Ukraine and Slovakia in Integrated Europe

Yuri RYLACH, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine in the Slovak Republic

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Viewed with unbiased eye, the contemporary history of bilateral Ukrainian-Slovak relations is not very long since the peoples of both countries have gained independence comparatively recently, thus realizing the dreams of Taras Shevchenko and L'udovit Stur, their national prophets. Such a common paradigm makes for the content of our present relations, which most characteristic features is, evidently, the fact that in similarity to the more distant times they were never marred by the existence of the dark past, territorial claims or other serious problems. Close historical, cultural, language and ethnic affinity, very much like internal problems and flow of transformation, as well as intrinsically common foreign policy goals and tasks have become the foundation to set on the onward march of the Ukrainian-Slovak relations.

Ukraine was among the first to officially recognize independent Slovakia, which happened on January 1, 1993, the first day the Republic was created. Within the half of a year, the Agreement of Good Neighborhood, Friendly Relations and Cooperation had been signed, and it is these characteristics that are the most distinguishing features of the present-day Ukrainian-Slovak relations.

The legal and contractual basis that Ukraine and Slovak Republic share numbers over

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a hundred documents. It has been worked out during the recent decade and is the proof of mutual interest in the relations. As of today, properly speaking, all the necessary preconditions have been created to launch our cooperation to the level appropriate for two good neighbors. This work is still going on today with close to a dozen of agreements and treaties being at the preparatory stage.

Of course, not everything and not always was cloudless in our relations. At some stages, problems of internal transformation, external factors as well as lack of clear- cut strategy of bilateral relations and coordination in realizing strategic foreign policy priorities had their effect.

I have the pleasure to note that during the recent several years the development of Ukrainian-Slovak relations, the level and intensity of political dialogue have become really dynamic. Suffice is to recall the two most recent examples. First goes the official visit to Ukraine of the President of the republic of Slovakia in December of 2002. Second, the meetings of Presidents Leonid Kuchma and Robert Shuster at the High Tatry in Mach of 2003, as well as of the Prime Minister of Ukraine Victor Yanukovych and Head of the Slovak Government M. Dzurinda at the Low Tatry.

For the second half of the current year the Head of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Victor Lytvyn plans his official visit to Slovakia. Aside from that regular have become meetings and consultations at the level of ministers, state secretaries and chiefs of ministerial departments and administration. At the same time, I am sure, to successfully realize the agreements reached the initiative of concrete organizations and institutions, enterprises, representatives of science, culture and sports is needed. We already have the intended successful results on hand: hardly had the presidents of the two countries at their meeting at the High Tatry agreed on restoring regular air flights between Ukraine and Slovakia, the inauguration of the airline Kharkiv-Kyiv- Bratislava had taken place already on this April 29 at the initiative of the Aeromist company.

It is highly important to note that within the context of our bilateral relations the coordination of actions is becoming closer in the sphere of foreign policy. Primarily, the issue in question is the realization of such an important priority for both our countries as the EU integration.

For Slovakia, the EU joining is the matter of the immediate future since already in May of 2004 the country is to become the European Union member. In the shortest time, a great amount of the extremely complex work had been done to adapt social, political, judicial, economic and social systems to comply with the requirement of the European Union, and the negotiations successfully carried out as to the joining the organization. We study the European integration experience of Slovakia, either positive or negative one, very carefully. It is gratifying that our Slovak friends are ready to render us all kind of help in this field. I repeatedly made sure of this fact while meeting the President, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, and high-ranking officials in the Government and Parliament, as well as on the local level. These were not pronouncement for effect but concrete political consultations made by both Foreign Ministries' state secretaries and experts on the diversity of issues

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connected with the expansion of the European Union and coordination of actions for integrating Europe.

Highly important for Ukraine is the good offices and assistance of the Slovak side in approaching the European integration structures by our country. The latest example, that is, the constructive position of Slovakia concerning the well-known document of the European Commission "Expanded Europe-Neighborhood: the New Frames of Relations with Our Eastern and Southern Neighbors" is more than eloquent. Ukraine is featured in the document as the closest neighbor as expressed in the report of M. Dzurinda, the Head of the Slovak government. Further still, it was during this summit that Mr. Dzurinda, while meeting President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma, formally invited the prime Minister of Ukraine Victor Yanukovych to take part in the summit of the heads of governments of the Visegrad Group of Nations to be held in June. I am deeply convinced that this regional structure may play an important role in defining the clear-cut strategy of the European Union towards Ukraine and, in particular, obtaining by it the status of the EU associated member in the nearest future.

