"Ukraine: How the West can help" the Economist

[applegrove]

Ukraine How the West can help

The Economist

http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21597897-turmoil-ukraine-chance-west-prove-it-still-force-good-how?fsrc=nlw|hig|2-27-2014|7912528|36470475|

"SNIP................................



First and foremost, Ukraine needs a legitimate, national government. The interim leaders installed by the Rada, its parliament, may be more palatable than Mr Yanukovych; but the Rada is a nest of crooks and placemen, and scarcely more legitimate than he was, as some protesters, and Russia, have pointed out. It is vital that the presidential election in May is clean, and seen to be: Western monitors must help to ensure that. And the new president should be untainted by the score-settling and nest-feathering that have blighted Ukraine’s politics. That is one lesson from the Orange revolution of 2004—an event that seemed to herald a democratic future, but instead merely reshuffled an entrenched elite. Yulia Tymoshenko, the Orange veteran and two-time prime minister, who was sprung from jail as Mr Yanukovych fled, should keep out of it.

Whoever wins will need help, and not just the financial kind. When he wasn’t pillaging his country, Mr Yanukovych undermined its courts, suborned its constitution and harassed its media, institutions that are as much a part of an enduring democracy as elections (see essay). That is another warning from the Orange revolution: without a proper underpinning, emerging democracies can slip back into misrule. The West must lend its expertise and resources to restore it.

But Ukraine needs money too—lots of it, and urgently. Its finances are dire: its hard-currency reserves are dwindling, the current-account deficit is widening and around $13 billion of debt repayments are due this year. Russia is unlikely to honour the $15 billion bail-out it agreed with Mr Yanukovych in December. Ukraine needs around $25 billion to stay afloat. That should come in two parts: first, several billion dollars in emergency loans to tide the country over until after its election, then a big multi-year package, financed largely through the IMF.

Of course, IMF support will come with conditions, such as a clean-up of Ukraine’s Augean corruption, a depreciation of its overvalued currency and a curtailment of its lavish energy subsidies. The interim government should begin these reforms, to take some of the heat off the elected one. And the Europeans can help, too, both with technical assistance and by holding out the best inducement to reform they can offer: the prospect (however distant) of full EU membership. That idea will alarm some member states, not to mention their voters. They should see that incentivising democratic change in this pivotal country, and welcoming it to the European club if that is accomplished, is as much in their interests as Ukraine’s.




...............................SNIP"

[1000words]

1. Ukraine is up for grabs ...

Who is surprised "The Economist" thinks it could benefit from "help" from the West?

[applegrove]

2. Of course it would. It is in crisis. You speak like the Economist is a far right rag and it is not.

[1000words]

3. It isn't just the "far right" serving its master.

[applegrove]

4. I don't understand. Could you be more specific?

[1000words]

6. The last six years should be a clue ...

but I don't think you will be receptive to the concept.

[malletgirl02]

11. The Economist

You are correct the Economist has been a stalwart supported if the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. In addition, the Economist has always be for cutting the social welfare state in the U.S. and Europe citing it too expensive, but know it says the US and the EU most give the Ukraine billions of dollars.

[JVS]

5. lol

[El_Johns]

9. No?

The Economist Group is 50% owned by Pearson PLC via The Financial Times Limited. The bulk of the remaining shares are held by individual shareholders including the Cadbury, Rothschild, Schroder, Agnelli and other family interests as well as a number of staff and former staff shareholders.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Economist_Group

I call those right-wing interests. Their interest is in expanding their power and controlling the masses via the media.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

20. On economic issues it is.

The economist is ultra-libertarian. On social issues I tend to agree with it, but I'd view any economic remedy it prescribes with extreme suspicion.

[Nye Bevan]

26. Didn't they endorse Obama both in 2008 and 2012? (nt)

[Donald Ian Rankin]

27. I believe so, yes.

[reformist2]

23. It's even worse than a right-wing rag, it's a capitalist rag - THE capitalist rag, in fact.

[frwrfpos]

7. Ukraine HAD an elected national government

Its been taken over by anti-semitic and far right violent parties that wish to EU and US puppets. Sadly, the Ukrainian people are about to get a taste of "western" democracy and feel the boot of IMF imposed austerity policies.

And this is cheered and supported on this website.

Fucking sad and pathetic.

[JVS]

8. but but but putin is a bad man with no shirt

[frwrfpos]

10. the blind hatred of anything Russia by some on here

block them from seeing the very right wing and literally anti-semitic assholes that have violently overthrown the elected government of Ukraine. You can almost smell the Cold War propaganda and commies in every closet.

Its a sad reflection of how effective tireless propaganda works to support right wing groups and agendas.

[1000words]

12. Too many at DU simply function from a "go team" mentality.

They call themselves "progressives."

[frwrfpos]

13. unfortunately the Obama admin seems to support the violent overthrow of the Ukrainian government

The rot goes right to the top it seems.

[1000words]

15. They call him a "progressive," too.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

22. It's cheered and supported because what you're saying isn't actually true.

Ultra-nationalists are not the ones in charge, and Yanukovych ceased acting like a democratically elected leader years ago.

So yes, people are cheering and supporting the change.

[Comrade Grumpy]

14. Ah, the tender mercies of the West. Ukrainians have a lot to look forward to.

Currency devaluation.

"Curtailment of lavish energy subsidies."

Looks like they'll trade in a revolution for a depression, but at least the creditors will be paid.

[okaawhatever]

16. Why let a government that was robbing them blind countinue to do so? If you don't understand

Ukraine's gas situation and the effect of gas subsidies on the average citizen, be careful about commenting. The citizens of Ukraine are getting robbed twice. First by the price that they pay for the gas, and again by the subsidies that are given that mostly benefit the factories. Factories whose owners are billionaires. Either way these debts were coming due, at least now they won't be jerked around and hope Russia doesn't cut off their gas, and by extension their heat, next winter. Ukraine has a lot of resources and potential. If they can modernize their factories and become more energy efficient it will do wonders.
They have been stuck on a treadmill, thanks to the interference of Russia and the failure of their elected government. It's time for them to get off and start turning their country into the world power that it should be.

[1000words]

17. You don't understand they are pawns

They are being used to fight a proxy war. They have two choices: suffer under Putin's boot, or suffer under the IMF and Western "democracy's" idea of "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps," via austerity.

[joshcryer]

19. There's another choice: Iceland

Jail the crooks.

[Comrade Grumpy]

18. I understand how austerity programs work. The Ukrainians are going to understand, too.

[malaise]

21. You're everywhere

Damn!

[Adrahil]

25. Yes, Comrade Putin is a MUCH better option....

... so long as you do exactly what he says.

[seveneyes]

24. "Ukraine needs money too—lots of it, and urgently"

Of course it does. The US needs money too, and lots of it. That is where any US dollars need spent now. Until then, other countries can keep it civil, work together and survive. After the US gets its own people cared for, then it can start spreading the cash around again.