President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky during his stay in Turkey announced a number of measures that, in his opinion, can help the country overcome the economic crisis.

So, the head of state announced that before the end of 2019, his administration intends to launch land reform, during which a moratorium on the sale of agricultural land will be lifted. He said this, speaking at the Turkish-Ukrainian business forum in Istanbul.

“This year we will definitely carry out land reform, which will create a land market for 40 million ha next year,” the head of state said .

Earlier, a similar idea was voiced by the head of the party "Servant of the People" Dmitry Razumkov. He called for a moratorium on the sale of land to be lifted and stated that the party was already engaged in the creation of an appropriate regulatory framework.

Zelensky also stressed, referring to business representatives, that Turkish companies "already own Ukrainian land" are already operating in the country. He added that he would like them to become "a lot more, especially in the southern part of Ukraine."

  • President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky
  • © president.gov.ua

They do not agree with the proposal to lift the moratorium in the party “Opposition Platform - For Life”, in which they believe that such reforms can only be carried out in a stable economy and with the permission of the country's population, which must be obtained by referendum.

“Opening the land market in the current conditions, when the Ukrainian economy is at the bottom, and people driven to poverty is a crime ... The team of the new president has not presented a clear plan for the development of the economy and the revival of domestic industry. Instead, we see only statements about the need to sell what we managed to keep in the ownership of the Ukrainian people, ”the Opposition Platform - For Life statement said.

Land issue

A ban on the sale of agricultural land was introduced in Ukraine during the reign of President Leonid Kuchma - in 2001. It was supposed that it would be valid until the adoption of the land code, but in the end the parliament regularly extended it. The last time this was done in February 2019 by the then president Petro Poroshenko.

The moratorium applies to agricultural land that is in state or communal ownership, and land shares for agricultural production. The moratorium allows you to inherit or lease units, but prohibits the sale of them or use them as collateral, which is important, for example, when obtaining a loan. Shareholders in Ukraine are about seven million people.

According to statistics published in 2016, agricultural land occupies more than 42 million hectares, which is almost 71% of the entire territory of Ukraine.

“At one time, the Ukrainian authorities introduced a moratorium, because they considered the black earth famous throughout the world to be the main wealth. In addition, they feared that in conditions of accelerated privatization, this priceless gift of nature would be in the hands of owners who would waste it: technically exploit, pollute with chemicals, plant genetically modified crops, ”Deputy Director of the CIS Institute Vladimir Zharikhin said in an interview with RT.

Lifting the moratorium is an extremely unpopular measure in Ukrainian society. At the end of 2018, KIIS, Center named after Razumkova and the sociological group “Rating” conducted a survey in which respondents were asked how they would vote in a referendum on the sale of agricultural land. 72% of Ukrainians then opposed such a move. At the same time, in rural areas, 75% of the survey participants were against.

According to an RT source in the Batkivshchyna party, Zelensky is forced to take this step, as he cannot find another way to replenish the budget. The implementation of this reform, he believes, could lead to protests that will be supported by opposition parties.

“Land in Ukraine is the only asset interesting for investors. Land plays an important role for the villagers, they fear that large foreign companies will buy up all Ukrainian land. And they are right ... But there is no money in Ukraine, Western partners are putting pressure on President Vladimir Zelensky. Therefore, he is forced to cede and begin selling the most valuable Ukrainian asset. This can lead to protests, as the population is against, ”he said.

The fact that this measure could lead to unrest among farmers was also announced by an RT source in the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

“Sale of land, legalization of gambling will attract additional money to the country's economy. But what will be the consequences? Farmers are guaranteed to come out for protests, as they did before. They fear that western companies will buy the land and build hazardous industries near them, ”the source said.

Black earth for export

According to Zharikhin, Zelensky’s decision to cancel the moratorium may be due to pressure from Western countries.

