Ukrainian MPs are seeking a parliamentary investigation into allegations that money from the United States government was used to help fund the opposition during the recent electoral campaign.
Vasyl Horbal, a member of the Regions of Ukraine party which forms the support base for the prime minister, Viktor Yanukovich, told Interfax on Sunday: ”Next week, we will suggest convening [Parliament’s] investigating commission to look into reports by the US department of state on financing of the campaign of our opponent.”
The US state department last week said it had spent $65-million over the past two years financing groups in support of democracy in Ukraine, part of the $1-billion spent for the same purpose globally each year.
”Our money doesn’t go to candidates. It goes to the institutions that it takes to run a free and fair election,” said a spokesperson, Richard Boucher.
The US embassy said it — together with seven other western embassies, including Britain’s — had funded an exit poll which showed Viktor Yushchenko was ahead in the first run-off by 11 points, and helped to spark the mass protests.
A variety of NGOs which benefit from US government money also sent election observers. The International Centre for Policy Studies, which is funded by US money, was one of several NGOs accused of a pro-Yushchenko bias. Yushchenko sits on its board.
Freedom House in Kiev, an NGO partly funded by the US, helped to provide training — some say even funding — to the youth activist group Pora, one of the main agitators of blockades and protests during the 16-day crisis.
Ron Paul, a Texas congressman, said in comments posted on the congressional website: ”President Bush said last week that ‘Any election [in Ukraine], if there is one, ought to be free from any foreign influence.’ Unfortunately, it seems that several US government agencies saw things differently and sent US taxpayer dollars into Ukraine in an attempt to influence the outcome.”
He said millions were sent by the US Agency for International Development to an NGO in Kiev called the Poland-America-Ukraine Cooperation Initiative, which then sent the money on to ”numerous Ukrainian” NGOs, many of which were ”blatantly in favour of Viktor Yushchenko”.
While there were no claims that these groups directly financed Yushchenko’s presidential attempt, there have been media reports that Russian oil firms paid up to $200-million to support Yanukovich’s candidacy.
Petro Poroshenko, an MP and one of Yushchenko’s key confidants, said in a telephone interview: ”I take responsibility for saying that we did not take one penny from abroad.” – Guardian Unlimited Â