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Focus on Ukraine, September 8-14, 2008

September 15, 2008
Ukraine in Focus

The Democratic Initiatives Foundation follows political events in Ukraine with the aim of monitoring the pre-election promises of the country’s leading political forces that won seats in the parliament as a result of the early elections to the Verkhovna Rada on September 30, 2007. The monitoring is conducted within the framework of the project “Where are our political leaders taking us?”


September 8


Premier Yulia Tymoshenko presented three possible scenarios of the development of events in the Verkhovna Rada to journalists at a press conference held in the Ukrainian House. The first is reviving the democratic coalition, the second is early elections to the VR and the third is reformatting of the coalition.
Tymoshenko said the revival of the coalition is the most acceptable variant for both the country and the president and she is categorically against early elections calling this the worst option. The premier did not rule out the third scenario of forming a new coalition in the parliament in the event that the alliance of the YTB and OU-PSD is not renewed. Tymoshenko called on President Yushchenko to take measures for the revival of the democratic coalition and at the same time blamed the president for its collapse.


Premier Yulia Tymoshenko objects to all the allegations against her that the Presidential Secretariat has recently been voicing.
Recall that the premier has been accused of betraying national interests and blamed for the ineffective work of the Cabinet of Ministers.
During her press conference the premier showed a pile of documents that she affirms deny all allegations against her. At the same time, Tymoshenko informed that as of late she does not have immunity status as she claims operative search measures are being taken against her.


Leader of the Lytvyn Bloc faction Volodymyr Lytvyn stated at a press conference that he will not participate in talks on the reformatting of the coalition.


September 9


The European Union and Ukraine agreed to sign the Association Agreement, though this will not happened earlier than the summer of 2009. However, the EU is ready to hold talks on a visa-free regime. Such is the result of the 12th Ukraine-EU Summit held in the European Palace in Paris. The place of the summit was moved from Evian to Paris for technical reasons.
As a reminder, at this summit official Kyiv had hoped the EU would offer it a new amplified agreement and even an invitation to associated membership. Instead Ukraine was warned about the current political instability in the country.


President Yushchenko described the latest Ukraine-EU Summit the most successful of all, informing that the two sides agreed on heightened economic cooperation.
Yushchenko said the results of the summit are only the start of Ukraine’s path towards the EU and eventual membership in this body.
French President Nicola Sarkozy was less optimistic. He said the internal crisis the EU is currently suffering from does not allow for talk of the union accepting new members. Be that as it may, EU officials are prepared to enter into talks on a visa-free regime between Ukraine and the EU in the foreseeable future.


September 10


People’s deputy Taras Chornovil is confident that by the end of September a coalition will be formed between the YTB and the Party of Regions.
Chornovil said that the Communist Party will definitely not join the new coalition, but the Lytvyn Bloc might do so. Chornovil pointed out that the Party of Regions agrees that Tymoshenko should retain her post as the head of the government, but at the same time is setting down two conditions – first, she must succinctly describe the relationship between the branches of power as it relates to the Constitution, wherein the role of the president will take a backseat. Secondly, Tymoshenko must agree not to run for the presidential seat in the next elections.


Today, Presidential Secretary Viktor Baloha said the joint voting in the VR of the YTB, the Party of Regions and the Communists, adoption of a series of anti-Constitutional draft laws and plans to change the state system of governance are testimony to the formation of a new “party of power” in the parliament.
Baloha also expressed his conviction that cooperation between the YTB, the Party of Regions and the Communists will not be long-lasting. He added that such a tandem will only cease to exist when healthy, pro-Ukrainian forces in the YTB rejects the idea of forming a coalition together with the Party of Regions and the Communists and returns to the format of a democratic majority.


A correspondent of UNIAN reported, Premier Yulia Tymoshenko announced at a press conference in the Cabinet of Ministers that the YTB is not discussing any new configurations of a parliamentary coalition.
The premier stressed that should the OUPSD faction return to the coalition, the reformatting of the majority will become a non-issue.


President Yushchenko made two statements today, which political analysts say contradict one another. In an interview with a foreign publication Yushchenko said that the parliamentary crisis is not a tragedy for democracy and it will not derail Ukraine from its democratic path.
In his address to local deputies the president noted that the latest events in parliament pose a serious threat to Ukraine’s democratic choice. The president said that the new parliamentary majority has passed decisions that will lead to a change in the form of governance in the country in contradiction to the Constitution of Ukraine.
Yushchenko called on Ukraine’s parliamentarians to group together against any form of alliances in the Verkhovna Rada.


