KIEV, Feb. 21 - Ukraine's former president Leonid Kuchma on Thursday described as a "provocation" new claims by prosecutors they had evidence implicating him in the murder of critical journalist Heorhiy Gongadze, AFP reported.

KIEV, Feb. 21 – President Viktor Yanukovych, ahead of a key summit between Ukraine and the European Union, said he shares the EU’s concerns about political prisoners in Ukraine and understands the problem must be solved quickly.

KIEV, Feb. 21 - Talks between Kiev and Moscow on the delimitation of the maritime stretch of the joint border and of the Kerch Strait are almost over, State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin said in Ukraine.

KIEV, Feb. 21 - Parliament on Friday is set to debate a bill that may open the door for an initial public offering of the country’s natural gas transportation system, a senior lawmaker said Tuesday.

KIEV, Feb. 21 – German doctors who last week examined Ukraine’s jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko on Tuesday distanced themselves from media “speculation” over her health, adding more information was needed to diagnose her illness.

KIEV, Feb. 21 – President Viktor Yanukovych on Monday created a panel of legal experts and dignitaries to draft new constitutional amendments that may be introduced just before the next presidential election.

KIEV, Feb. 18 – The introduction of metal export duties in a period of super profits for metals companies thanks to high global prices will help create stabilization funds, which could then be used to help the sector cope with price collapses in the future, according to Leonid Kuchma, Ukrainian president in 1994-2004.

KIEV, Feb. 18 - The Ukrainian president's first foreign visit is likely to take place some time after the inauguration, the time required to "restore order in the country," Viktor Yanukovych said.

MOSCOW, Feb. 19 - Germany supports an initiative to establish a consortium in charge of overhauling and operating Ukraine's gas transportation system, which would include the European Union and Russia.

KIEV, Feb. 19 – Implementation of the president's decree on eliminating an environmental disaster in Kalush, Ivano-Frankivsk region, "could break the financial system of the country" because a state budget has not been adopted, said the top Finance Ministry official.