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19 September 1998
For immediate release
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Presidents Kuchma And Yeltsin Hold Get-Together In Moscow's Suburb
On September 18, Presidents Boris Yeltsin of Russia and Leonid Kuchma of Ukraine held an informal tête-à-tête get-together in the Russian President's suburban residence "Rus" in Zavidovo. Concurrently, the newly appointed Russian Prime Minister, Yevgeni Primakov, and his Ukrainian opposite number, Valeriy Pustovoitenko, held a meeting at the Russian Government's Reception House, which was attended by the two parties' vice prime ministers and the governors of Russia's and Ukraine's central banks. The talks were focused on the parties' trade and economic relations from the angle of their cooperation agreement for the 1998-2007 period. The Russian Head of Government reiterated his nation's readiness to take part in completing construction projects involving additional power generating facilities at the Rivne and Khmelnytsky nuclear power plants. The two prime ministers underscored the significance of making the mixed Ukrainian-Russian commission's activities brisk and more efficient.
Russian And Ukrainian Presidents Decide To Set Up Joint "Anti-Crisis Task Force"
The Presidents of Russia and Ukraine have decided to set up a joint "anti-crisis group" with a view of promptly solving problems hampering the two nations' economic cooperation. The decision was one of the results of their working meeting at the Russian president’s residence "Rus" on September 18-19.
Ukraine And Russia Agree On Coordinated Effort To Cope With Financial Crisis
The focal agenda item of the two-day Ukrainian-Russian talks in Moscow were the financial crisis and ways to cope with it, as Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma stated on September 19, speaking to Russian and Ukrainian journalists in Moscow before meeting with the Russian Head of Government, Yevgeni Primakov. As the Ukrainian President said, the two parties to the talks focused on drafting joint measures to cope with financial crisis. According to Mr. Kuchma, the parties reiterated their relations as those of strategic partnership and discussed ways to step up trade and economic relations between Ukraine and Russia. In particular, an agreement has been reached on lifting limitations which were earlier imposed on barter deals, and on Ukraine's reimbursement of debts for supplies of Russian natural gas with shipments of Ukrainian commodities to Russia. President Kuchma sounded confident on Russia's abrogation of the three percent importation duty levied on Ukrainian exports to Russia. The parties have also decided to step up their joint actions toward manufacturing AN-70 aircraft. The two nations' leaders also discussed prospects of the CIS and outlined some likely recipes toward increasing the organization's viability and efficacy, Mr. Kuchma further disclosed. In his opinion, the meeting with Russian President Boris Yeltsin was absolutely frank, friendly and characteristic of the two leaders' deep care for their respective nations' future.
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