UKRAINE'S TAX DEBT SOARS. Tax payers in Ukraine owe the government 11 billion hryvni ($3.2 billion), AP reported on 12 February. Oleksiy Shytriya, deputy chief of the State Tax Administration, said the tax debt, which rose by some 8 billion hryvni in 1998, is already turning into an "issue of national security." Ukrainian Television reported the next day that some 50 percent of Ukraine's capital turnover occurs outside the banking system, making it difficult for tax inspectors to deal with tax evasion. The State Tax Administration has identified nearly 90 means of tax evasion. JM