3 Sep 2009 20:47

Ukraine

KYIV. Sept 3 (Interfax) - Ukraine should continue its cooperation program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and it is regrettable that the Ukrainian government has failed to meet five of the six pre-conditions for receiving another tranche, said Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko.

"We need to rationally assess our budget goals for the next five months as we are clearly aware that the program of our cooperation with the IMF must continue at any cost. Unfortunately, to date the Ukrainian government has failed to meet five of the six pre-conditions and the continuation of the program is now seriously undermined," the president's press office quoted Yushchenko as telling to the Ukrainian business media outlets on Thursday.

Attracting funds from foreign markets under non-transparent conditions is unacceptable, the president said. "It would be a great mistake, you don't get something for nothing, political loans are much more dangerous because this would mean either trading in national interests and national assets or some projects that we will learn about when the first two or three facilities, such as the Odesa Port Plant, chemical or power generation plants, have been privatized," he said.

Yushchenko said he will do everything in his power to stop such sort of privatization.

Cooperation with the IMF must continue because it will prompt the Ukrainian government to conduct reforms and will signal to investors about the attractiveness of the Ukrainian economy, the Ukrainian president said.