Elton John gave a free charitable concert on Kiev's Independence Square in a bid to draw attention to the AIDS problem in Ukraine.

"I am here to support you all against AIDS," he told his 200,000-strong audience on June 16, 2007, which included President Viktor Yushchenko, Ukraine's former leader Leonid Kuchma, Russian envoy Viktor Chernomyrdin and top government officials.

Volunteers handed out condoms and leaflets detailing contacts for HIV testing and counselling centres before the concert, which was broadcast live on Ukrainian television.

"This concert will enable us to fund future projects for around the same amount," Elton John was quoted as saying. The concert would also honour the singer's friends Olena Franchuk, Kuchma's daughter, and her husband Viktor Pinchuk, who pledged a $2.5-million grant to the foundation.

Also, Franchuk's ANTIAIDS Foundation earlier this year joined forces with Elton John's fund to launch a five-year project due to help HIV-positive children and their families. Pinchuk, a tycoon who owns a number of large, mostly metallurgical enterprises, is also owner of a contemporary art centre, where photos from Elton John's private collection went on display on June 15, 2007.

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