NEWSBRIEFS

President has 15 days to ponder PM

KYIV - President Viktor Yushchenko said in a radio address to the nation on July 22 that, in accordance with the constitution, he has 15 days to consider the motion of the parliamentary coalition of the Party of the Regions, the Socialist Party and the Communist Party to submit a candidate for the post of prime minister for parliamentary approval. The candidacy of Viktor Yanukovych for this post was officially submitted by the coalition to President Yushchenko on July 18. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Yushchenko hails Rada's return to work

KYIV - Ukrainian President Yushchenko on July 19 praised the Verkhovna Rada for resuming its work, Interfax reported the same day, according to presidential spokeswoman Iryna Heraschenko. "President Yushchenko welcomes the fact that lawmakers respect the Ukrainian Constitution and have announced the formation of a new coalition in accordance with the procedural rules," she said. Ms. Heraschenko confirmed that the Presidential Secretariat on July 18 received the anti-crisis coalition's submission of the name of Party of the Regions Chairman Viktor Yanukovych as its candidate for prime minister, adding that the president will consider it within 15 days. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Tymoshenko bloc deputies to leave Rada

KYIV - Yulia Tymoshenko, head of the eponymous political bloc, told journalists in Kyiv on July 24 that 125 deputies have signed a declaration to leave her bloc's parliamentary caucus, Ukrainian media reported. The Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc (YTB) has also adopted an appeal to lawmakers from the pro-presidential Our Ukraine to make a similar move and give up their parliamentary seats. Ms. Tymoshenko argues that, under a constitutional provision, if more than 150 lawmakers abandon the 450-seat Verkhovna Rada, the president would have the right to dissolve Parliament and call for new elections. In this way, the YTB hopes to prevent the Anti-Crisis Coalition recently forged by the Party of the Regions, the Socialist Party and the Communist Party from forming a government in Ukraine. The YTB has 129 parliamentary mandates and Our Ukraine 81. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Moroz cautions against disbanding Rada

KYIV - Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksander Moroz on July 24 warned President Viktor Yushchenko against dissolving the Parliament, claiming that lawmakers would not comply with such a move, Interfax-Ukraine reported. "Let's remember Russia in 1993, when hundreds of people died as a result of political intrigues," Mr. Moroz said in a televised address to the public. "It was a shame for the state. ... Disbanding the [Ukrainian] Parliament would lead to a civil conflict, and this would be an unpardonable tragedy, for which someone would have to be held accountable." On July 25, the Verkhovna Rada passed a resolution to convene a special parliamentary session later the same day on the political situation in the country, with President Yushchenko in attendance. Beginning on July 25, Mr. Yushchenko has the power to disband the legislature elected on March 26, as lawmakers failed to comply with a constitutional provision obliging them to form a new Cabinet within 60 days of the previous government's resignation. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Will coalition pay off deputies?

KYIV - Yulia Tymoshenko, leader of the eponymous bloc in the Verkhovna Rada, said on July 20 that the Anti-Crisis Coalition intends to expand its support to the 300-vote constitutional majority by paying off lawmakers, Interfax reported. Ms. Tymoshenko suggested that lawmakers have been offered millions of dollars to join the coalition comprising the Party of the Regions, the Socialist Party and the Communist Party. The coalition needs a constitutional majority in order to complete a reform that would transfer presidential powers to the prime minister, Ms. Tymoshenko said, adding that the coalition also plans to form its "own" Constitutional Court. "I'm convinced that the president will not surrender the country to Yanukovych and criminal groups," she added. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Yanukovych and Yushchenko confer

KYIV - Party of the Regions Chairman Viktor Yanukovych said on July 20 after meeting with President Viktor Yushchenko that he believes the president wants to consolidate the efforts of Ukraine's political forces, Interfax reported the same day. "I saw in the president's eyes a big desire to consolidate efforts and that was enough for me," Mr. Yanukovych told reporters. However, Mr. Yanukovych was apparently unable to determine whether President Yushchenko would submit his candidacy for prime minister to Parliament. Mr. Yanukovych did claim that the president is not considering dissolving Parliament, and that the president is not considering any other candidates for the prime ministership. "The talks concerned the stabilization of the political situation, the stabilization of the Parliament's proceedings, and the creation of the effective system of power," Mr. Yanukovych said. (RFE/RL Newsline)

New coalition aims to include OU

KYIV - Party of the Regions leader Viktor Yanukovych, Yushchenko's main rival in the 2004 presidential election, declared in the Verkhovna Rada on July 25 that the recently forged parliamentary coalition of the Party of Regions, the Socialist Party and the Communist Party can be expanded to include the pro-presidential Our Ukraine, Ukrainian media reported. "At this crucial moment we must begin our work together from a clean sheet that has no markings or past mistakes. And the first line on this clean sheet should be '[Do] good for the people of Ukraine,' " Mr. Yanukovych said. The three-party coalition proposed Mr. Yanukovych last week as a candidate for prime minister. President Yushchenko promised to express his opinion on the Yanukovych candidacy by August 2, amid rumors that he may also be pondering the dissolution of the legislature and new elections. (RFE/RL Newsline)

President proposes political roundtable

KYIV - Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksander Moroz told lawmakers on July 25 that President Viktor Yushchenko has proposed to hold a roundtable with representatives of the Ukrainian Parliament and main political forces in order to discuss the current political situation in the country, Ukrainian media reported. "It was the president's initiative. I think it is a useful step. In my opinion, it will be an effective step," Mr. Moroz noted. He added that the roundtable would take place on July 26, but the presidential press service said that Yushchenko's schedule for July 26 does not foresee his participation in the roundtable announced by Mr. Moroz the previous day. At press time, it was reported that the roundtable would take place on July 27. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Rada rescinds dismissal of Cabinet

