A morning plenary session is on
The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine opened the morning meeting.
The presiding officer announced that the sitting is attended by the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, the Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Hroisman and the ministers, heads of central executive authorities, high-ranking legislators, representatives of public organizations and mass media, diplomatic representatives, and other officials.
The Parliament’s Chairperson
gave floor to the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, who is to deliver Annual
message on internal and external affairs.
Today’s bills passed
The draft bill No.7052 on taxation of income of foreign (non-resident) securities investors has been adopted by the Parliament. The law refines some taxation issues related to state securities investors’ income. Any income of non-residents, generated by investments in state securities payable by a central executive body empowered to administer state financial policy, is now regarded to be tax exempt.
The President’s Annual Message to Parliament “On the internal and external situation of Ukraine in 2017”.
September the 7th, 2017. Kyiv.
The key messages synopsis
EU Association Agreement
As two years ago the EU kindly extended its approval to trigger the agreement ad interim, we can now rejoice at the first fruits of growth in our exports to the European Union. The first half of the year 2017 gave us a 23% gain in the exports. A EU share of Ukraine’s foreign trade attained 40%, being 30% and 25% in 2012 and 2009 correspondingly. This is a clear evidence of the start of the integration of Ukraine’s economy into the EU market.
Visa-free regime
The visa free travel is the major total of our three-year reformative toil, the combined work of all branches of the government. It was only made available through fulfillment of some one hundred fifty points of the Action plan on visa liberalization. No one will be allowed it to revise the laws adopted by the state to achieve this attainment.
Standard of living
It is a matter of fact the people feel utterly displeased with the life and the authorities. In the aftermath of the war, Ukraine has for three years been suffering quite a steep slump in living standards. The people believe they’ve faithfully accomplished their part of the social contract by getting through the hardship and sorrows, with intelligent consent. The same, however, cannot be said of the heads whose contribution to the overall win did oppositely seem to be negligible, with their doing, by common opinion, nearly nothing to visibly promote the positive changes. Mistrust to state institutions, both old and new, as well as to politicians of any wing has developed into all-pervading gloom, apathy and depression throughout. To lift the threat of this social decay, we are in an acute need to counteract in a quick and immediate manner, to spur up the corruption struggle and speed up much talked-of economic transformations… We ought to completely ruin any seedbed for talks over a would-be back-away of the reforms or the onslaught of counter-revolution.
Elections
In some a year, there will be a lingering election race in the country, with presidential election in spring and parliamentary in autumn. Thus, we have got just a year to hammer away at the reforms.
Resistance of pressure groups
As the country goes on advancing towards the positive changes, the more stubborn resistance is offered by the pressure groups. All of them are yelling out to fold the reforms and the innovations up, brandishing their ever-green revenge-seeking watchword “No go!”; hoping thereby either to place the establishments back under their control, or to hobble them, to say the least. “In each and every system – education, law machinery, Medicine, etc. – from top to bottom, there are hosts of pressure groups to enjoy the present posture of affairs. Given that we are talking of systems, the resistance is inherently holistic and system-defined,” noticed the President.
On populists
Just as cordon bleu chefs do, they, populists, are skimming the cream off the people’s virtual grievance. They have promptly backfilled the commies’ electoral niche with themselves, putting out blue and yellow flags over their headquarters, whilst their social catchwords are taken from the same dusty files of commies’ and the look-alike politico riff-raff. They do sound solid defenders of the people, unless one gets a glimpse at their e-declarations…
War
There are yet no signs the Kremlin is prepared to step back neither from Donbas, nor from the Crimea. If anything, there are striking illustrations of Russia’s preparations to a continent-wide all-out aggressive warfare, which are in abundance regretfully. This is one of the live reasons why we have strengthened control throughout the state borders. Under the pretence of war games they might raise some new strike forces for making an open incursion into Ukraine’s territory. Some seven thousand flatcars full of men and weaponry are now approaching to our frontiers. Regrettably, there is no assurance this whole armada would get back home from Belarus upon the exercises. Nowadays, the situation seems like in 2014 over the Crimea, or in 2008 about Georgia. Still, the today’s war games will last for two months, and are far more large-scaled. The Empire is obviously at checking readiness of the West to a big war. I just can’t help quoting my best friend, a big friend of Ukraine the U.S. Senator John McCain – “The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, is the biggest threat to global security, even greater than Isis. The latter has not such military facilities, techs and ardent zeal to rule the world. But Russia does have. And Russia is not our ally, not our friend”.
