[Ohio UZO News] Ukraine: KP; WP; FT; WSJ; AP

[Deychak, Orest]

Kyiv Post

www.kyivpost.com

 

Yatsenyuk resigns as Speaker

September 17, 10:46 

Arseniy Yatsenyuk resigned as Verkhovna Rada Speaker on September 17.

	
He made a formal announcement at the opening the parliament session.
"Herewith I officially resign as Speaker of Verkhovna Rada," he said,
adding that he has started the formal procedure. 

According to the parliamentary procedural rules, he will continue to
chair sessions until a special parliamentary committee approves his
resignation. 

According to the coalition agreement, parliament speaker is required to
resign after an official break-down of the coalition that appointed him
to the job. The coalition was officially dissolved on Sept. 16. 

34-year-old Yatsenyuk was appointed speaker on Dec. 4, 2007.

The Washington Post

A Section

Pro-Western Government Disintegrates in Ukraine 

Philip P. Pan 

Washington Post Foreign Service

17 September 2008

FINAL

A14

 

The pro-Western government in Ukraine that took power in the Orange
Revolution in 2004 fell apart again Tuesday, setting the stage for the
former Soviet republic's third parliamentary election in as many years,
with the nation's policies toward NATO and Russia hanging once more in
the balance.

After only nine months in power, the on-again, off-again ruling
coalition between President Viktor Yushchenko and his Orange Revolution
partner, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, formally collapsed after weeks
of infighting over charges of corruption and treason. If the parliament
cannot form a new government within 30 days, the president can call for
fresh elections.

The collapse came less than two weeks after Vice President Cheney
traveled to the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, in the aftermath of Russia's
five-day war with Georgia and urged the two leaders to unite in the face
of what he called Russian aggression.

Yushchenko has accused his prime minister of trying to curry favor with
Moscow instead of fully condemning the war, and his allies have asked
for a probe into allegations that she committed treason by secretly
offering to soften her policies toward the Kremlin in exchange for its
support in the next election.

Tymoshenko has denied the allegations and accused the president of
dragging Ukraine into unnecessary conflict with Russia. Both leaders
have accused each other of corruption and blocking each other's
policies.

The tensions within the alliance came to a head Sept. 3 when Yushchenko
announced that his party was withdrawing from the governing coalition
after Tymoshenko's party voted with the pro-Moscow opposition on a
measure curbing presidential powers. Their failure to patch up their
differences led to Tuesday's dissolution of the government.

Yushchenko has stepped up his rhetoric against Russia since its war with
Georgia, saying that the conflict made it even more urgent for Ukraine
to join the NATO alliance. He has also raised the possibility of
renegotiating the Russian navy's use of the strategic port of
Sevastapol, on Ukraine's Black Sea coast.

In an interview with the Associated Press on Tuesday, he accused Russia
of encouraging separatists in the Crimean Peninsula, home to much of
Ukraine's large Russian minority.

The collapse of the government opens the door to a return to power by
the opposition Party of Regions, which holds the most number of seats in
the parliament and favors closer ties with Moscow. It has endorsed
Russia's position on the Georgian war and demanded a referendum before
Ukraine proceeds with its NATO bid.

Tymoshenko has positioned herself between the two sides, saying she
supports Georgia's "territorial integrity" but refraining from more
vocal criticism of the Kremlin or strong endorsement of NATO membership
for Ukraine.

The rivalry between Yushchenko and Tymoshenko has intensified in recent
months as the president's popularity ratings have plummeted.

http://www.washingtonpost.com <javascript:void(0)> 

Financial Times

Ukraine faces another election

By Roman Olearchyk in Kiev 

Published: September 17 2008 

Ukraine faces the prospect of its third election in as many years after
the pro-west co-alition collapsed yesterday.

Ten days of talks failed to hold together the shaky political alliance
between Viktor Yushchenko, president, and Yulia Tymoshenko, the prime
minister, who fell out over the conflict between Russia and Georgia.

The formal collapse of the coalition sets the stage for talks about a
new coalition that could include the -Moscow-friendly party of Viktor
Yanukovich, the former premier.

Mr Yanukovich, whose Regions party has the most seats in parliament,
renewed calls for a broad coalition to unite a country divided between a
centrist west and the Russian-speaking east and south, his power base,
Reuters reported.