If Our Ukraine – People’s Self-defense does not withdraw its statements about leaving the democratic coalition, VR Speaker Arseniy Yatsenyuk stated during an official visit to Vinnytsia that he is prepared to declare the dissolution of the parliamentary-government majority.
As a reminder, according to the law the announcement of withdrawal from the coalition takes effect 10 days thereafter. From the moment such a declaration is made the president has the power to dissolve the parliament within a month, while members of the coalition can form a new parliamentary-government alliance.


VR Speaker Arseniy Yatsenyuk stated during a working visit to Vinnytsia that he does not rule out the possibility of forming his own party.


September 11

Russia once again accused the Ukrainian leadership of unfriendly relations. In particular, the accusations relate to Ukraine’s position on the Georgian-Russian conflict and its movement towards joining NATO.
In its statement Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned that if Ukraine continues to move closer to NATO, Russia will be forced to take reciprocal actions. Specifically, it will review trade and economic relations between the two countries. At the same time, Russia hopes to extend the agreement on Friendship with Ukraine for another 10 years.


Chairman of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine Ihor Popov predicted that early parliamentary elections will be held on December 21.
In his opinion, the president will not delay the dissolution of the parliament and will announce it only the moment that there are legal grounds for such dissolution – specifically, October 16.
Popov believes that the announcement of early elections is a much more just solution to the political crisis than the formation of a new coalition between the Party of Regions and the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc.


Political scientist Vadym Karasyov, who is considered to have close ties with the Presidential Secretariat, said Yushchenko’s adherents will march to the early elections in five columns.
Karasyov said the status of the main presidential forces will immediately have two parties – Our Ukraine and Yedyniy Tsentr (United Center). The other political forces the president plans to garner support from are the Chernovetskiy Bloc, the Svoboda union of Oleh Tyahnybok (possibly in alliance with the Narodniy Rukh (People’s Movement) Party and the probable bloc of Arseniy Yatsenyuk.
As for the People’s Self-defense party, one of its members Oles Doniy said there is a plan to create a new political force on the basis of this union, which may include the Bloc of Vitaliy Klitschko and other politicians such as ex-minister of defense Anatoliy Hrytsenko.


The State Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) did not file a criminal case against the premier or any members of the government. Acting Head of the SBU Valentyn Nalyvaichenko stated this in response to questions posed by journalists.


President Viktor Yushchenko said in an interview with the chief editors of Ukraine’s leading regional publications that the formation of the de facto new coalition in the parliament is none other than a playing out of the political scenario aimed at stirring up a revolution in the country through the re-division of government powers.


People’s deputy of OUPSD Syatoslav Vakarchuk turned in his deputy powers. The lead vocalist of the legendary rock group Okean Elzy left the Verkhovna Rada saying, “The only way to be yourself is to quit.”
Vakarchuk said today’s parliament did not accomplish its mission of creating a modern European state and is only sowing seeds of distrust on the part of society. The singer feels the political life of the country is limited to the struggle for power, the victims of which are national interests.
The artist thanked voters and his confidantes for whom the destiny of Ukraine is a sore spot and described his step as painful, though deliberate.


September 12


President Viktor Yushchenko today once again emphasized that in order to revive the majority the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc must abolish all unconstitutional laws that were adopted last week in the parliament.
The head of state repeated his demand that the YTB express its position on the events in Georgia. Yushchenko promised he would do everything possible to renew dialog inside the democratic coalition, though he does not believe that it can be revived.


Minister of Justice Mykola Onishchuk assured that those ministers representing the OUPSD faction will retain their posts in the government, even if a new coalition between the YTB, the Party of Regions and the Communists is formed.
The minister pointed out that if OUPSD goes into the opposition and calls out to members of Our Ukraine that hold posts in the Cabinet of Ministers to quit, the ministers will heed such a decision.
Onishchuk appealed to the people’s deputies to review the laws adopted last week and heed the observations that President Yushchenko made concerning the laws on the Cabinet of Ministers, the State Security Service and ad hoc investigative committees.


Premier Yulia Tymoshenko once again appealed to the head of state to rejoin the coalition without any ultimatums. The premier informed that she is not about to satisfy the demands of the president concerning the Georgian-Russian conflict or the laws adopted on September 2 jointly with the Party of Regions and the Communist Party of Ukraine.
Tymoshenko stated that her political team made commendable statement concerning Georgia that was identical to the statements of European countries.
Regarding unconstitutional laws adopted by the parliament, Tymoshenko advised to appeal to the Constitutional Court and abrogate laws that do not comply with the Constitution.

 



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