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U.S. CONCERNED OVER ARREST OF BELARUSIAN OPPOSITION FIGURE. The U.S. Embassy in Minsk on 7 May released a statement expressing its concern over the recent arrest of Mikhail Marynich, a former Belarusian ambassador to Latvia, Estonia, and Finland and former foreign-trade minister (see "RFE/RL Belarus and Ukraine Report," 11 May 2004). "We call upon Belarus's authorities, especially its legal and judicial organs, to respect and uphold the legal rights and freedoms of Mr. Marynich and all Belarusians," read the statement posted on the embassy's website (http://minsk.usembassy.gov). JM

UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENTARY OPPOSITION WANTS TO HEAR REPORT ON CONTROVERSIAL MAYORAL ELECTION. The parliamentary caucuses Our Ukraine and the Yuliya Tymoshenko Bloc on 11 May demanded that law enforcement agencies immediately present a report on the controversial 18 April mayoral election in Mukacheve (see "RFE/RL Belarus and Ukraine Report," 28 April 2004), Interfax reported. The Verkhovna Rada obliged the Interior Ministry, the Prosecutor-General's Office, and the Security Service to investigate all circumstances pertaining to the controversial ballot and to present a relevant report to lawmakers (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 April 2004). Parliamentary speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn said the report might be submitted to the legislature on 12 May. JM

UKRAINIAN PRO-GOVERNMENT PARLIAMENTARY COALITION TO REVIEW ITS RANKS. Lawmaker Stepan Havrysh, coordinator of the pro-government coalition in the Verkhovna Rada, told journalists on 11 May that he would hold a meeting of coalition leaders later the same day to determine whether the coalition has a parliamentary majority (226 votes), UNIAN reported. "We proceed from the understanding that there is a crisis in the parliamentary majority and it is necessary to find a way out of it," Havrysh said. The pro-government parliamentary coalition has fallen into disarray following the abortive vote on a constitutional-reform bill on 8 April (see "RFE/RL Belarus and Ukraine Report," 13 April 2004). Havrysh also said the pro-government coalition will consider two constitutional-reform bills that were approved by the Constitutional Court but not subjected to a vote in the legislature. JM

BLAST AT UKRAINIAN MUNITIONS DEPOT LINKED TO SMOKING. Emergency Situations Minister Hryhoriy Reva told the Verkhovna Rada on 11 May that last week's blast at an artillery munitions depot in the village of Novobohdanivka, Zaporizhzhya Oblast (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 10 May 2004), was caused by violations of fire safety rules, particularly a case of smoking near the storage facility, Interfax reported. Reva said the blast scattered some 900 wagons of shells over an area of more than 300 square kilometers, out of a total of 4,800 wagons of ammunition stored at the depot. According to the ministry, the residents of neighboring towns and settlements who were evacuated as a result of the blast and the ensuing fire have already begun to return home. JM