Army
The Warsaw Foundation Institute for Eastern Studies published a report on the changes in our armed forces under the name “The best army Ukraine has ever had”. Similar appraisals from foreign proficients have today become commonplace. The training officers from NATO, who are currently schooling our men, have already started adopting the military experience our soldiers share with them. In 2014-2015, we made six waves of conscription for two hundred thousand men in total. The last year gave Ukraine a contract army, getting rid of the general mobilization. Seventy thousand persons signed military contracts for the Armed forces of Ukraine during 2016. This year has brought us twenty five thousand more as yet. A tenfold rise in armament expenditures is seen against 2013 year. Within three years our defense industry supplied the Ukrainian army with 16,000 items of arms, weapons and military equipment. We were forced to quickly meet the foreground needs of the army. Today, we have started a big programme of gun and technical re-equipment of our army. We need to rapidly up our armaments to a modern standards level to be able to keep abreast with our biggest foe – Russia – whose weapon facilities seem to be much more advanced at present. We have faced some vitally important tasks associated with development and production of new missile armaments, winged rockets and artillery systems, high-precision munitions, strike unmanned aircrafts, and aerospace reconnaissance facilities. We had nothing from the above, but it took just two years to set up the production, including our highly acclaimed tanks “Oplot”, armored troop carriers BTR-4 and BTR-3, operational armored troop carriers “Dozor-B”, air drones, etc.
EU membership
At the EU-Ukraine summit in July we shared with the European leaders the principles of our new vision over the strategic long-term co-operation, which is seen to include the Schengen area association, joining the European Union Customs Union (EUCU), the European Energy Union, launching the Common digital space and the Common digital market. The initiatives mentioned will surely turn Ukraine’s eastern borders into the European eastern frontiers well before we join the European Union de-jure. This strategy will allow us to come to the EU membership criteria as close as possible; Ukraine will become sectorally integrated in the EU like any other European Union member. Thus, it will be a matter of time that Ukraine makes one of the EU.
NATO
The Russian aggression has clearly displayed a total wreck of the myth of a military non-aligned country. We have been long persuaded that the mere non-aligned country status is the ample guarantee of Ukraine’s security. Russia encroached upon the non-aligned Ukraine, took our lands and killed more than ten thousand Ukrainians, while the persuaders took refuge in Moscow and the suburbs. Together with the North Atlantic allies we are enhancing our army according to the NATO standards, with the goal set which is seen to be accomplished by 2020. I am sure the army will be the first governmental institution to meet the Alliance’s criteria in full. The public opinion polls have showed that a handsome majority of the Ukrainians supports both entering the EU and accession to the NATO treaty. The things may take such a turn, that I will initiate a proper plebiscite in due time in order to show the popular will. Our heading towards the EU and NATO is clear and irreversible. We need it to have guarantees of Ukraine’s sovereignty and to be a part of civilization. After the postwar global security having been totally ruined by Russia, NATO is the only power in the world capable of establishing and providing a real fail-safe system of collective security. The European Union is a globally recognized community of political culture and civil liberties, high-level standards of living – something that the Ukrainians have much deserved to finally enjoy.
Gas freedom
It will be two years in November that we are not buying gas in Russia. It is a convincing testimony that the gas blackmailing times have irrevocably elapsed. Moreover, we are not just buying the gas -- we made it possible to file an action against Russia and to win the Stokholm arbitration! We are also expecting this court’s decision regarding the transit lawsuit, filed by Haftogaz against Gazprom. The positive judgement will allow us to dramatically, for Russia, change the situation as to the transit gas purchases. Instead of buying gas at the Ukraine’s western border, the Europeans will be able to make purchases of the energy carrier at the eastern frontier of Ukraine, allowing Ukraine to render thereby a quality transit service to the EU community, and not to Russia.
