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How humiliating for a political leader to be in Davos – but to be kept away from the Congress Centre itself. That is the fate that has befallen Mykola Azarov, the prime minister of Ukraine, who is in Davos – and was hoping to speak at the forum. Unfortunately, for him, his government’s reputation has now sunk so low that Mr Azarov did not make it inside the security perimeter.
Instead, he is holed up at the Hotel National, about a mile down the road. Among the visitors he received yesterday were Lakshmi Mittal, the steel magnate; Jorma Ollila, the chairman of Shell – and me.
When I asked him whether he regretted being unable to speak at the WEF, Mr Azarov replied stiffly – “The forum had a unique opportunity to listen to the head of government of Ukraine, to get a wider point of view – it’s hard to tell who lost more in this affair.” And why was he in Davos, anyway – given the chaos back home? The Azarov spin was that his presence shows that the government of Ukraine continues to function normally.
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