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The Discreet Charm of Ukrainian Elite

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The Discreet Charm of Ukrainian Elite #9 (103) September 2016 Changes in the living standards Pavlo Klimkin on foreign policy Creative destruction: of Ukrainians in 25 years challenges and priorities ideas on Ukraine's evolution THE DISCREET CHARM OF UKRAINIAN ELITE WWW.UKRAINIANWEEK.COM Featuring selected content from The Economist FOR FREE DISTRIBUTION CONTENTS | 3 BRIEFING 24 A trap that didn't close: How the controversial aspects 4 The war of all against all: What to of Slovyansk liberation expect of the fall season in Ukrainian are interpreted on both sides politics of the front line ECONOMICS 27 Leonidas Donskis on the ideological 7 Trotting towards a better life: profile of Vladimir Putin How the living standards of Ukrainians changed in 25 years FOCUS 28 Andriy Parubiy: 10 Ukraine of Dignity: “If we lose the state, The moment of truth there will be nowhere left to fight Pavlo Klimkin on priorities for foreign corruption” policy and Ukraine’s society Verkhovna Rada Speaker on the NEIGHBOURS change of generations in politics 12 A strategic reserve of diplomacy: How 30 Creative destruction Europe is preparing for the possible Economist Vitaliy Melnychuk on presidency of Donald Trump building Ukraine into an open access 14 Yes, I’d lie to you: The new manner order of dishonesty in politics and its HISTORY consequences 46 From autonomism to statehood: SOCIETY The evolution of Ukrainian elite 20 Everyone gets a piece? Where is the and its state-building concepts debate on ownership of firearms in CULTURE & ARTS Ukraine today 50 Festivals of handmade goods, 22 The revelations of the "Russian street food, jazz and short films: Spring": Glazyev-gate as a hint at why The Ukrainian Week offers Russia failed to stir up an insurgency a selection of art and culture events across south-eastern Ukraine in 2014 to attend in September E-mail [email protected] www.ukrainianweek.com Tel. (044) 351-13-00 The Ukrainian Week #9 (103) September 2016 Editors address 37 Mashynobudivna str., Kyiv, 03067, Ukraine Founder ECEM Media GmbH. Publisher ECEM Media GmbH Print run 15 000. Free distribution Address Austria, Am Gestade,1, 1010 Vienna Our partner State registration certificate КВ № 19823-9623ПР 19.03.2013 Chief Editor Dmytro Krapyvenko Editors Anna Korbut, Lidia Wolanskyj #9 (103) September 2016 | THE UKRAINIAN WEEK THE UKRAINIAN WEEK | #9 (103) September 2016 BRIEFING The war of all against all Bohdan Butkevych he new regular session of the Verkhovna Rada started on September 6. It looks like actors on Ukraine’s political scene, probably with the exception of Petro Poroshen- ko's Bloc and Arseniy Yatseniuk’s People's Front, have great expectations and am- Tbitious plans for this fall seasons. Major oligarchs are likely to step up their game. The situation in the presidential team is not at its best either. For over a year, rumors circulated stubbornly about the dissatisfaction with his po- sition of Chief of Staff Borys Lozhkin. Reportedly, President Poroshenko did not give this former media manager, who is used to managing a huge holding company and inde- pendently making serious decisions, enough room for maneuver. Instead, he used him simply as a liaison officer to communicate with the oligarchs. However, Borys Lozhkin wants real and relevant powers, which he will obviously not get. So, he finally decided to KOZLIUK STANISLAV BY PHOTO quit. Officially, he will now be dealing with investments in the respective Council under #9 (103) September 2016 | THE UKRAINIAN WEEK 6 | BRIEFING | the President, and will remain his adviser. Lozhkin also continue in Parliament. The same old bunch of and Poroshenko have a very close business rela- Lyashko's and Tymoshenko's professional "fighters" tionship, so he will stay on board of the president's will stage another attack in Parliament against the team. In fact, entertaining political ambitions is tariffs, appear on TV channels owned by their oli- too early for him, even if he has some. Instead, the garch sponsors with rueful speeches, and demand appointment of Ihor Raynin, businessman, politi- the overthrow of the "chocolate factory." cian and formerly Deputy Head of Kharkiv Oblast The situation will be further exacerbated by the Administration, indicates that Poroshenko is not ex-members of the Party of Regions, using their going to change his style, and will keep only those still powerful media channels, such as Inter owned administrators who will not question his authority by Dmytro Firtash and Serhiy Lyovochkin, Rinat and decisions. Akhmetov's Ukraina and Yevhen Murayev's News- People's Front, in turn, will only try to sit tight One. Taking into account that Serhiy Lyovochkin, and not to recede from the positions of the Minis- ex-Chief of Staff for Yanukovych and one of the ter of Internal Affairs in the person of