Snake-like

On the last week, the Ministry of Industrial Policy of Ukraine held a regular Ukrainian-Romanian working meeting. Among other things, the fate of Krivyi Rig mining and bebenficiation plant of oxidized ores (KGOKOR) has been discussed.

The meeting was held by Vice-Minister of Industrial Policy Sergei Hryshchenko, and it was devoted to preparations for the Second joint meeting of Ukrainian-Romanian Subcommittee on Economic Affairs, which operates within the framework of the Presidential Commission. The meeting is scheduled to be held in Kiev in June.

At the recent meeting the patries have discussed a number of clearly important issues, including the development of trade and economic relations. For example, Chernivetska region Administration submitted a project to attract the region to the construction projects of transport corridors and other cross-border projects, which involves Ukrainian and Romanian companies. Of course the KGOKOR issue was mantioned as well.

In the late winter The Ministry of Industrial Policy focused on KGOKOR considering the Romanian issue. On 20 February, the Deputy Minister Gryshchenko held a meeting of the governmental delegation of Ukraine as to negotiations with the government delegation of Romania to amend the intergovernmental protocol on the participation of Romania in the construction of KGOKOR. Such suggestions are planned to be prepared for the regular meeting of the presidents of two countries, so that they could resolve the issue of unfortunate GOK.

And at that February meeting, not the Romanian but Ukrainian side transferred a protocol to amend the existing international agreements on KGOKOR regarding the recognition of property rights on the property complex of Ukraine KGOKOR. Suggestion was that the Romanian side is to consolidate the transfer of property rights on KGOKOR as unfinished and Romania receives monetary compensation. In doing so, the Ukrainian Ministry of Industrial Policy announced that he does not know the position of the Romanian side.

Thus, the Ministry of Industrial Policy has offered to support the long-standing position of the Romanian side – to pass the facility under construction at KGOKOR over to Ukraine at the conditions of monetary compensation from the Ukraine in the future.

It is therefore legitimate objection - the position of Romania is unknown! The Ukrainian officials announced the very Romanian position: recognize the right to share in KGOKOR and pay Romania for those rights to the maximum.

Meanwhile, those same international agreement (some since the Soviet Union) for the mining and enrichment plant of oxidized ores clearly saw the participation of foreign contractors, especially Romania, as a share in the construction (process), but not in constructed plant (the subject). That, of course, gives them no property rights. It also clearly stipulates that payment for their participation in the construction is through raw materials supply (which can, of course, be evaluated in the cash equivalent), but no cash. This is the key document on the subject - Protocol between the Government of Ukraine and the Government of Romania for the continuation of cooperation in the construction of Krivyi Rig Mining plant of oxidized ore, signed in 1994.

And in this case the interests of third parties are involved. In fact, the same Ministry of Industrial Policy on the other hand creates a working group on the proposal of Hares Group (Austria) and Kobe Steel (Japan) to introduce ITMk3 technology to KGOKOR. But since there are no free lunches, and with scanty filling the budget someone must pay Romanians, is separate agreements of Ministry of Industrial Policy for compensation for the KGOKOR just an appreciation of its the project? Which is simply to pull the "wool over potential investors eyes?

In general, the position of Ministry of Industrial Policy as to the agreements with Romania reminds a long and talentless game of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where as the result we have lost a significant portion of the shelf at the Zmeinyi Island. Initially, with Mr. Kuchma, proromaninan officials (and half-shelf "Volodymyr Ogryzko was among them) have blocked every attempt not to revise the position of Ukraine as to the Zmeinyi, the legacy of the Soviet Union (as in the case of KGOKOR). Then there were drafts of agreements, which left a loophole for the Romanians – they were signed by President Kuchma, in the form of the Treaty on the relations of good neighborliness and cooperation between Ukraine and Romania (from 1997), in Article 2 which states that "the parties shall conclude separate agreement on border and solve the issue of delimitation of their continental shelf. " This has enabled Rumanians go to international court and win the case with complete impotence of our diplomats.

Similar algorithm of action troubled Romanian neighbors are trying to perform again, now with the GOK of oxidized ores.