If talks fail to produce a majority government, Mr Yushchenko can
dissolve parliament and call a general election. Kiev's fourth political
crisis in as many years is rooted in souring relations between Mr
Yushchenko and Ms Tymoshenko as both prepare to campaign for the
presidency, a contest that commences next year.

Mr Yushchenko's party this month pulled out of the coalition after
accusing Ms Tymoshenko of both failing to condemn Russia for its attack
on Georgia and of soliciting Kremlin support for her tilt at the
presidency.

In a Financial Times interview this month, Ms Tymoshenko insisted she
upheld Georgia's territorial integrity and supported the European
Union's position in talks with Moscow.

Recent polls show she has a strong chance of winning, with more than 20
per cent support. Mr Yanukovich trails not far behind. Backing for Mr
Yushchenko has sunk below 10 per cent.

www.ft.com

The Wall Street Journal

http://online.wsj.com/public/us

World News: Ukraine's Ruling Coalition Collapses 

By Andrew Osborn 

593 words

17 September 2008

A23

 

MOSCOW -- Ukraine's pro-Western coalition government formally collapsed,
deepening a political crisis that has clouded the country's prospects of
joining the NATO military alliance.

President Viktor Yushchenko and Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko worked
together in an "Orange" coalition for nine fractious months, but their
alliance gradually unraveled, not for the first time, faltering on
serious policy and personality differences.

Their failure to patch up differences after a 10-day cooling-off period
came as Mr. Yushchenko -- whose supporters have charged Ms. Tymoshenko
with collaborating with Moscow -- accused Russia of trying to
destabilize Ukraine.

"For some of our partners, instability in Ukraine is like bread and
butter," he said in an Associated Press interview, suggesting Moscow was
stirring up separatists on the volatile Crimean Peninsula, where
Russia's Black Sea Fleet is based.

He said Ukraine wouldn't allow itself to be drawn into a war in the way
he said Georgia had last month when Russian troops responded to a
Georgian attack on South Ossetia by occupying large swaths of its
territory.

"Will they [Russia] repeat the Georgian scenario?" he asked. "For sure,
no."

The political turmoil sets the stage for a month of intense talks during
which a new coalition must be formed. Failing that, the president has
the right but not the obligation to call parliamentary elections. He has
said he will call the vote, though opponents say he is bluffing,
pointing to his dwindling popular support.

Russia's war against Georgia in August stoked tensions inside the
Ukrainian government, driving a wedge between Mr. Yushchenko and Ms.
Tymoshenko. Mr. Yushchenko favored tougher rhetoric and more immediate
action, including against Russia's Black Sea Fleet. Ms. Tymoshenko
backed a more cautious approach so as not to antagonize Russia, a key
trading partner, her supporters say.

Some analysts say both seized the opportunity of the war to distance
themselves from each other ahead of a 2010 presidential election. The
other major candidate is likely to be Viktor Yanukovych, leader of the
Russia-friendly Party of the Regions. Ms. Tymoshenko's Byut party teamed
up with Mr. Yanukovych's party this month to vote for legislation that
would seriously diminish presidential powers, infuriating Mr.
Yushchenko, who accused his onetime ally of staging a "coup." He
suggested she was behaving like a Kremlin agent. In an interview
Tuesday, Hryorii Nemyria, a deputy prime minister and close Tymoshenko
ally, called that "absurd."

The political turmoil appears certain to further cloud Ukraine's
prospects of joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or of
receiving a Membership Action Plan at an alliance meeting in December,
an important first step.

Ukraine's chances are already complicated by the fact it hosts a Russian
naval base and because Russian officials have made clear Moscow would be
strongly opposed to NATO membership for Ukraine. The split in what has
been a pro-Western coalition is likely to make things even harder.

Mr. Nemyria said Mr. Yushchenko and Ms. Tymoshenko had real differences
on NATO membership.

"Where they differ is that the prime minister [Ms. Tymoshenko] is
centered on delivery and on bridging the gap between rhetoric and
reality," he said. "The president's speeches are sometimes too
optimistic about the timeline, raising expectations."

The U.S. has been bullish about Ukraine joining NATO. But France and
Germany -- and other European members dependent on Moscow for energy
supplies -- are more cautious, and often struggle to find a common
position on Russia.

