/Russian-Eng- lic expectancy. lish and English – Ukrainian/Russian translation; • Level IV (fluency in in speaking/reading/writing) in Ukrainian and Russian. • Administrative Officer for the • Level IV (fluent) in English, Ukrainian and Russian; • Familiarity with HIV/AIDS and drug use situation and programs, knowl- Project Office for Sectoral edge of health systems within the region. Demonstrated skills in pro- • Position holder needs to possess a broad knowledge of a wide range Decentralization – will perform of specialized vocabulary (e.g., economic, political, protocol, legal, gram management, monitoring and evaluation. Translation skills (oral a range of administrative tasks military, etc.) to participate in any conversation, meeting, or confer- and written), research, analytical, and presentation skills to deliver in- ence with fluency and precision. An employee will need to develop to ensure an organization runs formation within scientific community are also required. and master strong knowledge of diplomatic terminology in Ukrainian, efficiently. Russian, and English. Application deadline: 17 March, 2017 Application deadline: March 17, 2017 How to Apply: The compensation is set at 29, 500$ (gross per year) plus For more detailed information How to Apply: The compensation is set at 17, 900$ (gross per year) plus benefits package. Full version of the vacancy announcement and the U.S. about preferred qualifications benefits package. Full version of the vacancy announcement and the U.S. and skills, indicative duties and Mission application for employment form (DS-174) are available at our site: Mission application for employment form (DS-174) are available at our site: responsibilities, as well as apply- http://ukraine.usembassy.gov/job-opportunities.html. Interested ap- http://ukraine.usembassy.gov/job-opportunities.html. Interested ap- ing procedure, please visit web- plicants should fill out the application form in English and email it to: plicants should fill out the application form in English and email it to: site: http://edge.in.ua/vacancies [email protected] or fax it to: 521-5155. [email protected] or fax it to: 521-5155. www.kyivpost.com March 3, 2017 Employment 15

0,1,5(680( Director, Managing Director, CEO Building Capacity and Opportunities for Change Successful management professional is looking for the top management position in Ukraine or abroad. PROJECT MANAGEMENT ASSISTANT Agriteam Canada Consulting Ltd., an International consulting company is seeking • Ukrainian, Male, 48 years old candidates to fill the following positions on International Technical Assistance • MBA, fluent English, Ukrainian and United States Agency for International Development Project funded by the Government of Canada Russian (USAID)/Ukraine • Sector Lead/Legal Expert • 20 years top management experi- Announcement # 001 ence at international companies • Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist (services, telecom, IT, high-tech, B2B) DUTIES AND REPONSIBILITIES: The closing date for applications is March 10, 2017 Please, submit your CV and Cover letter to [email protected] • exceptional Sales management The Program Management Assistant (PMA) position is located in the For more detailed information about applying procedure, please visit our experience Office of Democracy and Governance (ODG) of the USAID Regional web-site: http://edge.in.ua/vacancies Mission to Ukraine, Moldova, and Belarus (the Mission). ODG is one of Contact: [email protected] three Kyiv-based technical offices in the Mission. ODG manages USAID activities in democracy, governance and , including support to independent media, civil society, elections, political 0,1,5(680( processes, parliamentary strengthening, local governance, human rights, Digital Marketing Director based rule of law, anti-corruption, and counter-trafficking in persons. Activities in Switzerland, looking for a lead- within these areas are guided by two ODG technical teams, each led ership position in Kiev. Extensive by a Deputy Director under the leadership of the ODG Director. More information about USAID/Ukraine and the Office of Democracy and CITY OF ODESA CONSULTANT international experience in Boston, Governance is available at: http://ukraine.usaid.gov/ Moscow, Zurich. Responsible for key The PMA will work in the Office of Democracy and Governance in Kyiv under Kyiv Post is dedicated to cover and deliver the best na- decision making in digital marketing strategy for a global company, the the supervision of the Office Director or his/her designee. The principle tional and international news to as many readers across role of the PMA is to support the Mission’s democracy, human rights and world leader in international educa- governance programs with technical program management assistance. Ukraine and the world. tion. Native: English (native), Russian This includes serving as Alternate Agreement Officer Representative (fluent), Ukrainian (intermediate). (AOR)/Contracting Officer Representative (COR) for designated ODG We are looking for a self-starting energetic person in activities, and providing program management assistance to AORs/ [email protected] the city of Odesa to represent us for the following CORs across ODG. The PMA assists in essential program management functions, including activity monitoring, record-keeping, and reporting. responsibilities: The PMA will assist with ODG technical assessments, project designs, and activity designs. • Grow the distribution of the newspaper to new locations REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: A. Education: This position requires at least a university degree (B.A. or • Quality control with regional partners for the purpose B.S.). A degree in public administration, political science, law, economics, of advertising sales and cooperation of events