Nuclear power
In atomic energetics, we are also shaving off the Russia’s share gradually against the Westinghouse Electric Corporation produce, already covering at present six nuclear reactors out of fifteen available in Ukraine. During my visit to the USA there was a bulk of talks over the nuclear power and coal-mining industry cooperation, as well as the entire sphere of energetics. Today, we can see that the first consignment of American glance coal is coming to our borders, with the whole seven hundred thousand tons yet pre-contracted.
The U.S. relations
There has none of the blind panic screams so far come true, resounding throughout the last-year US elections. The USA has yet provided no relief in the sanctions. Moreover, the sanctions have been deepened and even enlarged. The so much talked-of providing Ukraine with the US (or NATO) defensive lethal weaponry is now near to taking place at length. Washington and Kyiv have significantly upscaled the highest links and lifted up the level of American-Ukrainian partnership, despite dozens of Ukrainian politicians of all sorts eagerly wishing to torpedo the US-Ukraine interrelations. Building a broad anti-Russian coalition in support of Ukraine as well as keeping it up and alive are the everyday routine toil of the whole Ukrainian diplomatic community. To be frank, the four-year sanction regime is far from being deathlike to Russia, yet it’s a quite efficient restraining tool to set up a clampdown on Russia’s aggressive doings, to urge it to sit down to the negotiating table. That is why we are going on to oppose any attempts to lift or even ease the regime.
Anti-corruption drive
Selected competitively, under a close public eye we had established and then launched the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor Office (SAPO), and the National Agency for Prevention of Corruption. Certain basic and qualitative shifts in priorities and operating procedures are going on in the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine, the National Police of Ukraine, too. When formulating the modern approaches to the qualitative assessment of law enforcement activities, it has been my decision in principle to eschew from segregating ‘the news’ and ‘the olds’ from each other, as all of them are pursuing important common goals. In the outcome, we are now having a dense anti-buck-the-system network of ‘agents’, delivering no guarantee of impunity to any one, nobody can get ever guaranteed of having a political or legal cover-up… I do stress, it could be fully attributable to so called ‘friends’ of the President. The struggle against corruption is both a matter of justice and supremacy of law. The home investment climate as well as the economic situation and the progress in social problems, they all now seem to be the pledge of the struggle’s success.
Privilege of parliament
The parliament of current convocation has already established the unprecedented record of stripping the parliamentary immunity not only of so called “no one’s” unaffiliated independent MPs, but also of those from the parties in power and the governing coalition. I do call you on to introduce proper amendments in the Constitution of Ukraine, which would allow it to revoke the institute of parliamentary privilege. To ease you taking the decision, to let you feel that the revocation is in no way against you, I have a very simple offer – let us take it with the entry into force since January the 1st, 2020, becoming effective for the next convocation. Hopefully, it will work.
Courts
The judiciary cleansing crusade, rightful on its own, has proved to be having a side effect, when thousands of judges resigned, for a variety of reasons. It has caused the staff shortage in the industry, delivering a threat to the right for fair trial. But as the confidence restores, there will obviously be growth in references to the courts – so we are to be ready to promote boosting the courts’ personnel. We were having this summer the unprecedented competition to complete the Supreme Court of Ukraine’s bench. The process was held under a close public eye, which assured us a striking result of 90% of the competition winners who never worked in the Court before. 30% of them are lawyers and scientists. This is the new blood the system is in need to renovate itself.
Anti-Corruption Court
This legal agency is to be made on a competitive basis from judges with a totally clean slate. It is to be dependent just on the law, free of any other influence. It must be in line with the Council of Europe and the Venice Commission standards; be very effective. We have to set it up quickly and thoroughly, taking into account the mistakes of other countries where such courts proved to be of quite poor performance.
State Bureau of Investigations
The launch of the Bureau was at least thrice postponed. We again faced the need to change the law and push the deadline ahead to November the 20th. By the date we ought to at least assign the head of the Bureau, who will be able to bring it to life and start it up.
Financial Investigation Service
This all-new body is to have no power and right to prosecute individual businesses, either small or middle-sized, or even large-scale businesses, unless and until they have a hand in embezzlement of public funds or non-payment of taxes. The main task of the body is to hold analytical work aimed at detecting and suppressing criminal dealings along with the in-depth scrutiny and filing of the deals. The new service will surely be provided with the complete range of powers ample for resolute counteraction to economic crime. The agency will be absolutely independent in its proceedings, however – under a close parliamentary control.
