Ukrainian Opposition Leader, Viktor Yushchenko,
to meet with High-Level Foreign Policy Officials, Congress and Media

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 15, 2003

Washington, D.C. --Former Ukrainian Prime Minister, Viktor Yushchenko, will be meeting with leaders from the Administration, Congress and foreign policy experts during a visit to Washington February 5 through 7.

Yushchenko serves as a deputy in the Verkhovna, Ukraine's parliament, and is chairman of the Nasha Ukriana (Our Ukraine) political bloc. Nasha Ukraina is the largest opposition bloc in Ukraine and won the most seats during the country's parliamentary elections last year.

Yushchenko served as prime minister from December 1999 to April 2001, but a parliamentary vote of no confidence by President Leonid Kuchma removed him from office. Yushchenko is considered the most popular politician in Ukraine, according to polling conducted in 2002. He also is seen as a serious contender to President Kuchma.

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