www.ukrweekly.com INSIDE: • Central and East European Coalition supports Clinton initiative in Bosnia — page 3. • Leonid Kuchma's "simpalico" image in Brazil — page 4. • Approaching the 400th anniversary of the Union of Brest — page 8. THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY Published by the Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal non-profit association Vol. LXIIi No. 49 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, DECEMBER 3, 1995 $1.25/$2in Ukraine The most popular politician Sochi talks signal new phase in Ukraine-Russia relations by Marta Kolomayets The first positive results in this newly did not say when this visit could occur. Survey says: Kyiv Press Bureau adopted policy were evident in Sochi on Praising the outcome of the talks, Gen. November 23-25, where Defense Grachev said the success of the negotia­ KYIV - After more than three years of Ministers Shmarov and Grachev were tions would "radically change the mili­ Leonid Kuchma talks and consultations that resulted able to sign eight economic and technical tary-political climate in relations between mostly in acrimony and ill will, Ukraine agreements concerning the military sec­ by Marta KoSomayets Ukraine and Russia." and Russia are attempting a new tor, as well as nine protocols and two Kyiv Press Bureau approach in negotiating their bilateral schedules. These documents cover Ukraine sells SS-19s, strategic bombers relations, according to Ukraine's Defense KYIV - Ukrainian citizens rate aspects of Russian-Ukrainian military In the course of the Sochi negotiations, Minister Valeriy Shmarov. President Leonid Kuchma the most popular cooperation, the withdrawal of special Russia proposed to acquire the 32 SS-19 "We will begin removing obstacles, politician in the country today, while equipment from Ukraine and the transit of missiles still on Ukrainian territory, accord­ working our way from the bottom up, expressing the least confidence in military units temporarily stationed in ing to the Ukrainian defense minister. step by step," said Mr. Shmarov during a Communist Party leader Petro Symonenko. Moldova via Ukrainian territory. "The acquisition of these missiles will November 27 news conference at the President Kuchma got 38 percent of Mr. Shmarov told journalists that the make it possible for Russia to maintain Defense Ministry after his return from the people's support - more than double agreement on military cooperation between its nuclear potential at the proper level Sochi, where he concluded two days of that of those who came in second place, the two countries signed in Sochi would be until the year 2009," said Col. Gen. Igor talks with Russian Defense Minister Oleksander Moroz, Vyacheslav Chornovi! that of "equal partners," and noted that this Segeev, commander of Russia's Missile Pavel Grachev regarding military issues and Leonid Kravchuk, who each had 16 document was "not linked to the signing of Strategic Forces. Minister Shmarov said and the future of the Black Sea Fleet. percent. Mr. Symonenko received 2 per­ a large-scale political agreement between Russia had "displayed a clear interest in cent. The result of this new strategy is the two countries." purchasing the SS-19s from Ukraine, More than 75 percent of Ukraine's resi­ expected to be a bilateral treaty on According to Interfax-Ukraine, declaring its intention to use t^ese rock­ dents are unhappy with their lives, and friendship and cooperation between the sources in Sochi said the two ministers ets for commercial launches and for the more than 84 percent are dissatisfied with two neighbors, which has been in the had reached an agreement on holding strengthening of its missile base." works since late 1992. the way things are going in Ukraine. joint Ukrainian-Russian military exercis­ Gen. Volodymyr Mikhtyuk, the com­ These are just some of the findings in "And we have the support of the lead­ es in the near future. mander of Ukraine's 43rd Rocket a recently released survey that polled ers of both countries - Presidents Leonid Defense Minister Grachev noted in Division, confirmed that all the nuclear more than 1,500 citizens in all 24 regions Kuchma and Boris Yeltsin," added Mr. Sochi that his talks with Defense warheads are to be withdrawn from of Ukraine, the autonomous republic of Shmarov, saying that he had received Minister Shmarov could help advance the Ukraine's territory before the end of 1998. instructions from President Kuchma to visit of Russian President Boris Yeltsin. the Crimea and the capital city of Kyiv. According to Ministry of Defense fig- Results of the poll, conducted by Prof. remove as many problems in relations He told reporters he is confident the Valeriy Khmelko, head of the sociology with Russia as possible. Russian leader will visit Ukraine, but he (Continued on page 4) department at the University of Kyiv- Mohyla Academy, and Prof. Volodymyr Paniotto, the chairman of the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, who Polish investigation uncovers victims of Soviet campaign also teaches at KMA, were released at a press conference at the university on by Andrij Wynnyckyj partition of Poland