Single tax
At least in the preparation of the budget of 2018 I would refrain from regular proposals to abolish or emasculate a single tax. I have a request: it is necessary to let the people who are called the middle class to work in a mode of long-term planning. And it has already become a tradition that the fate of small business in a new year becomes known only after a few, not even months or weeks, but hours before the festival greetings of the President. And I want to note that the middle class is the one that got more strain for these three years. The middle class pays full energy tariffs not having the right for subsidies, for these three years the class has been deprived of the right, and properly deprived of tax optimization, the class felt the contraction in effective demand and withstood it. And today the class needs our support. It is this middle class, from a programmer specialist in front of a computer screen to a farmer in the field, who is to take time to rehabilitate. The middle class without subsidies, once again I emphasize, experienced devaluation, experienced inflation, rising tariffs, problems with loans and many other problems. I emphasize that they paid the price. They bore the full burden themselves, without any governmental support or assistance. Restoration and expansion of the middle class is an interest not only of people belonging to this social class. The more powerful it is, the richer society is, the more successful and enterprising people are. The more stable democracy is, the stronger is country. And I would ask all of us, both the Verkhovna Rada and the Government - this politico-social task when planning and tax innovations, budgetary innovations, and in law-making activity to take it into account as a priority.
ProZorro System
The ProZorro system has upped the competition in the field of goverment procurements. It provided multi-billion dollar savings for the budget and optimized the purchase prices. And it is not surprising that from time to time there are initiatives to limit the system, withdraw some tenders from it and all that sort of thing. But the system was, is and will be under my protection. I launched it and I will protect it. The Ministry of Economy, the Government and the Verkhovna Rada, this is our common achievement, I emphasize once again - and we must jointly ensure its protection. I hope that all the stages of procurements will soon be controlled electronically, from budgeting to concluding agreements.
Electronic VAT administration
The system of VAT electronic administration and a single public register of applications for its reimbursement destroy one of the most corrupted schemes that existed in Ukraine all through the years. And business has now felt the effectiveness of these changes.
IMF
I want to dispel another myth that all the money Ukraine received from IMF is carefully stored in the state's gold and currency reserves. Today, these reserves exceed 18 billion US dollars. And this is despite the fact that 0.5 billion US dollars we are to pay this month as interests on borrowings. It should be reminded that in February 2015 reserves decreased to 5 billion US dollars. And just within two years we have boosted the coffers for more than 13 billion hryvnias. And the hryvnia exchange rate has been relatively unchanged for almost two years after the dizzying fall in 2014–2015.
GDP
The GDP has been growing for six consecutive quarters after the fall for fourteen quarters. And this is, I emphasize, while the main part of Ukraine's industrial potential, which was located in Donbass, is occupied and thus excluded from the economic turnover. This year, we forecast a 1.8% growth. We expect the economy to grow up by 4% in 2020. Last week Moody's upgraded Ukraine's credit rating. It is not the first and not the only one corporation that comes to this conclusion, because the other two most authoritative ones in the world have done this a little earlier. The negative forecast in March 2015 step by step changed into confidently positive one now in August 2017. Regular surveys of heads of enterprises, which are conducted quarterly by the National Bank of Ukraine, record an increase of optimistic expectations both for the development of the macroeconomic situation and for the financial condition of the very enterprises. Directors confidently talk about the projected increases in the production volumes of goods and services. According to the study, conducted by the European Business Association, the index of Ukraine's investment attractiveness is finally not considered to be negative anymore and has reached its highest level for the past six years.
Pension reform
The government took the first steps to raise salaries for teachers and doctors. I hope, next week the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will adopt our joint draft pension reform, which was approved by the government, approved and endorsed by the National Council of Reforms under the President of Ukraine. I really hope that this will give an opportunity for a large part of senior citizens to raise pensions in the autumn. This, as I have mentioned many times, is the main and principled position, which will give an opportunity both to improve the situation with the pensions and to support their raise. I emphasize once again that I am a participant of this process and fully support it. These raises are not so big, not as much as the authorities could constantly boast about, and people - constantly thank for them. But I want to emphasize that in this case we are not talking about quantitative indicators, but about a qualitative change in the trend. We do not just pay some extra hryvnias at the expense of the state budget, but we сardinally change the situation in the Pension Fund, raise revenues and make these trends permanent.