In return, Ukraine has invited Slovakia to join in such an important regional association as the GUUAM (Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and Moldova). Created in October 1997, it was called upon strengthening security and stability in Europe based on principles of respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, inviolability of national borders, democracy, supremacy of law and observance of human rights. In view of the fact of the GUUAM's priority being also the efficient functioning of the Europe-Caucasus-Asia transport corridor with its infrastructure developed, we believe the participation of the Slovak side to be promising, even as an observer, in the summit of the organization that occurred in Yalta on July 3 and 4, 2003, and as well as in the future.

Ever since the Treaty on Trade, Economic, Scientific, and Technical Cooperation had been signed between the governments in 1993, the collaboration in economic sphere drew our special attention. Significant role here belongs to the joint intergovernmental Ukrainian-Slovak Commission. At present, among its principal tasks is the improvement of the contractual and legal basis, the expansion of cooperation in such important fields as liberalization of bilateral trade, investment activity, energy supply, and regional partnership.

The analysis shows that the trade between Ukraine and Slovakia evolves into stable growth. During 2000 to 2002, through common efforts the sides succeeded in stopping negative trends that happened in 1998 to 1999 in the sphere of economic cooperation between Ukraine and Slovakia, when in comparison with 1997 the commodity circulation had decreased by more that 25 percent. Thus, the external turnover of goods and services between our countries in 2002 came to 492.5 million U. S. dollars, which is 23.2 percent or 92.7 million U. S. dollars more than in 2001. The volume of total goods turnover amounted to 426.6 million U. S. dollars (up 11.4 percent to the level of 2001).

During the January-to-April period of 2003 the foreign trade between Ukraine and the Slovak Republic reached its ten-year peak which made $125.6m

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or 29.8% more than that for the same period of the previous year.

Table 1. The goods turnover

The volume of Ukrainian export to the Slovak Republic during January to April of 2003 reached 68.4 million U. S. dollars that is 33.5 percent more that during similar period of the year before. The leading items in the Ukrainian export are traditionally occupied by raw aluminum, iron ore and concentrate, and hot-rolled non-clad stock, ferrous off-cuts and scrap metal, black coal and crude copper.

The volume of Slovak import for the reported period of the current year totaled to 57.2 million U. S. dollars, which is 25.6 percent more that during the four months of the year before with the leading item traditionally remaining natural magnesite (22 percent of the entire import). The positive balance in the external commodity trade has reached 1.2 million U. S. dollars during this year's four months.

Joining the WTO is beneficent for our trade relations. In such a context, it is hard to overestimate the signing on March 21, 2003, of the Ukrainian-Slovak Protocol on concessions concerning mutual access to the markets of goods and services. Ukraine values the support of Slovakia on this strategic course and its readiness to discuss way to liberalize the bilateral trade already at the present its stage, that is, even before this country obtains WTO full membership.

The powerful transit facilities of Ukraine and Slovakia in the Europe's Central and Eastern region became the ground for fruitful cooperation of Ukrainian and Slovak partners. Through the realization of the Ukrainian project to transport oil from the Caspian deposits to the countries of Central and Western Europe through the Odesa- Brody oil pipeline Ukraine allows to realize the program declaration of the Slovak Republic government concerning diversification of the hydrocarbon resources transportation lines.

Concerning transporting natural gas, Ukraine and Slovakia hold correspondingly first and second places as to the transit volume of the Russian fossil fuel to Europe, with both countries interested not only to preserve but also to increase the extent of conveyance of this strategic resource through their territories.

The amount of Slovak investments into Ukraine totals 44 million and 144 thousand U. S. dollars thus making it 654 thousand U. S. dollars, or 1.5 percent, more than at the start of 2001. The characteristic sign of them is that the bulk, that is, 36.13 million U. S. dollars or 81.9 percent is headed for industry. Almost half of the Slovak investments (21.7 million U. S. dollars, or 49.2 percent) is put into

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mining industry, with one third of them (14,4 million U. S. dollars, or 14.4 percent) going into manufacturing industry, of which production of plastic goods is definitely in the lead (14.7 million U. S. dollars, or 6.5 percent). Only 11.1 percent of the investments (4.9 million U. S. dollars) are directed to the wholesale and retain trade.

The JSC Chemosvit, one of the strongest of Slovak investors, has put in close to 16 million U. S. dollars into Ukrainian-Slovak joint ventures, while the Minerfin Enterprise's participation in mining industry comes up to almost 20 million.

