As a home page paper points out last week, government in Ukraine made the first big step towards overhauling the nation's roads, airports and railways, a step crucial for hosting the Euro-2012 football tournament.

It is pleasant to see the government appropriating significant funds for renovation and preparation for the tournament nine months after being chosen to host it with Poland. But it's sad to see the state spending the little money it has for such investments when investors with plenty of cash are aching to improve Ukraine.

The only money the government needs to spend is on preparation tenders to lease Airport terminals. State cash should not be spent on renovation, modernization or expansion that could be better handled by private company.

The experience in the Eastern nations, including the Caucasus state of Georgia, showed that high rate airports can emerge within a year through privatization or long-term lease deals.

State budget can be better spent in other areas, like increasing pensions and salaries for judges and police.