KIEV , Dec. 1 – Leading Ukrainian economists and policy makers have signed an open letter addressed to Parliament deputies criticizing the halt in land reform efforts.

Ukraine 's parliament on October 6 voted overwhelmingly (297 votes) to extend for a year the moratorium on agricultural land sales.

"We view this decision [on extending the moratorium] not only as an egregious error, but also as a sign of the tragic misunderstanding in society about one of the key issues of economic reform, which is needed to overcome one of the tragic consequences of the country's Soviet past, which Ukraine must rid itself of … but has failed to do so," the letter says.