Ukrainian officials misled the people, having stated that all lighthouses on the territory of Ukraine are the property of our state. The authorities passed over in silence the fact that all lighthouses, controlled by Russian side including the seized one in Yalta, are rented by Russia, and the rent is paid regularly. Such opinion was expressed by Rostislav Ishchenko, vice-president of Research Center of corporative relations, in an interview to ForUm.
He noted that “positions of both sides do not differ so much as it seems on the face of it.” “Ukraine declares that there isn’t a word about lighthouses in the basic Black Sea agreement and its supplements, and that is truth, most likely. The agreements concern objects, which are used by Fleet on terms of rent. At the signing of the agreement there wasn’t full enumeration of objects, they were leased without prior arrangement. Anyway, Ukrainian government doesn’t deny the fact that all lighthouses, controlled by Russian side including the seized one in Yalta, are rented by Russia, and the rent is paid regularly,” pointed out Ishchenko.
“It is clear that the existing situation is nothing, but a provocation arranged by Ukrainian power and sanctioned by high officials. This provocation didn’t aim to set Ukrainian control over hydrographic objects used by Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, but to ‘tease the tiger’,” stated vice-president of Research Center of corporative relations.
According to the political scientist, “this provocation is needed to ‘Our Ukraine’ only, the leaders of which gave in during the gas war and who are blowing out their cheeks now trying to persuade the people of their ‘unique victory’.”
“Having arranged the provocation with the lighthouses, Yushchenko and his team clearly understand that they will give in at the end again, will worsen the situation and lose country’s prestige. But they expect to hold out till the parliamentary elections telling all the time about terrible Russian imperialism, encroaching on ‘independent property’, and about courageous fight of ‘Our Ukrainians’ with the Moscow hand,” considers Ishchenko.
