MOSCOW -- Ukraine's new president signed a deal Wednesday that allows Russia's Black Sea Fleet to stay in the country another 25 years, moving to ease a long-standing source of tension and giving Moscow its second foreign policy victory in the former Soviet Union this month. Viktor Yanukovych and his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, announced the breakthrough after a hastily scheduled summit in Kharkiv, Ukraine, saying that Ukraine will extend the lease on the Russian naval base in Sevastopol to 2042 in exchange for a steep discount on purchases of Russian natural gas.
My comments: There's been speculation as to why the USA has backed off of trying to extend its influence into the Ukraine but the latest renewal of contracts stacks more evidence on the side that Ukraine will return to Russia's sphere of influence.
However, it's worth noting the base has only been leased for 25 years, which is an unusually short amount of time. While Ukraine might be gravitating towards Russia, the signing of a 25 year lease rather than something like a 99 year lease indicates that Ukraine is still, somewhat, in control of its future.
For a completely different view, check out La Russophobe's article on the same thing.
No comments:
Post a Comment