Arsen Ava- top players of the Opposition Bloc, still has a sig- kov and the Justice Minister in the person of Pavlo nificant number of his people in all parties and fac- Petrenko. Also, the party bigwigs will think hard tions, there is no doubt that they have good chances about what to do next. The current rating of this of success. Add to that other parallel columns, such political force, which only two years ago won the as the new party Zhyttya owned by Murayev and election with a landslide victory, gives them hope Rabynovych, Nash Krai, Vidrodzhennya, and Us- to enter the Parliament with just a couple dozen pishna Kraina owned by ex-Tax Minister under Ya- MPs as a maximum. This is way too little. There- nukovych Oleksandr Klymenko, a new party based fore, PF starts thinking about new political projects on Yanukovych’s Foreign Minister Leonid Kozha- in the right-wing field. Vilni Lyudy ("Free People") ra's Socialists, Vasyl Volha's Left Union, etc. led by MPs Andriy Levus and Serhiy Vysotsky come Two more liberal projects that appeared this in handy here. It is also important to keep in mind summer on the political map of Ukraine should Azov headed by Andriy Biletsky, who has repeat- also be taken into account. These are the former edly declared his political ambitions and whose cu- Democratic Alliance led by MPs and formerly inves- rator is reportedly Arsen Avakov himself. The split tigative journalists MPs Serhiy Leshchenko, Mus- of PF should not be expected yet, but some assump- tafa Nayem and Svitlana Zalishchuk, and Mikheil tions are already safe to be made. Saakashvili's future party known as "Khvylya”, the Wave. They are already organizing protests against the Prosecutor General's Office during its conflict PERHAPS THE MOST WORRYING FACTOR FOR BANKOVA with the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and de- IS THE SIGNS OF DISCONTENT AMONG THE OLIGARCHS, fiantly calling not to give Ukraine the visa-free re- gime and the IMF tranche through stalled reforms. WITH WHOM POROSHENKO ALLEGEDLY HAS SO FAR As the fall comes, they will make things hum using BEEN ABLE TO FIND COMMON GROUND their media visibility and are likely to join the camp of those who want early parliamentary elections. Their main competitor will be Samopomich for- Yet, the main purpose of the ruling coalition mally led by Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi, which has will be to keep calm in the Parliament for as long suffered a major blow in the Hrybovychy garbage as possible. Both the Presidential Administration dump fire scandal, but nevertheless still has its and Yatsenyuk's team very clearly understand that 7–8% support, and which shares its electoral base they will hardly be once again as lucky as they were of urban intellectuals, and the claim for the "third in spring, when the turmoil around the resignation force" title with the newly minted liberals. The situ- and appointment of the Cabinet and Prime Minis- ation requires Sadovyi and Co. to pick up momen- ter helped them avoid early elections. Those wish- tum, since their image losses suffered in the last six ing to rock the situation to achieve early parliamen- months threaten the party's future. tary elections are plenty. But perhaps the most worrying factor for The very first and most obvious beneficiaries of Bankova is the signs of discontent among the oli- a parliamentary crisis would be the populist front garchs, with whom Poroshenko allegedly has so far represented by Batkivshchyna and Oleh Lyashko's been able to find common ground. This is primar- Radical Party. These political forces are persistent- ily Mr. Kolomoisky. Rumor has it that Ihor Kolo- ly looking for issues that could stir up discontent in moisky is planning to go on the offensive as soon as the Ukrainian society already perturbed by the war the fall comes to recover his position in the oil and and economic hardships. Such issue will obviously gas sector. Besides, we should not forget about UK- be the utility tariffs. ROP party, the political arm of Kolomoisky who is In fact, the "populist alliance" already rehearsed known for diversifying his political assets. There- protest rallies in spring and summer. But while at fore, he might venture to create additional political that time they only managed to bring to the streets "satellites." the party activists and rally laborers for a pretty pen- This autumn season is promising to be no less ny, in the fall, when Ukrainians receive new higher fun than the last fall or this spring. Any alliances utility bills, the number of those not willing to pay and coalitions are possible in an attempt to stir the and ready to protest is likely to rise significantly. pot, which is rather dangerous in the current situ- There is no doubt that the show under the slo- ation of the delicate balance that Ukraine is trying gan of "fighting for the nation's happiness" will to keep.
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