Success rate of reforms
Not so long ago, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development made a rating of the success of reforms in the countries of Central Europe and Asia. Unfortunately, there is nothing to be glad about: out of the thirty countries which were explored, we took the twentieth place next to Georgia and Bosnia. The result obviously would have been better if most of what we did for the last three years would have been implemented for the previous 23 years. The top ten countries are those who started and made the lion's share of the reforms in the nineties. Top rating is held by Estonia, Poland and Slovakia. That is why I listen to the opinion of Leszek Balcerowicz, my adviser, and Ivan Miklos, a former Slovak official, who advises the prime minister. These are real reformers who were not involved in any social demagoguery or acted in an absurd fashion, but who really helped us with sharing their experience.
Land Reform
Millions of people formally own the land, but it was decided for them that they are not able to manage and absolutely unconstitutional moratorium was introduced. Why do we then allow people to sell apartments? They can also be bought by anyone. As a statesman, when making decisions I must take into account public opinion. And for now, unfortunately, it has been formed by populists. I'm not going to beg for the land reform from the Verkhovna Rada, I will not do it. But I ask you to accept, at least verbally, in your mind and in your heart, a political decision in its favor. To accept such laws, which at least may help to overcome phobias over this topic in society and among people's deputies; which will take into account all the warnings, provide protection, set the minimum price, protect peasants, form a transparent position in the register for registration, but will give freedom to the Ukrainian villagers. I also ask to name, rather you will define and name yourself, the clear date of the start, even though it will happen not today. The land market and privatization are not something that the President asks for or puts pressure on - that is not going to happen. The land market and privatization are the two fastest and most reliable ways to quickly attract a worthy investment into Ukraine. This not only investors say. I am sure that this is a common position of the world. Such a privatization has always been a multilateral conflict of interest. Someone bought factories and plants, invested into their modernization and development. Others aimed to privatize profits without spending money on acquiring assets, prevent privatization of the largest enterprises, and now, by the way, they interfere with it.
Road repair
I want to remind that 102 kilometers of roads have been repaired in Ukraine in 2014, this year the plan for road repair is about 3300 kilometers. Just compare these two figures.
Decentralization
Local budgets increased by 2.5 times: from 69 billion hryvnias in 2014 to 170 billion which were planned for the current year and have been already exceeded. I would like to get your attention to a very important figure: the share of local budgets in the aggregate budget of the country is rapidly approaching 50%, and will most likely overcome this stage. Just imagine, the local budgets have now more money than the state budget. It's not just money -- this is the responsibility and a principled political position. The reform has given new opportunities for the development of cities and villages. And if earlier local budgets were cash offices for the payment of salaries, today local budgets have the opportunity to build roads, schools, kindergartens, centers for providing administrative services, lighting. In particular, it is the transfer of the right to communities to manage land resources located within and outside localities. It is very important to ensure the transfer of power in the field of architectural and engineering control and in providing administrative services. The central authority has no right to go through it. So decentralization works and is an effective way of preventing federalization, a good sign of the unity of Ukraine.
Decommunization
We finally held decommunization -- 32 cities, 25 districts, and almost a thousand localities. More than a thousand three hundred monuments to Lenin were demolished. Another important position – we finally recognized and honoured the Ukrainian National Liberation Movement officially, including the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. And I want to emphasize that the Fatherland Defender’s Day is no longer celebrated on February 23; our holiday is October 14, the day of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Russia’s social media networks ban
Owing to this year sanctions against the companies which administer Russian search systems and social media networks, the Russian websites slumped out of the Ukraine’s big ten most-visited web resources. Regrettably, the Russian nets seem to remain to be tools for special operations of the Russian secret services in the warfare against Ukraine. We shall hence be keeping an eye on them, shaving off their presence progressively.
