VZCZCXRO4270
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHKV #0897/01 1031314
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131314Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY KYIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1982
INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0064
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 0134
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 0016

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KYIV 000897 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/UMB, EB/TPP/BTA, EB/TPP/MTA 
STATE PLEASE PASS TO USTR FOR KLEIN/MOLNAR 
USDOC FOR 4201/DOC/ITA/MAC/BISNIS 
USDOC FOR 4231/ITA/OEENIS/NISD/CLUCYCK 
GENEVA FOR USTR 
MUMBAI FOR WKLEIN 
 
E.O.: 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD WTRO ECON PGOV UP
SUBJECT: UKRAINE: 4/13 WTO UPDATE 
 
REF: A. KYIV 790 
     ¶B. KYIV 789 
     ¶C. KYIV 784 
     ¶D. KYIV 688 
     ¶E. KYIV 331 
     ¶F. KYIV 200 
 
KYIV 00000897  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Top GOU officials continue to express 
concerns that USG comments on WTO-related legislation and 
the draft Working Party Report will slow down the accession 
process.  EU diplomats in Kyiv have similarly inquired 
whether the comments signify a U.S. delaying tactic.  Post 
has actively countered these misperceptions, emphasizing 
that the USG contributions  were helpful in advancing 
accession.  Working-level members of Ukraine's WTO team 
continue to move full steam ahead, making progress on the 
Working Party Report and in drafting new legislation.  The 
new Minister of Economy floated the idea of Ukraine and 
Russia signing a mutual pledge not to delay one another's 
accession.  Ukraine's political crisis has not impeded 
progress on WTO accession.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) This latest edition in a series of regular update 
cables regarding the status of Ukraine's WTO accession 
(refs D-E and previous) covers the period March 24 - April 
¶13. 
 
More Grumbles from GOU Leadership 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) As reported in ref A, several high-level GOU 
officials have complained to the Ambassador about the 
volume of USG comments on recently passed legislation and 
on the draft Working Party (WP) Report.  Foreign Minister 
Arseniy Yatsenyuk raised similar concerns to Ambassador on 
April 2.  EU diplomats in Kyiv have similarly inquired 
whether the comments signify a U.S. delaying tactic. 
Ambassador has drawn on Washington guidance in responding, 
aggressively pushing back that our comments should in fact 
help move the accession process forward, not stall it. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Comment: Working-level members of Ukraine's 
negotiating team have not echoed the sentiments of top 
officials, telling us they view the comprehensiveness of 
USG comments as helpful and a positive sign that Washington 
is focused on Ukraine's accession. 
 
Working Party Report Progressing 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) The GOU is working with the WTO secretariat to 
produce a new revision of Ukraine's draft WP Report, based 
in large part on the U.S. suggestions, according to our 
contacts.  Washington held a teleconference on April 11 
with Ukraine's WTO team and functional specialists to 
review in detail the SPS section of the WP Report, and to 
discuss other agricultural issues.  The Ministry of 
Economy's Zhanna Pastovenska, in charge of WP Report 
preparation, told Econoff on April 13 that she hopes a new 
revision could be complete by the end of next week, but 
that it may slip to the week of April 23.  Completion of 
this new revision should lay the groundwork for a WP 
Meeting in Geneva in mid to late-May, said Pastovenska. 
 
Drafting of New Legislation Continuing 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Ukraine's WTO team is making progress drafting 
legislation to address areas where Ukraine still falls 
short of WTO consistency or of fulfilling bilateral 
commitments.  Ukrainian negotiators said during the April 
11 telcon they would likely approve all of Washington's 
suggested changes on the draft biotechnology law. 
(Comment: Pushing this law through the Rada (parliament) 
might still be problematic, but at least the GOU appears 
willing to address USG concerns in this law.  End Comment.) 
A new law on intellectual property is also working its way 
through the final drafting stages, Ministry of Economy 
official Oksana Amjadin told Econoff on April 13.  As 
reported in Ref A, however, Ukraine's negotiating team does 
not plan to introduce new legislation to the Rada until 
 
KYIV 00000897  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
after the next Working Party meeting. 
 
Peering over the Fence at Russia 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (U) New Minister of Economy Anatoliy Kinakh, in one of 
his first public statements on WTO, told the press on March 
23 that he hoped to sign an agreement with Russia whereby 
both countries would agree not to delay the other's 
accession.  Kinakh said he intended to discuss this 
possibility soon with Russian Trade Minister German Gref. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Comment: If it is true, as most observers agree, 
that Ukraine is farther along in its accession negotiations 
than Russia, Kinakh's suggestion was, in practical terms, 
more for a unilateral Ukrainian assurance to Russia than 
for a meaningful mutual pledge.  Indeed, April 9 press 
reports quoted Russia's lead WTO negotiator Max Medvedkov 
as saying the Ukrainians had already assured him they would 
not delay Russia's accession. 
 
Comment: Political Crisis not Slowing Down WTO 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶9. (SBU) Ukraine's ongoing political crisis (refs A-C) has 
not yet had an impact on the accession process.  Work right 
now rests with the Ukrainian negotiating team in the 
Ministry of Economy, and other executive bodies, which 
continue to function as normal.  We do not perceive any 
slowing down on the major outstanding WTO issues -- 
developing legislative and regulatory fixes, revising the 
draft Working Party Report, negotiating a bilateral 
agreement with Kyrgyzstan, and negotiating agricultural 
support levels. 
 
TAYLOR