An illustrative example of growing investment activity of Slovak entrepreneurs on the Ukrainian market turned out the booming participation of the East Slovak Energy company in privatizing of four regional energy enterprises in Ukraine: Zhytomyroblenergo, Kirovohradoblenergo, Khersonoblenergo, and Sevastopolenergo valued approximately at 92 million U. S. dollars.

In all, close to 195 joint ventures with Slovak capital participation is registered in Ukraine. On this number 67 enterprises, or 34.3 percent, are directly engaged in production.

Worth attention is quite fruitful cooperation between the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine and its Slovak counterpart. While rendering adequate services to their customer enterprises, both organizations keep in business touch at their regional levels. In particular, quite efficient is cooperation between the Chambers of Kyiv and Bratislava, Dnipropetrovsk and Zilina, as well as others.

One of the priority courses of the Ukrainian-Slovak bilateral ties and a constituent of the European integration of both nations is the cress-the-border cooperation, which form of the countries' concerted efforts serves to strengthen the tendency for integration and to avoid appearance of new division lines in Europe. By working together, the border regions of both countries demonstrate the good-neighborliness spirit of bilateral relations. It is highly agreeable to note that during the recent years positive experience of cooperation between the border regions of Ukraine and Slovakia has accumulated, which evidence, in particular, is the dynamic expansion of the contractual and legal basis of the over-the-border trade between countries. In addition to the Treaty on trade across the border signed between the governments in December of 2000, seven inter-regional agreements on cooperation were concluded.

An important factor to intensify Ukrainian-Slovak across-the-border trade should become the activity of the bilateral Working Group on these matters to operate within the frames of intergovernmental Commission on Matters of Trade, Economic, Scientific, and Technical Cooperation. The first session of the Group that took place this March verified the desire of the parties to approach the existing problems in this field most pragmatically and constructively. Primarily, the directions of bilateral across-the-border cooperation should be defined more precisely, and a long-term program, or concept of it development, worked out. However, ready and waiting projects for bilateral cooperation are felt lacking. This issue is especially urgent at the backlog of Ukraine and Slovakia increased desire to draw the European Union more closer to the across-the-border cooperation of

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the two countries, in particular, through the use of such funds as TACIS and PHARE, as well as INTERREG in future.

Quite promising from the point of view of the EU support is, for instance, the trilateral Ukrainian-Slovak-Polish project of transborder cooperation Polonyny directed at developing the one and only, in the sense of nature and geography, region located on the terrain of the three countries. The project provides for intensification of cooperation between Ukraine, Slovakia and Poland in the fields of tourism and recreational business, expanding transport infrastructure, backing small and medium business, agriculture, environment protection, education, satisfaction of cultural and educational wants of national minorities, etc.

Apart from that, there are still great potential and prospect for growth left for the transborder cooperation on the multilateral basis, especially within international association Carpathian European Region. Unfortunately, at the background of intensive development of such a cooperation and creating new European regions on the border of Slovakia with Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Austria the cooperation in the frames of Carpathian region is virtually imperceptible. To raise the efficacy of this region joint efforts are needed of the state and local authorities. A number of programs and projects are available, to realize which the entire border Carpathian member-regions may be drawn to. In particular, the international comprehensive program is meant to work out a modern system of predicting floods and control water resources in the basin of the river Tisza and its inflows; to prepare common strategies for territorial development, transport and communication infrastructure expansion, environment protection, holding industrial exhibitions and fairs, international tenders, contacts in the humanitarian sphere, and so on.

The Embassy provides active support for the cooperation between border regions of Ukraine and Slovakia. At the same time, the accomplishment of such a cooperation is primarily dependent on the initiative at the local level-on the local bodies of government control and self-management, entrepreneurs, public organizations, etc.

Slovakia's EU entry is to produce double acting effect on the Ukrainian-Slovak transborder partnership. Introduction of the Schengen regulations may adversely affect the transborder trade, humanitarian exchange, tourism, and so on. On the other hand, we do hope that the EU program "INTERREG III" extended to the Ukrainian- Slovak border will open new opportunities to step up bilateral across-the-border as well as interregional cooperation.

At the same time we understand that in view of the Schengen Agreement the regime of the Ukrainian-Slovak border stretch will toughen to an extent after the Slovak Republic joins the EU. Nevertheless, My conviction is that this will not tell on the nature of good neighborly relations. They will remain traditionally friendly and warm among the peoples on both sides of the Carpathian Mountains, while the atmosphere for contacts, especially in the border region, will keep on being sincere and full of trust.

