17 October 2003 10:34
Russian official plays down spat with Ukraine over spit of land
A Russian official has played down Ukrainian fears that Russia is building a dam to restore a spit of land in the
Azov Sea to gain entry via the backdoor to Ukrainian territory, Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper has reported. The official,
Aleksandr Sidorenko who is deputy head of the Krasnodar Territory administration, said he could not understand why some
Ukrainians were so "upset" and denied there was any political motive behind the work to build a dam to the
tiny island of Tuzla in the Kerch Strait. The newspaper added that the work was being done to stop the shoreline being
eroded and to protect various species of valuable fish. It went on to describe a recent fact-finding visit to the area
by the Ukrainian ambassador to Russia but did not reveal if his worries had been placated or not. The following is the
text of the article in Rossiyskaya Gazeta on 16 October:
Krasnodar Territory: Ukrainian ambassador to Russia Mykola Biloblotskyy has paid a working visit to the Kuban. He
visited Temryukskiy District, where he met with locals and examined the progress being made to repair the washout in the
Tuzla spit, which is at the end of the Taman peninsula.
The position of the Kuban authorities is clear: Temryukskiy District faces an emergency due to the fact that the
shoreline is being eroded, fertile land and locals' plots are being submerged, houses are being undermined, and
unique historic monuments are disappearing. In some parts of the Taman peninsula 600 metres of shoreline have been
eroded in the past five years. The Taman Gulf has historically served as a nursery for the young of valuable species of
fish. Now the fantail mullet and other species of fish are dying due to the dramatic deterioration in the environmental
situation.
An export terminal for the transfer of liquid ammonium is being constructed a few kilometres from Taman and there are
plans to construct a large port on cape Zheleznyy Rog. Investors putting vast sums of money into these projects are
demanding guarantees of environmental safety.
In this connection, the territory's commission on civil defence and emergencies held a session in Krasnodar on
18 September, which described the situation in Temryukskiy District as an emergency. Funds, over R30m, were allocated
from the territory's budget and emergency repair work was started on the Taman peninsula.
But in connection with this work the Ukrainian side decided to... [newspaper's ellipsis] replace the border
post, which, incidentally, had been set up there only recently, with a company of border guards. Several Ukrainian
military launches are plying the waters near the island part of the spit.
"The decision to repair the spit is purely economic," Aleksandr Sidorenko, deputy head of the Krasnodar
Territory administration and secretary of the Kuban governor's Security Council, told your Rossiyskaya Gazeta
correspondent. "I spent two days with my Ukrainian counterparts, trying to persuade them of this."
The Ukrainian ambassador and his retinue were able to assess the situation for themselves. They examined the Taman
locals' drowned houses and saw the coastline where a children's holiday camp had been swept away. And the
Mikhail Lermontov museum, which has so far been preserved due to the incredible efforts of the local administration. But
a large part of the excavations of the ancient city of Phanagoria has been lost forever; they are already under
water.
The Russian foreign minister is expected to visit Kiev on 30 October. The future of the little Tuzla spit will be
discussed at his talks with his Ukrainian counterpart.
"There have already been 15 rounds of talks between Russia and Ukraine on border issues in the Sea of Azov, but
there have been no results so far," Aleksandr Sidorenko explained. "There is no state border at the moment, so
there is absolutely no clear reason why certain Ukrainian representatives are so upset. The Taman locals do not see any
political motive behind the current repair work. They remember there used to be a spit there, they fished there, and
took family trips there. If the rain has washed away your yard, it does not mean you are repairing it in order to get
into your neighbour's garden. You are just tidying up your own garden. That is what the problem is all about.
[Rossiyskaya Gazeta] |
RUSSIA IN FACTS
