Ukraine marks 10 years of freedom

Soldiers of the Presidential Guard unit march during a military parade

KIEV, Ukraine -- Ukraine has celebrated the 10th anniversary of its independence with a military parade watched by the leaders of Russia and Macedonia.

President Leonid Kuchma presided over celebrations in the capital Kiev on Friday, where thousands of servicemen marched through the streets.

Military equipment, including new Ukrainian-made T-84 tanks and three types of rocket launchers, were on show.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski showed particular interest as 13 types of aircraft flew overhead, The Associated Press reported.

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Before the parade, the Ukrainian and Russian defence ministers said the two countries needed to develop closer military ties.

Ukraine declared its sovereignty immediately after the failed coup against former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev 10 years ago, but did not officially gain independence until later 1991.

The decade since Ukraine's independence has been marked by economic and social decline, and political and religious disputes.

More than 69 percent of Ukrainians believe life is worse in the country since independence, the Interfax news agency reports, citing a recent poll by the Razumkov Centre for Economic and Political Research.

And Ukraine is perceived as the most corrupt country in Europe, according to a report by Transparency International, which placed the country 83rd out of 90 countries across the world in its annual index.

Analysts say Ukraine's economy has been stifled by poor management of its privatisation scheme and tax evasion.

One former prime minister has been convicted of money laundering by Swiss authorities. President Leonid Kuchma has been at the centre of a scandal involving the death of outspoken journalist Georgiy Gongadze.

The Council of Europe has threatened to revoke Ukraine's membership and the United States has cut aid, citing concerns over press freedom and democracy.

But the economy has begun to pick-up over the past 24 months, with the country's gross domestic product showing growth for the first time last year.

At a concert marking the anniversary on Thursday, Kuchma praised Ukraine's peaceful transition to independence and called on society to nurture the intellectual and spiritual spheres.

He pledged to secure "political stability and civil peace for the future."

Neighbouring Poland, which was the first country to recognise independent Ukraine, has tried to form a bridge between the Kiev administration and the West and help reduce its reliance on Russia.

Poland's President Alexander Kwasniewski met Putin in Kiev on Thursday. Afterwards, Putin praised the development of ties between the two nations.

Trajkovski and Putin took the opportunity to discuss the conflict between ethnic Albanian rebels and Macedonian government forces. Putin said efforts to disarm rebels in the Balkans were long overdue.

Putin and Kuchma also met separately, and discussed a long-standing dispute on Ukraine' debts for Russian natural gas.