Ukraine Unity Holds Up as Backers of Ousted Governor Hold Rally
Allies of former regional Governor Igor Kolomoisky pledged their support for Ukrainian unity in the face of a pro-Russian rebellion to the east, even as they criticized moves in Kiev this week that led to his departure.
Several thousand residents of Dnipropetrovsk, a city adjacent to rebel-controlled Donetsk, packed into the central square on a rain-drenched Saturday, dancing to music and singing patriotic songs. Still, some felt wronged by President Petro Poroshenko’s pressure for the governor to quit.
Kolomoisky, 52, a billionaire and who has funded volunteer troops fighting insurgents just to the east in Donetsk, was forced out this week in a spat with President Petro Poroshenko. Support from the magnate, whose net worth is estimated at $1.36 billion by Forbes, was crucial for the government in Kiev to maintain power over industry-heavy Dnipropetrovsk.
“We were arming battalions, treating the wounded and rescuing captives,” said ally lawmaker Borys Filatov, during a speech at the evening rally. “We did a lot. So yes, we are angry, we are prickly, we aren’t comfortable.”
The dispute adds to tensions for the government. Kiev is trying to win a war against separatists it claims is supported by Russia, overhaul the economy under a $17.5 billion International Monetary Fund deal, crack down on corruption, bring state companies linked to Ukraine’s wealthiest people back under state control and negotiate new terms with international bond holders, including Russia.
Kolomoisky’s resignation should not look like “conflict within the authorities,” Poroshenko said on ICTV TV channel Saturday. “I will not allow, as president,” a conflict. “The key position is the country’s de-oligarchinization.”
Ukrainian Unity
While demonstrators noted their frustration with the manner in which Kolomoisky left office, many declared their support for Ukrainian unity.
“The main thing for me is a peaceful sky over Dnipropetrovsk and Ukraine’s integrity,” Iryna Lynska, a 45-year-old medical worker, said. “I don’t know Kolomoisky’s inner world, but he did his best to ensure that things succeeded and gathered a very strong team.”
Ukraine’s two eastern regions remained tense across all front lines, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said during his daily briefing in Kiev on Saturday.
“In general, tension persists along all front lines, from the Azov Sea to the Ukrainian-Russian border near the village of Stanytsya Luhanska,” Lysenko said.
OSCE Monitors
Meanwhile, fighting between government troops and pro-Russian separatists have continued, even as casualties have waned following a cease-fire on Feb. 12 in Minsk, Belarus. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s special monitoring mission reported sporadic gunfire during an inspection at the devastated Donetsk airport on Friday.
About 45 kilometers (27 miles) southwest of Donetsk, monitors spotted a convoy moving north composed of 17 civilian transport trucks with Russian license plates, the OSCE said in a report issued on Saturday.
Kolomoisky was named governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region a year ago, filling in a regional power void after the collapse of President Viktor Yanukovych’s regime.
The rift emerged after Kolomoisky’s security guards last week barricaded themselves in the Kiev-based headquarters of state-controlled oil and gas company Ukrnafta to keep in place the management he backs, Serhiy Leshchenko, one of Poroshenko’s lawmakers, said on Facebook on March 22.
Security Concerns
Local residents at the rally said they were worried the dispute would threaten the security of the region, so close to the fighting.
“I want to believe that there is no threat to the Dnipropetrovsk region anymore,” Lynska, the medical worker, said. “But I don’t think that the situation will change for the better. That’s why I am very-very concerned.”
Since the war began, Kolomoisky has emerged as the former Soviet republic’s most powerful oligarch. He is co-owner of Ukraine’s largest bank, Privatbank. The Dnipropetrovsk-based bank has 26 percent of Ukraine’s total individual deposits.
To rescue the tattered banking industry, the central bank has provided his financial institution with “stabilization loans.” The industry has been in disarray following the 70 percent drop in the hryvnia and an outflow of deposits.
After a public spat with Russian President Putin, Kolomoisky was forced to sell his Russian unit, Moskomprivatbank, last year.
His domestic dispute with Poroshenko started when the supervisory board of state oil pipeline Ukrtransnafta dismissed the company’s chief executive officer, an ally of Kolomoisky, on March 19.
Joint-Stock Laws
On the same day, the parliament approved amendments to the law on joint-stock companies, which let state-owned NAK Naftogaz Ukrainy, the majority owner of oil producer VAT Ukrnafta, replace Kolomoisky’s management team and claim about 1.8 billion hryvnia ($77.5 million) in dividends for previous years.
On March 26, a day after Poroshenko accepted Kolomoisky’s resignation from the governorship, the two men made a show of unity, with the president saying he didn’t doubt Kolomoisky’s patriotism.
Still, the peace between the two men may prove fragile or illusive, as the billionaire isn’t likely to give up his business interests easily. Kolomoisky already threatened to sue Ukraine in “international courts” if there is no amicable settlement of his business interests.
He claimed on Thursday that Naftogaz Ukrainy hasn’t paid about 100 billion hryvnia for 10.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas supplied in previous years by Ukrnafta, which is 42 percent owned by Kolomoisky. He wants Naftogaz to pay at least 5 billion hryvnia to avoid legal action in London.