USA PRESSURES UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT INTO LETTING FBI INVESTIGATE GONGADZE CASE








WASHINGTON, March 2, 2001. /From RIA Novosti correspondent Arkady Orlov/--The delegation of the House of Representatives of the US Congress that travelled to Ukraine this week to meet with Leonid Kuchma has actually achieved the impossible and obtained the Ukrainian president's consent to let the FBI investigate the murder of journalist Georgy Gongadze, reports congressman Curt Weldon who heads the delegation. According to Weldon, Kuchma "has agreed to cooperate with the FBI," which means the bureau gets an official permission to carry out an investigation on the territory of the sovereign Ukraine.


	Speaking in the US Congress on Thursday, Weldon said negotiations with Kuchma took 2.5 hours and included, among other issues, a discussion of the Gongadze case. US lawmakers insisted on a "full and thorough investigation" of the murder.


	Touching on the Ukrainian authorities' decision to pull down the camping ground in the centre of Kiev, Weldon emphasized that the US object to such decisions and call on the Ukrainian government to "comply with the basic principles of democracy" including freedom of assembly. Kiev has made "a step in the wrong direction" and "the Congress is going to send Ukraine a signal" unless it takes a different approach, declared the congressman. However, he would not specify what this "signal" might be.


	Talking to journalists in Washington on the same day, official spokesman for the US State Department Richard Boucher said he regretted Ukraine's act against ralliers, and urged Ukraine to respect its citizens' freedom of assembly.


	Two days ago, the US ambassador to Ukraine passed on a message from President George W. Bush to Kuchma, which said Ukraine's future financial assistance on the part of the States depended on how well Ukraine would "observe the Constitution and ensure the domination of law," reported the US spokesman.