Cinema
It's obviously too early to come to the Ukrainian cinema revival, however we could easily observe the new sprouts throughout. We had thirty films here last year under the ongoing war, and it is the record for the whole lifespan of Ukraine as independent state. We are also expecting this year to have 39 films, 19 of which are state-sponsored.
Local church
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine addressed a landmark appeal to the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople to grant autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. I also wrote a personal letter to His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew. We are very serious in our above mentioned religious aspirations, which have become quite delicate and sensitive to us since 1991. Ukraine has the right to local church, and we need to protect this right.
Restraints on presidential powers
It was in my inaugural speech that I am a committed supporter of a parliamentary and presidential model of the republic. Later on, I even renounced certain powers of mine. But I would never agree to be on a string of those who offer to revoke the people’s right to elect president and send this right to the parliament. Also, the scope of presidential powers ought to be ample for a duly qualified Supreme Commander-in-Chief.
Minsk agreements
During the last year the accords have come under a great deal of criticism in the Parliament’s walls. Yes, they are not an ideal product; they were agreed upon when the state was gripped by the throat. They have not brought a lasting peace, but it cannot be disproved that this document allowed us to diminish the scope of military hostilities which then resulted in a lower amount of casualties in Donbas. The Minsk agreements helped us to form a sturdy international coalition in support of Ukraine. Thanks to the accords we have managed to keep the anti-Russian sanctions on. Russia finally became the real aggressor not only in our own minds. We gained the room to build our new army and start up the machinery of reforms. The low-performing Minsk agreements are the Kremlin’s ill will, its reluctance to undertake duly. In spite of everything, we need to go on collectively pressing over the aggressor with the aim to force it to peace by means of “the Minsk”.
Peacekeeping mission
Russia keeps on carrying out provocations, hindering OSCE SMM monitors to do their job, supplying weapons and hired guns to Ukraine. Under such conditions, deployment of the UN peacekeepers in the buffer zone would be a real breakthrough in the peaceful settlement of the conflict and calming tentions. I need to underscore Ukraine opened these negotiations in 2015, in March, when I addressed an appeal to the United Nations tops to deploy a peacekeeping operation over the territory of our state under the auspices of the United Nations. This appeal was backed by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. But Russia resolutely rejected this opportunity. We have today achieved the important result as we are finally having a pool of partners supporting this Ukraine’s initiative. Finally, we have heard from the other side, too. But we all know -- the devil is in the details. The Russia’s offer to deploy the UN mission for exclusively protection of the OSCE SMM looks queer at least. The Ukrainian side is ready to enter negotiations with the members of the UN Security Council. I do believe this discussion must be pursuing the following five crucial positions. We stand for deployment of a full-range peacekeeping operation throughout Donbas. This mission is to cover the entire occupied territory including the uncontrolled section of the Russian-Ukrainian state border. As the aggressor, Russia must not be allowed to participate in this UN mission in Ukraine. Equally, it is utterly inadmissible to coordinate any activity of the UN mission with the Russian mercenaries. There are no grounds to disable the ongoing sanctions regime against Russia when hammering away at the said initiative. It must go on until the full restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty by means of the Minsk agreements.
Return of Donbas and Crimea
Only political and diplomatic instruments can be used in the process of regaining control over the occupied territories. The foe has entrenched over the densely-populated urban regions. These are Ukrainians who live there, so we will never be obliterating our citizens in cold blood like the Russians did in Chechnya. We need to mind that our military potential is much less than the Russian one at present. Getting back to a “hot” phase of the conflict will surely stop the progress of the ongoing reforms, let alone the recovery of living standards of the Ukrainians. We are near to finish the draft bill on regaining a state control over the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. It will come out very soon for public and international consideration. And back to the Crimea. We are not in a position to retake the peninsula by force. But we are able to create such conditions when the Crimea turns out to be an unliftable burden for the Kremlin. We shall surely use all available tools and instruments of law of nations -- sanctions, international tribunals and arbitrations, discussion and decision-making platforms and monitoring gears, from the United Nations to UNESCO, etc. We shall be pursuing a long-range, but undoubtedly effective policy. We shall force Russia to answer for the annexation consequences by legal language.
And the first hearings in the UN International Court of Justice have delivered us a gleam of hope…
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The presiding officer closed the meeting.