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They Wanted Capitalism: Ukranian Govt Resigns

Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
Reuters -Nov 23, 2007
http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKL23323920071123

Ukraine's "orange" government uncertain

By Yuri Kulikov

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine's new parliament opened on Friday amid doubts
over whether parties linked to the pro- Western "Orange Revolution" can
convert their slender election victory into a deal to govern the
ex-Soviet state.

Both Yulia Tymoshenko, the revolution's fiery advocate, and outgoing
Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich, the main loser in the 2004 upheaval,
expressed confidence that they would be able to lead the new government.

Two parties linked to "orange" protests that swept President Viktor
Yushchenko to power in 2004 -- the pro-Yushchenko Our Ukraine party and
Tymoshenko's bloc -- won a tiny majority in the September election.
Together they hold 228 seats in the 450-member chamber.

The two groups have agreed in principle to form a coalition but eight
members of Our Ukraine were withholding their signatures on a 100-page
agreement.

"I believe a democratic coalition will be formed," Tymoshenko, sporting
her trademark peasant braid, said as she left parliament after the
session.

"The president told me yesterday that there was no alternative to a
democratic coalition..."

Some among the eight MPs of Our Ukraine have played down their
hesitation to sign the coalition deal.

"There is nothing dreadful in this," Yuri Yekhanurov told Reuters.
"This is part of the process of signing an agreement. I will study the
agreement and make my comments."

Yanukovich, friendlier to Moscow, said before formally submitting his
resignation that he believed a "broad coalition" could be formed
between his Regions Party, the biggest in parliament, and Yushchenko's
allies.

RIVALS MAY JOIN HANDS

Analysts say the president, who appointed Tymoshenko his first prime
minister in 2005 only to fire her within eight months, is reluctant to
have her again in charge of government.

Some analysts say the president might prefer to have his allies join
Yanukovich, his rival from 2004, to form a team seen as more able to
breach differences between Ukraine's nationalist west and centre and
the Russian-speaking industrial east.

Yushchenko, in an interview to be broadcast at the weekend, said the
first task of a new government was to end political uncertainty
gripping the country since the Revolution.

"The country is now beginning to understand that the main problem is
not macroeconomics or living standards ... but rather political
instability," his press service quoted him as saying.

Parliament, he said, was "a source of such instability".

Forming a coalition and a government could take some time in the
fractious assembly. Yanukovich became prime minister last year after
four months of talks in the aftermath of a parliamentary election.

Under the constitution, the chamber must form a majority coalition
within 30 days and a government in a further 30 days.

Regions Party officials said mistrust of Tymoshenko might tip the
balance in favour of a broad coalition.

"Even if an orange coalition is formed, it is doomed," said prominent
member Mykhailo Chechetov. "And on the ruins of such a coalition a
sound coalition of national unity will be formed with support in
eastern and western Ukraine."

(Writing by Ron Popeski; editing by Sami Aboudi)

(c) Reuters 2006. All rights reserved

                                 ***

Prensa Latina, Havana
http://www.plenglish.com

Ukrainian Gov't Resigns

Kiev, Nov 23 (Prensa Latina) Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor
Yanukovych, said on Friday in Parliament that his government has
resigned, so it will function provisionally until a new cabinet is
created.

Yanukovych, who is the leader of the Regions Party (RP), presented his
resignation, in compliance with the Ukrainian Constitution.

The decision taken by Yanukovych, who is currently the interim head of
Government, was backed by more than 170 members of the RP faction,
after Raisa Bagatiriova, who presided over the first session, lauded
the achievements made by Yanukovych's cabinet.

RP Deputy Bagatiriova, who was elected to chair the parliamentary
preparatory group, also announced the creation of five factions and
their leaders, except for her own party.

Yulia Tymoshenko will head the parliamentary bloc named after her,
Vyacheslav Kirilenko will lead Our Ukraine-Self Defense (NU-SD), and
Petro Simonenko will head the communist faction.

Former Parliament President Vladimir Litvin will command all 20
deputies of the bloc named after him.

hr jg to PL-25

                             ***

AFP via Yahoo -Nov 23, 2007
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jYCRgMfhCvPfY38A16vQDDd4N1DA

Ukraine PM resigns as parties jostle for power

KIEV (AFP) " Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych submitted his
resignation on Friday as a new parliament was sworn in and rival
parties jostled to form a government after September elections.

Yanukovych formally gave up his powers at an inaugural parliament
session in which all 450 new members of parliament were solemnly sworn
in.

"I announce the renunciation of the powers of the Ukrainian
government," Yanukovych said at the ceremony.

His possible replacement, Yulia Tymoshenko, was dressed like all of her
supporters in parliament in the party's uniform: a red blouse and white
v-necked jumper.

Parliament's inauguration means that talks to form a government reach a
decisive stage in this former Soviet republic that lies sandwiched
between giant neighbour Russia and the countries of the European Union.

A spokeswoman for the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc predicted that a coalition
deal could be reached as early as Friday following behind-the-scenes
talks.

"The coalition agreement could in principle be signed on Friday," the
spokeswoman told AFP, requesting anonymity.

A leader of President Viktor Yushchenko's party Our Ukraine-Self
Defence, Vyacheslav Kirilenko, also said a coalition agreement could be
signed on Friday in comments reported by Interfax.

Ukraine held snap elections on September 30 in an effort to resolve
months of wrangling between Yushchenko, who supports full integration
with the West, including the NATO military alliance, and the more
pro-Russian Yanukovych.

Pro-Western political forces took a narrow lead in the election,
although Yanukovych's Regions Party took the most votes overall.

Analysts say the most likely outcome of coalition talks is an "orange"
coalition of Yushchenko's party and the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, which
together spearheaded a peaceful uprising known as the Orange Revolution
in 2004.

Together the two have 228 seats out of the total 450.

If such a coalition were to be formed Tymoshenko, a former prime
minister under Yushchenko, would probably return to the post.

However it is not certain that this is what Yushchenko would want.
Earlier he called for Yanukovych's Regions party to be included.

Relations between the president and Tymoshenko broke down within months
of him coming to power in 2005, while critics took her to task as prime
minister for a series of populist economic measures.

On Friday Yanukovych again voiced hopes that his party would be
included in the next government.

"I am confident" of the possibility of such an alliance, Yanukovych was
quoted by Interfax as saying.

Copyright 2007 AFP


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