President demands Prime Minister to pay off debt

President Victor Yushchenko on Friday sent a letter to Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych with a request to pay off last year’s UAH 14 mln debt to farmers within the next twenty days, according to the President`s press-office.

Yushchenko said many Ukrainian farmers relied on state subsidies and raised livestock and poultry to earn their living. He added that the government’s inability or reluctance to resolve the problem led to tensions in the regions.

The president added that this year’s meat import had grown by 40% while wholesale meat prices had fallen by 10%.

“There are reasons to claim that the executive branch is not interested in supporting local farmers and creates conditions for importing more foreign products,” he said.