Simultaneously, the both sides are interacting actively to avoid harmful consequences of the Schengen cordon line

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being moved to the border with Ukraine. In particular, the issue is being discussed of the possible cancellation of visas for Slovak citizens entering Ukraine and providing visas free for citizens of this country. Understanding concerning this was actually reached at the highest political level. Besides, Slovakia regards quite positively the desire of Ukraine to move the spirit and practice of the existing Schengen border regime between Slovakia and Austria to that between Ukraine and Slovakia.

I would also like to dwell briefly on such an important aspect as military and political cooperation. From the very first of diplomatic relations being established cooperation between military departments developed actively and dynamically, which evidence is the regular meetings of the top leadership of the Defense Ministers of Ukraine and Slovakia to discuss military and security situation in the region and the world at large. In addition, there is a protocol operating between the military institutions that stipulates holding systematically military and political consultations aimed at ensuring regional security in Central and Eastern Europe. Visits to be made to Slovakia this year by the Minister of Defense and Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is also of major importance for setting the dialogue in motion.

In my view, significant is the fact that the military and political leadership of Slovakia regards Ukraine not only as a good friend and principal political partner, but also values our country highly as influential factor of stability in the region and active participant of the antiterrorist coalition. Suffice is to mention the effective transportation of Slovak military engineering unit by the Ukrainian transport planes to Afghanistan.

Crucial multilateral cooperation of the regional dimension is Ukraine's cooperation with the Visegrad Group countries (B-4), in which summit, as mentioned earlier, the Prime Minister of Ukraine Victor Yanukovych participated as observer. This fact is of principal importance. In addition, the Slovak side backs invitation of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense for participation in summits of the Defense Ministers of the Visegrad Group countries in the format 4+1. The next regular meeting of the Visegrad Group defense ministers is provided to include the head of the Ukrainian military department. Furthermore, positive example of regional military cooperation is the formation of the joint engineer battalion Tisza of Ukrainian, Hungarian, Romanian and Slovak participation to be used in case of need to remove the effects of war of the elements within the frames of humanitarian operation in the region.

As mentioned earlier, the foreign policy priorities of our countries, that is, European and Euro-Atlantic integration, are identical, and not exclusively in political or economic sense. Things that keep us together are much greater than the ones separating: these are our common Slavonic roots, closeness of the languages, culture and national strain that bring the Ukrainians and Slovaks together beneficially and serves as fertile field for constructive collaboration. It concerns the state agencies and institutions of local self-government, public organizations, artistic unions, entrepreneurs, etc., and common citizens. I would make special emphasis on this aspect since the Schengen cordon,

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at least at first stages, would somewhat complicate relations between our peoples. Moreover, in this respect we would give our due to the human factor and the need to provide utmost support for the so-called people's diplomacy, that is, relationship in the humanitarian sphere.

May I remind our dear reader that in the east of Slovakia a numerous Russian- Ukrainian community resides that has family and historical links with Ukraine? Despite all the existing problems, the Ukrainians of Slovakia lead their national cultural life, publish periodicals and literary works, teach children Ukrainian, and undertake cultural and art actions such, for example, as the famous Ukrainian Culture Festival at Svydnyk that has long outgrown the borders of Slovakia. The recent, 49th such culture festival was held June 22 to 23, 2003 and was sponsored by Presidents of Ukraine and Slovakia L. Kuchma and R. Shuster.

The traditional holiday - the Day of Good Neighborliness was celebrated on the Ukrainian-Slovak border this May. This event is, indeed, a triumph of human relations, when the border instead of separating performs unifying function. There are multiple instances of this sort. Suffice is to name such actions as commemoration of Slavic unification (October); memorial tablets installed to honor Hryhoriy Skovoroda in Bratislava and famous Slovak enlightener D. Krman in Poltava; ceremonies to mark the 85th anniversary of Oles Honchar and traditional Taras Shevchenko Days in Slovakia. During this year, a series of actions was initiated to pay homage to the victims of the man-made famine in Ukraine of 1932 to 1033. It was officially acknowledged that the events were the gravest tragedies in human history and an act of genocide against the Ukrainian people.

Every nation is in possesses of a complex of specific qualities or traits that make it distinctive and unique. I would like to observe in this context that in the epoch of globalization with its threat of making uniform and lacking distinction all the national cultures without exception the realization of belonging to one's own culture acquires special importance in similarity to comprehending one's identity by any other nation.

It is another case when we are pressing to build a common European home that cannot be erected without concerted efforts of all the European countries, which is the EU and which Slovakia has practically joined. I am convinced that within the next decades we are to build integrated Europe in company of Slovakia and other Ukrainian neighbors.

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