Posted by Lubomyr on September 05, 2000 at 19:18:57:
It's easy to blame every difficulty in Ukraine on Kuchma. But, the fact is, that in his second term he did the right thing - stopped deferring to the commie-controlled Verkhovna Rada & started to enact a rational economic program, beginning with agriculture. A tax reform is coming, followed by duties reform, regulation simplification, etc, All will help. But the main accomplishment of Kuchma: he kept Ukraine out of war, or revolution. Just compare Ukraine with: Georgia, Russia, Moldova, Armenia, Yugoslavia, Ireland, Spain, Kashmir, Albania, Somalia, Mexico, Phillippines, and so many other countries around the world, to understand what could have happened in Ukraine, but did not, thanks largely to Kuchma's diplomatic skills.
No, it's not the best times in Ukraine, but compared with 75% of all countries around the world, Ukraine is much better off. Just put things in proper perspective!