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Sunday, June 8, 2014 WORLD HERALD NEWS

Poroshenko sworn in as Ukraine president Issues call to negotiate peace in eastern region

By CAROL MORELLO THE WASHINGTON POST

KIEV, Ukraine - Petro Poroshenko was sworn as president of Ukraine on Saturday morning and issued a plaintive call for separatists fighting government forces to lay down their arms and negotiate an end to the conflict that is convulsing the country.

The billionaire chocolate manufacturer began his inaugural address with a peace overture to residents of the restive east, at one point switching out of the Ukrainian language in which he delivered the bulk of his speech to speak in Russian.

"I don't want war. I don't want revenge," he said, adding that he would not negotiate with "gun men and other scoundrels" but would offer amnesty to those who "do not have the blood of peaceful citizens on their hands."

He also offered safe passage out of Ukraine for Russian nationals who have crossed the border from Russia to join, and in some cases lead, separatist units.

Poroshenko said Ukraine must seek to mend its tattered relations with Russia, but he made clear that he would not even consider giving up its claim to Crimea. The peninsula, where a majority of residents are ethnic Russians, voted overwhelmingly in March to secede from Ukraine and become part of Russia.

"Crimea was, is and will be Ukrainian soil," Poroshenko said to a standing ovation from everyone except the Communist Party faction in parliament, adding that "all other things can be discussed."

But he also dedicated a part of his remarks to the need to restore trust in government and kick-start the economy.

He said he was prepared to sign an agreement with the European Union that would grant Ukrainian citizens the right to travel visa-free throughout Europe and said he considered such a move a precursor to seeking full membership in the European Union.

"We are turning back to Europe," he said. "This path is irreversible."
Poroshenko, 48, also appealed to Ukrainians to root out corruption from public life. "We need an anti-corruption pact between the government and the people," he said. "Bureaucrats do not take bribes, and people do not give bribes. We will not be able to change the country unless we change ourselves."

He referred to corruption in the armed forces, as well, saying he aimed to rebuild the depleted military into an elite fighting force.

"The word general must become identified not with the word corruption, but with the word hero," he said. Ukrainians, he added, "will not drown in an ocean of corruption and disorder." Poroshenko called for new parliamentary elections to produce a body that better reflects current political sentiment. Elections were last held in 2012. "Let's face it," he said. "The current composition of this distinguished assembly does not match the mood of society."

Ukrainian energy firm hires Biden's son as lawyer
Conflict-of-interest concerns
By STEPHEN BRAUN THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON -

Vice President Joe Biden's visit Saturday to support Ukraine s fragile democracy came soon after his youngest son was hired by a Ukrainian company that promotes energy independence from Moscow.

Yet that company leases natural gas fields in the H. BIDEN breakaway Russian-backed state of Crimea and is owned by a former government minister with ties to Ukraine's ousted pro-Russia president.

The hiring of Hunter Biden, 44, by Burisma Holdings Ltd. in April was approved by the company's owner, a former senior minister and political ally of Viktor Yanukovych, the exiled Ukrainian president. Yanukovych fled to Russia in February after protests erupted over his efforts to establish closer economic ties with Moscow.

Hunter Biden's employment means he will be working as a director and top lawyer for a Ukrainian energy company during the period when his father and others in the Obama administration attempt to influence the policies of Ukraine's new government, especially on energy issues.

There's no indication that Hunter Biden, his father or Burisma are crossing any legal or ethical lines, although ethics experts appear divided over the implications of Hunter Biden's new job.

American conflict-of-interest laws and federal ethics rules essentially do not regulate the business activities of adult relatives of those who work in the White House.

"The primary problem here is the fact that Hunter Biden has set up a financial arrangement with someone who might have business pending before this administration," said Craig Holman, an ethics expert with Public Citizen, a Washington-based government reform organization.

Joe Biden led the U.S. delegation at Saturday's inauguration of Ukraine's new president, Petro Poroshenko, and announced $48 million in additional aid for the Kiev government. Biden met Poroshenko and said, "There is a window for peace, and you know as well as anyone that it will not stay open indefinitely with you."

Ukraine is an important natural-gas and petroleum-liquids transit country. Two major pipeline systems carry Russian gas through Ukraine to Western Europe.
Burisma is headed by Nikolai Zlochevskyi, who held senior posts over natural resources, environment and defense in Ukraine. The company has aggressively bought up Ukrainian oil and natural gas leases and companies.

Hunter Biden's new company says it aims to reduce Ukraine's dependence on Russian gas and oil, a goal that parallels U.S. efforts to aid Ukraine's energy industry.

As a Burisma director and the company's top lawyer, the younger Biden has yet to take any public actions on behalf of the company.

But the timing of his hiring is politically awkward for the administration's efforts to shore up Ukraine's pro-Western government, and it poses potential complications from Burisma's growing energy interests and the background of Hunter Biden's new boss, Zlochevskyi.

At least two oil and natural gas fields leased by subsidiaries of Burisma are in Ukrainian territories where pro-Russian sentiments remain strong, according to government and media releases, independent energy maps and Burisma's website.

One is in the breakaway Russian-backed state of Crimea; the other is in the eastern Ukrainian Kharkiv region. Instability there could force the younger Biden's new company to coordinate with pro-Russian separatists, whom the U.S. considers illegitimate.

White House officials declined to comment on Hunter Biden's association with Burisma and the company's holdings in Crimea and east Ukraine.

The vice president's spokeswoman, Kendra Barkoff, previously said that Biden's son is a private citizen and a lawyer, and that Joe Biden "does not endorse any particular company and has no involvement with this company."

A former Washington lobbyist, the vice president's son is effectively exempt from most rules that would require him to describe publicly the legal work he does on behalf of Burisma.

Hunter Biden will not lobby for the company, said Lawrence Pacheco, an official with FTI Consulting, a Washington government affairs company recently hired by Burisma.

Pacheco did not say whether Biden might oversee or advise on any future Burisma lobbying strategy in the U.S. Pacheco said the company "does not take positions on political matters."