KYIV - The Verkhovna Rada on July 25 canceled its resolution of January 10 to dismiss the Cabinet of Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov, Ukrainian media reported. The move was supported by 239 deputies - mostly from the newly formed coalition of the Party of the Regions, the Socialist Party and the Communist Party. "After we exchanged opinions on the need for holding a roundtable, I asked my colleagues: 'Let's look at how we could make a gesture to meet the president halfway, to demonstrate that we are ready for cooperation, that we are working the way he wants us to work,'" Parliament Chairman Oleksander Moroz told lawmakers in explaining the reason for the vote on Mr. Yekhanurov. The parliamentary debate before the vote, according to the Ukrayinska Pravda website, took place "amid bursts of laughter." It is not clear what legal consequences the July 25 resolution may have for Mr. Yekhanurov. In January, President Yushchenko ignored the parliamentary no-confidence motion in the Yekhanurov Cabinet. Mr. Yekhanurov stayed in his post until the inaugural session of the newly elected Verkhovna Rada on May 25, when he submitted the resignation of the entire Cabinet and assumed the role of acting prime minister. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Moscow hosts informal CIS summit

MOSCOW - The presidents of eight of the 12 CIS member-states met informally for dinner in Moscow on July 21 and continued discussions the following day, Russian media reported. The July 22 discussions focused on proposals by Kazakhstan's Nursultan Nazarbaev for reforming Commonwealth of Independent States structures to render them more effective, regnum.ru reported. The most important of those proposed innovations is a requirement that all CIS decisions in the spheres of migration policy, transport, education, "modern challenges" and humanitarian affairs be adopted by consensus. The 12 presidents are to decide on that proposal at their next summit, to be held in Miensk in November, Interfax quoted Mr. Nazarbaev as saying. He added that Russia should serve as the driving force for closer integration among CIS states. Other, unspecified participants argued in favor of a common CIS defense system. Armenia's Robert Kocharian did not attend, having caught a chill swimming earlier last week; Georgia's Mikheil Saakashvili stayed away after being informed it would not be possible to meet privately with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines; Ukraine's President Viktor Yushchenko opted out, citing domestic political tensions, according to the dpa news service; and Turkmenistan's President Saparmurat Niyazov has not attended an informal CIS summit since 2002. The culmination of the gathering was a horse race at the Moscow hippodrome in which a bay colt from Russia and a black colt from Azerbaijan finished neck and neck and shared first and second prize, regnum.ru reported. The Epsom Derby has ended in a dead heat only once in its 226-year history. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Russians take stock of G-8

STRELNA, Russia - President Vladimir Putin told reporters in Strelna at the close of the Group of Eight summit on July 17 that "we are satisfied that our partners received with understanding Russia's ideas and proposals for the summit," Russian and international news agencies reported. He added that "it is also obvious that Russia's growing economic potential allows it to play a more significant role in global development, and we are ready to participate actively in implementing all of the proposed initiatives." Deputy Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that, prior to the summit, Moscow "faced a lot of criticism from different parts of the world, but in the end we managed to show that Russia's place in the G-8 is quite natural, that it's impossible to tackle vital problems without Russia." An unnamed Western diplomat was quoted by The Washington Times on July 18 as saying that the "Russians have clearly had a recovery of confidence." The Moscow daily Nezavisimaya Gazeta noted on July 17, however, that Russian plans for the gathering were overshadowed by the Middle East crisis and by Iran's refusal to agree to the Russian-backed proposal to halt uranium enrichment. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Yavlinsky slams Putin's foreign policy

MOSCOW - Grigory Yavlinsky of the liberal opposition Yabloko party wrote in Novaya Gazeta of July 17-19 that President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy is ill-conceived and threatens the interests of Russia more than it does those of any other country. Mr. Yavlinsky stressed that the root of the problem is that Russia lacks "effective modern state institutions, democratic traditions, or even a modern society as such." He notes that Mr. Putin has successfully called attention to problems in democratic countries to discredit democracy itself. Mr. Yavlinsky said he believes that "there has been no discussion in Russia of Russia's place and role in the world, long-term strategy for international relations, or how all this relates to our country's internal ... development." Instead, Mr. Putin conducts a short-sighted foreign policy aimed at promoting the immediate interests of various "factions within the Kremlin." Mr. Yavlinsky argues that official comments about "being 'separate' from other [countries], [establishing] 'sovereignty,' and [exercising] foreign-policy independence are sometimes expressed in an oddly adolescent manner and involve steps that are potentially dangerous for Russia itself. How else could we describe the decision to sell Tor missile systems to Iran, or show friendship and concern for North Korea and Hamas?" On July 17, State Duma Deputy Vladimir Ryzhkov of the Republican Party wrote in Nezavisimaya Gazeta that the discussion in Kremlin circles about "sovereignty" only serves to show that democracy is what Russia lacks in order to be truly sovereign. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Bishop Lonchyna heads board

LVIV - Bishop Hlib Lonchyna on July 10 was presented as the head of administration of the Religion Board of the Kyiv-Halych Metropolitanate of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (UGCC). Also present at the event was Patriarch Lubomyr Husar, primate of the UGCC, who said that the newly appointed head of administration will also fulfill the mission of exarch on matters of monasticism. Among the assignments of the new head will be to: monitor the work of inter-eparchial committees; ensure that each commission has a clearly formulated goal in its activities; work to improve cooperation between commissions and coordinate their work; and work toward the professionalism of church personnel and premises, and appropriate financing for the activities of the commissions (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, July 30, 2006, No. 31, Vol. LXXIV

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