AP

AP Interview: Ukraine president accuses Russia of trying to destabilize
country 

By MARIA DANILOVA 

Associated Press Writer

683 words

16 September 2008

 

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) - President Viktor Yushchenko accused Russia on
Tuesday of trying to destabilize Ukraine by encouraging separatists in
the Crimea, as fears grow about Russia's willingness to throw its weight
around the former Soviet Union.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Yushchenko sought to tamp
down criticism of his leadership in Ukraine after the collapse of his
pro-Western coalition raised the possibility of a third parliamentary
election in as many years.

Russia's war with Georgia last month rattled Yushchenko's pro-Western
government, which like Georgia has pushed for membership in NATO and the
European Union. Many Ukrainians wonder whether Ukraine will be the next
victim of Russia's drive to stop NATO's expansion to its borders.

Many fear Moscow could lay claim to Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that
once belonged to Russia and is now home to Russia's Black Sea fleet.
More than half its residents are ethnic Russians.

Yushchenko said Russia was interested in causing "internal instability"
in parts of Ukraine.

"Without a doubt, such scenarios exist," he said.

"For some of our partners, instability in Ukraine is like bread with
butter," he said.

Yushchenko said Ukraine was too big and strong to give in to threats
from Russia or a repeat of the war in Georgia, which resulted in Russia
invading the country, routing its military and occupying large swaths of
its territory. Moscow has recognized two breakaway Georgian regions as
independent nations.

"Will they repeat the Georgian scenario?" Yushchenko asked. "For sure,
no."

"Ukraine is not Georgia," he said. "I think that today to deal with a
country like Ukraine in such an inconsiderate manner ... is not a good
idea for anyone."

Russia wants to continue leasing the Sevastopol naval base in the Crimea
from Ukraine after the current agreement expires in 2017. Yushchenko
said the war with Georgia, with Russian warships based at Sevastopol
participating, showed again that the Russian navy must leave Crimea.

Ukrainian officials also have accused Moscow of stirring trouble with
claims that the Crimea belongs to Russia and by allegedly giving Russian
passports to thousands of Crimeans to stoke separatist sentiments.

Yushchenko, who has made NATO membership the central theme of his
four-year presidency, promised that Ukraine would eventually join the
Western alliance, and he vowed to overcome domestic resistance to NATO.
Opinion polls show more than half of Ukrainians oppose membership, with
opposition strongest in the Russian-speaking regions in the east and
south, including Crimea.

Yushchenko, wearing a striped black suit and red tie, spoke and gestured
confidently during the 30-minute interview. His face looked nearly
healed of the pock-like scars caused by the dioxin poisoning that
briefly knocked him out of the 2004 presidential election race. He has
suggested the near-fatal poisoning was masterminded in Russia.

Yushchenko spoke hours after his coalition was declared dead, starting a
30-day countdown for lawmakers to either form a new alliance or call
elections.

Yushchenko said the collapse did not threaten the country's tumultuous
democracy. He accused his coalition partner Yulia Tymoshenko -- the
prime minister who was his ally in the 2004 Orange Revolution -- of
betraying national interests and acting selfishly.

The alliance between the two leaders' parties disintegrated amid
infighting ahead of the 2010 presidential election, in which both expect
to compete.

Yushchenko's allies pulled out of the coalition after Tymoshenko sided
with opposition lawmakers to curtail presidential powers. Yushchenko
again accused Tymoshenko of acting on the Kremlin's behalf by failing to
condemn the war in Georgia and of seeking to retain power at all costs
ahead of the vote.

Tymoshenko said in a statement before the interview that she hoped
Parliament would find a way out of the crisis.

Analysts believe that the next coalition may include the Russia-friendly
Party of Regions and be more responsive to Moscow's demands.

AP

Ukraine PM blames rival for tensions with Russia 

128 words

17 September 2008

09:09

 

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) - Ukraine's prime minister is accusing President
Viktor Yushchenko of ruining the country's ties with Russia.

Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko says Ukraine should pursue a more
"balanced" policy with its neighbor. She spoke one day after a coalition
of parties loyal to Yushchenko and Tymoshenko collapsed Tuesday.

Ukraine's government fell apart due to the rivalry between the two
leaders ahead of the 2010 presidential vote. But they also split over
how to react to last month's war between Russia and Georgia.

Yushchenko has strongly condemned the Kremlin and has accused Tymoshenko
of betraying national interests for not doing the same.

Tymoshenko charged Wednesday that Yushchenko actions have hurt Ukraine's
ties with Russia.

 

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