“One of the conditions for Zelensky’s support from the United States is permission to freely trade land in the interests of American agricultural monopolies. In the case of land reform, Ukraine’s dependence on the United States, Holland, and Great Britain will intensify: in the current situation, land will be bought by international food monopolies, ”the expert said, adding that“ lifting the moratorium will negatively affect the country's economy. ”

The interest of foreign companies in the land fund of Ukraine was also announced by Ukrainian economist Alexander Dudchak. According to him, in the case of the reform over Ukraine "full control will be established."

“Those who came to power through a coup do everything possible so that the country does not have sovereignty,” he said.

  • The surroundings of the Ukrainian city of Glukhov
  • Reuters
  • © Gleb Garanich

According to him, there is no exact information yet who will become the main beneficiary of this reform. However, the expert emphasized, “large transnational monsters who are engaged in the production of genetically modified foods have long been looking at Ukraine”.

In turn, the source of RT in the party "Self-help" believes that Ukraine is not ready for such a reform.

“Ukraine is not ready to open a land market - there are no normal land registers, the rules for this sale are not approved. But the president’s team is in a hurry, and it’s understandable why. Ukraine has nothing to repay debts, so the land, plants and factories will be used. Western partners welcome such a move, as they can very cheaply buy good Ukrainian assets, ”said the source.

Land IMF calls on Ukraine to carry out land reform. The fund said that permission to sell agricultural land could give Ukraine 1.6% of GDP growth annually.

Ukrainian Las Vegas

During his stay in Istanbul Zelensky announced another initiative that could cause controversy in Ukrainian society - the legalization of gambling in the country.

“We are legalizing gambling, namely the operation of casinos in five-star hotels,” the head of state said, noting that such a measure would contribute to the development of the tourism business in Ukraine.

Zelensky spoke about this earlier: after the first round of elections, he said that he wanted to create a likeness of Las Vegas in Ukraine and thereby develop some now not very successful city.

Gambling was officially banned in Ukraine in 2009, and since 2011 online casinos have also been outlawed. Attitudes towards this industry have not changed since the coup in 2014. Not only law enforcement agencies, but also various activists launched a struggle with underground casinos, but failed to eradicate this business in Ukraine.

At the same time, lotteries did not fall under the ban. In this area in Ukraine there are three operators who issue licenses to contractors and provide equipment for organizing a lottery business. The largest of them is the Ukrainian National Lottery.

At the same time, companies that receive a license from operators to create a lottery business, often in fact organize all the same casinos.

An unworked decision called the idea of ​​legalizing a gambling business a RT source in the Ukrainian cabinet.

“A large number of gambling establishments negatively affects society: people begin to take literally everything out of the house to make a bet. As far as I understand, the president’s team intends to make many unworked decisions quickly, ”the source said.

Restore at someone else's expense

Vladimir Zelensky also invited Turkey to take part in restoring the infrastructure of the south-east of Ukraine, which suffered from the civil war.

“I invited the Turkish side to join the restoration of infrastructure facilities in eastern Ukraine,” Zelensky said during a joint briefing with Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on August 7.

  • Dokuchaevsk, Donetsk region
  • RIA News
  • © Sergey Averin

He added that he expects Turkey to participate in the international forum for the restoration of the Donbass. The Ukrainian authorities plan to organize this event in the fall in Mariupol.

According to RT in the Radical Party, Zelensky’s proposals for the restoration of Donbass are at least premature, given that his administration has not yet taken any real steps to resolve the conflict in southeastern Ukraine.

“It doesn’t smell like peace in the east of the country, but he is already calling on investors to restore the Donbass. That sounds funny. It is clear that Zelensky is not ready to make concessions. What kind of restoration of Donbass can be discussed in this situation, ”a RT source said.

Alexander Dudchak urged not to take such proposals seriously.

“Zelensky needs to say something, he’s just a generator of ridiculous ideas. What he is issuing now has no value. The President of Ukraine can offer Erdogan anything, but that doesn’t mean anything. We must first sit down at the negotiating table with representatives of the Donbass and resolve this issue with them, ”the expert concluded.