DAGOMYS, Russia — The leaders of Russia and Ukraine, smoothing relations that had threatened to explode the Commonwealth of Independent States, emerged from their first summit meeting Tuesday proclaiming new heights of friendship and cooperation.
"Never before has there been so complete an understanding between Russia and Ukraine," Russian President Boris N. Yeltsin told vacationers who crowded around him in this Black Sea resort town. "We agreed on all things."
The two leaders even managed to partially resolve their persistent dispute over how to split the Black Sea Fleet, the 380-ship flotilla that both countries claim. They will continue talks on splitting up the ships, they said, but will jointly operate the bases on the Crimean shores and eventually create both a Ukrainian fleet and a Russian fleet there.
Coming on the heels of Yeltsin's diplomatic triumph last week in America, the Russian-Ukrainian summit gave the Russian president another prestige-boosting success. It also offered hope that the fledgling Commonwealth will stop serving as an arena for Russian-Ukrainian wrangling and take on greater substance.
According to reports filtering out of the closed-door summit, Yeltsin and Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk did fail to agree on one key issue: control of the nuclear weapons still remaining on Ukrainian soil.
Although strategic forces based in Ukraine fall under the command of the Commonwealth's joint forces, Ukrainian officials want to control the soldiers' salaries, housing and other administrative needs. Russian officials object strongly to the idea, warning of "the erosion of nuclear stability."
"In point of fact, this would lead to a dual subordination of strategic units--to Ukraine and to the Commonwealth armed forces," Russian Defense Minister Pavel Grachev said.
Kravchuk did agree, however, to seek rapid ratification of all nuclear treaties that affect Ukraine and reaffirmed his country's commitment to get rid of all its remaining strategic nuclear weapons by the end of 1994.
In a sign of their future amity, Russia and Ukraine also agreed not to close off their border of more than 700 miles but rather to gradually introduce customs posts there and retain a no-visa program. And the two leaders, who at one point strolled chummily along the beachfront in the bright sunshine, announced that they would make a habit of summit meetings in the future.
