Ukrainian authorities and social scientists esteem the first 100 days of Yushchenko's presidency as rather positive. However, those who experience the situation firsthand will say they put good face on it.

I think you won't be surprised if I say that Ukrainians are much dissatisfied with their new president. Even in West Ukraine where Yuschenko got 90% voices (not sure it had not been organized) people start to cavil about lack of some goods in their stores, as well as high rate of inflation that cannot be matched by minimal supplementary pensions, high unemployment rate and other nice results of the Orange revolution.

As for East Ukraine, the whole thing has not gone out of hand only thanks to the police squads and National Guards of Ukraine rapidly redeployed from the West along with drastic measures of central administration towards local authorities.

Only a fine line divides Ukraine from bursting into a huge location of destabilization right by the side of European Union. Should that not be what the US was aiming at when it was preparing the Orange revolution with the hands of its faithful hang-bys Poland and Lithuania? Manageable crisis is the strength of Americans. Just recall Afghanistan and Iraq. What is certain, a crisis in Ukraine will affect EU badly which is of course to the advantage of the US...