The word "ukraina" traditionally means a "borderland, frontier, march." As such it is ludicrous in appelation to a nation. It is akin to calling Arizona "Sonoran Desert" or West Virginia "Appalachia." Enough of political correctness--when using the word "ukraine," since it means a region and NOT A NATION, it is best to write "THE Ukraine." The region in question, if one were to seek a distinct identity from Russia, would probably be most accurately called "Ruthenia." --R
(PICS)
http://directionstoorthodoxy.org/mod/ne ... le_id=7043
Ukraine's President Calls for Unity
Associated Press
By MARA D. BELLABY, Associated Press Writer
Ukraine's President Viktor Yushchenko, center, is seen during his annual address to lawmakers in the parliament in Kiev, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2006. Ukraine's president pleaded with the country's parliament Thursday to drop internal battles and unite, a familiar appeal from the embattled leader, who risks losing influence in next month's parliamentary race. (AP Photo/Sergei Chuzavkov)
Ukraine's president pleaded Thursday for unity in parliament ahead of elections that could derail his country's pursuit of integration with the West.
Viktor Yushchenko risks losing influence in next month's parliamentary elections and will likely need support from former allies in parliament to continue pushing his agenda of aligning Ukraine away from Russia and toward NATO and the European Union.
"Enough arguing: There is enough work for everybody," Yushchenko said in his annual address before the 450-member parliament, which just weeks ago voted to fire his Cabinet.
A nervous-looking Yushchenko read most of his speech without looking up. There was little applause, and some heckled the president.
His "Our Ukraine" party has been lagging in opinion polls behind that of his pro-Russian rival, Viktor Yanukovych — a Kremlin-backed figure who was defeated by Yushchenko in the 2004 presidential election. Polls suggest that "Our Ukraine" is poised to finish a distant second.
The president's former ally Yulia Tymoshenko, fired as prime minister last year after an acrimonious split among the one-time opposition leaders that swept to power in Ukraine's Orange Revolution, could also secure a strong showing.
There was little unity on display in Parliament Thursday: Communist Party lawmakers exchanged blows with Yushchenko supporters when, before his address, the communists attempted to put up banners criticizing the president for unfulfilled campaign promises.
Parliament voted to bar the privatization of a steel factory, quashing the government's hopes of repeating the highly profitable sale of a steel mill last year. And lawmakers voted to bar foreign troops from participating in military training exercises in Ukraine this year, a move reflecting anger over Yushchenko's overtures to NATO.
Communist deputies scuffle with members of parliament loyal to President Viktor Yushchenko before the president's annual 'state of the nation' address in Kiev, February 9, 2006. (Gleb Garanich/Reuters)
Yushchenko said Thursday that his top priority was improving the quality of life for the nation's 47 million people. He pledged to reform the decaying housing projects that dot Ukrainian cities. The Soviet-era apartments particularly suffered during this winter's cold spell as heating and electricity systems repeatedly broke down.
Opposition lawmaker Nestor Shufrych, an ally of Yanukovych, criticized the speech as "a sad fairy tale."
"He forgot to tell us when everything he said will be accomplished," Shufrych said. "It seemed to me that he didn't even believe what he said."
Yushchenko reaffirmed his government's commitment to its pro-Western path, but added that it was also important to have good relations with neighboring states, based on Ukraine's national interests.
In a move likely to anger Russia, however, he reaffirmed his support for an Ukrainian Orthodox Church that would operate independently of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Yushchenko also said he believes that Ukraine, sandwiched between Russia and the EU, has a key role to play "in the integration process of central and eastern Europe."
Associated Press writer Henry Meyer contributed to this report from Moscow.