in 1939, a move foreseen by the notorious November 21. Toronto Press Bureau Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact signed in August of that year, the Soviet state police (NKVD) rounded up thousands of "enemies "Findings in our survey show that more TORONTO — The Polish government's continuing investi­ and counterrevolutionaries" and summarily executed them on than half of Ukraine's population is politi­ gation of the Katyn massacre, conducted in cooperation with the orders of NKVD Chief Lavrentiy Beria and Joseph Stalin. cally disoriented," said Dr. Khmelko. Ukrainian, Belarusian and Russian authorities, has confirmed Mr. Sniezko told the October 20 gathering that the procuracies "For example," he continued, "when that Ukrainian, Jewish, Belarusian and other civilians also were of Poland, Ukraine, Belarus and Russia have been working we asked them what political powers specifically targeted in the Soviet regime's 1940 campaign to together to sift through the mountains of newly available docu­ they would support in a critical situation, decapitate the Polish army and the intelligentsia living in former­ mentation, identifying mass graves, conducting exhumations, 46 percent said 'no power,' while 14 per­ ly Polish-controlled territories. and looking for families of the victims. The most recent meeting cent answered 'difficult to say.' That One of the Polish Republic's chief investigators of the opera­ of the international team of forensic investigators took place in means that, in effect, 60 percent of the tion, Stefan Sniezko, was in Toronto in late October to solicit Kyiv in May. population today does not have a clear help from members of the Ukrainian, Jewish and Polish com­ Mr. Sniezko said the Ukrainian effort is headed by Gen. political orientation." munities to help identify victims listed in documents his unit has Khomych, deputy head of the Ukrainian Security Service. "Gen. Prof. Khmelko added that of the compiled. Khomych provided a crucial 1943 document, from which we remaining 40 percent of the population, Mr. Sniezko, formerly the deputy attorney general in Prime generated a list of people who were sentenced to execution," the 17 percent would support the president Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki's administration and now a mem­ Polish official added. of the country, while 6 percent would ber of the Polish Parliament, met with a handful of community Mr. Sniezko explained that at the original site in the Katyn back the Supreme Council and 5 percent activists and the press at the Ukrainian World Congress head­ Forest there were about 300 Jews and about 600 Ukrainians. would turn to the government. quarters. Acting as liaison was Dr. Jan Kaszubal, vice-president, Some Ukrainians and Jews shot there were Polish Army offi­ Interestingly, only one out of every of the Canadian Polish Congress. cers, but most were civilians, including elderly women and 100 residents of Ukraine supports radi­ Those in attendance included Ukrainian World Congress children. cal-nationalist forces, one in 20 supports Secretary General Yaroslaw Sokolyk, UWC Acting Among the team's early discoveries was that many of those national democrats and one in 10 sup­ Treasurer Vasyl Veryha, Ukrainian Canadian Research and not shot at the Katyn site were taken to prisons in Ukraine and ports Communists. Documentation Center board member Ostap Wynnyckyj and dealt with there. Mr. Sniezko said the prisons of Kyiv, Kharkiv Prof. Khmelko noted that support a timely visitor from Kyiv, the head of the Ukrainian World and Kherson were particularly bloody Soviet killing grounds. toward the radical right is growing in Coordinating Council's Secretariat, Mykhailo Slaboshpytsky. NKVD operatives unmasked Ukraine, but the growth is not yet alarm­ Mass graves uncovered ing. "We know from Stalin on down who ordered the action "However, I must add that cases of In April 1943, German officials uncovered mass graves in the and who carried it out," Mr. Sniezko said. Among those political disorientation can create a dan­ Katyn Forest. Until Russian President Boris Yeltsin released directly responsible for the murders were about 200 NKVD gerous situation. It can create fertile incriminating documents from Soviet archives in October 1992, operatives. An NKVD officer named Syromiatnikov, sta­ ground for speculators of all sorts, and the Communist regime had maintained that Adolf Hitler's tioned in Kharkiv, was identified as a particularly bloody- then anything can happen," he added. killers were the ones responsible for murdering about 26,000 handed officially sanctioned serial killer. He is thought to Polish citizens in the Katyn Forest. The poll, which surveyed adults 18 It is now widely acknowledged that after the Nazi-Soviet (Continued on page 17) (Continued on page 3) THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, DECEMBER 3, 1995 No. 49 ANALYSIS: Ukraine's intelligentsia challenges Ukrainian government Kuchma criticizes government, opponents Republic" a zone of special strategic by Yuri Pokalchuk opponent of the incumbent President importance for the Russian Federation, Leonid Kravchuk, Mr.