- Kremlin says the moguls will abuse their positions to further their fortunes
- Many of Ukraine's wealthy made money through skewed privatisations
- One admits 'concerns' over the prospect of Russian troops in east Ukraine
Ukraine has drafted in its super-rich oligarchs to stop the Kremlin stirring up dissent in the Russian-speaking east of the country. Billionaires have been appointed as governors in the key industrial heartland in a bid to prevent a Crimean-style takeover by Russian leader Vladimir Putin. It is hoped that their influence and self-interest in preventing further conflict could help curb separatist tensions among pro-Russian activists in the region.
But the move to conscript tycoons is seen as high-risk – and Putin has already warned that citizens will see it as the super-wealthy being rewarded with power after making their fortunes in skewed privatisation deals. Ukraine’s fledgling government named Ihor Kolomoisky, a metals, banking and media baron worth £1.5billion, as governor of his native region Dnipropetrovsk.
Bearded Kolomoisky – seen as having built his wealth as a friend of ex-premier Yulia Tymoshenko – views his duty as quelling unrest by Russian agents seeking to destabilise and break up Ukraine. ‘I hope that my presence in the region will help cool the few hotheads that are present here and stabilise the situation, to bring calm so that the citizens of Ukraine living in the Dnipropetrovsk region would feel safe,’ he said. On the prospect of Russian troops in eastern Ukraine, he admitted: ‘We do have those concerns.’
Serhiy Taruta, the country’s 16th-richest man, was put in charge of the strategic coal mining region of Donetsk, where rebels raised the Russian tricolour this week. He said he took the job because Ukraine faced ‘dangerous times’.
Read more - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2576100/Bring-oligarchs-Ukraine-drafts-super-rich-tycoons-help-curb-unrest-Russian-speaking-east.html
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