Professionals for Reform education, or a related field is desired. Support Mechanism (PRSM) B. Prior Work Experience: This position requires at least three years provides human resource support – of progressively responsible experience in development assistance or Candidate should be fluent in English and Ukrainian. from managers to technical experts program management, with at least one year of relevant project/activity - to critical reform initiatives under- management experience. Previous experience is desirable with leading A car would be a plus but not mandatory. taken by national governmental international development institutions, government, international NGOs, agencies. PRSM is currently seek- embassies, or private-sector entities. Other experience related to USAID Send your CV's to [email protected] ing candidates to fill the following assistance is highly desirable. expert positions for the Govern- ment of Ukraine: C. Language Proficiency: Level IV (fluent) English ability for reading, speaking and writing is required; proficiency in Ukrainian and Russian is • Sector Lead (4 positions) for the Project Office for Sectoral also required at a Level IV (fluent) for reading, speaking, and writing. To Senior Technical Advisors address this required qualification, the applicant must list both English Decentralization (POSD) – and DCOP, Ukraine Trade and host country language(s) proficiency requirements by proficiency responsible for defining the scope and Competitiveness Activity level (I through V), and skill specialization (speak/read/write) in the of sectoral (4 sectors) reform and development of the action plans pertinent section of the application documents. Crown Agents USA (CA-USA) is an international development company that pro- and performance indicators to vides technical assistance service and support to US Government agencies and in- CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: March 3, 2017, by e-mail ternational organizations such as US Agency for International Development (USAID). assess achievement of the rel- attachment only to Human Resources Office at [email protected]; CA-USA is seeking Senior Technical Advisors and a Deputy Chief of Party (DCOP) evant sectoral reform objectives. Include vacancy number and position title in the subject line of for an anticipated USAID-funded Trade and Competitiveness (TAC) Activity located • Team Lead with extensive HR your email. The full package includes: CV, cover letter and DS-174 in Ukraine. All positions will support the larger project goals of TAC is to encour- age startup businesses and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), increase experience for the National (https://www.usaid.gov/forms/ds-174/pdf) See the full version of this domestic market competition, and support the competitiveness of Ukrainian firms Agency of Ukraine for finding, Announcement at: in international markets. All positions subject to successful project award. tracing and management of https://www.usaid.gov/ukraine/work-with-us/careers/ Anticipated Positions: assets derived from corruption documents/1863/usaidukraine-job-announcement-program- DCOP: Coordinate with the Chief of Party to provide technical direction and imple- and other crimes (ARMA) – will mentation oversight for activity implementation. Qualifications: Advanced degree provide support launching the management-assistant with 7+ years of trade facilitation experience; previous, relevant work completed in ARMA and creation a functioning in the CIS region; USAID experience; fluency in English is required and Ukrainian or Human Resource Management Russian is preferred. system of the ARMA. Senior Technical Advisors: Promotion Advisor, Business Climate Enabling Advi- sor, and Trade Facilitation Advisor: Lead the technical direction and manage advi- • Legal Expert for the National sory services in corresponding area of focus. Qualifications: 7+ years of experience Agency of Ukraine for finding, with previous work completed in Central Asia, Moldova, Ukraine, and the CIS region, tracing and management of BA/BS degree or higher in trade and customs management; Prior USAID experience; assets derived from corruption experience in potential areas such as agriculture, infrastructure, trade facilitation, and other crimes (ARMA) – will The Fulbright Program in Ukraine is seeking a WTO, EU trade requirements and/or competitiveness; fluency in Ukrainian/Russian provide legislation drafting sup- Full-time Program Assistant/Outreach Coordinator preferred. To apply: port to ARMA’s full scale launch. For the DCOP position, apply directly through this link: https://chj.tbe.taleo. For more detailed information Responsibilities include: net/chj06/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=CROWNAGENTSUSA&cws=37& about preferred qualifications rid=3200. For the technical advisor positions, apply directly through this link: and skills, indicative duties • Attend roundtables, donor coordination meetings; serve as liaison https://chj.tbe.taleo.net/chj06/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=CROWNAGENT and responsibilities, as well as with NGOs and government agencies SUSA&cws=37&rid=3201. In the cover letter field, state the desired position title. Please submit all application documents in English. applying procedure, please visit web-site: • Assist with outreach activities, gather information for newsletters, Both positions with application instructions are on our website: press releases, etc. http://www.crownagents.com/en-us/jobs http://edge.in.ua/vacancies • Support Fulbright events by collaborating with Program Officers • Maintain office supplies of coffee, tea, office paper and stationary &/$66,),('6 Qualifications include: • Fluency in Ukrainian and English Bit of happiness. 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