New coalition to be formed next week?

News / 29 May 2009 | 17:21

The Presidential Secretariat has said that a new coalition in parliament could be formed next week.

“This is absolutely not a matter for the Presidential Secretariat, but according to comments by political forces� we’ll most likely see a final decision next week,” said Ihor Popov, the secretariat’s deputy head and a presidential representative in the Verkhovna Rada, Kyiv Post reported.

He said at a press conference on Wednesday that the “last obstacles are being eliminated to create a new coalition in parliament.”

Popov expressed confidence that a new coalition should surpass the current one.

“We expect a maximally specific coalition agreement,” he said, adding that this document should be signed by all coalition MPs.

ForUm

Yushchenko: Russia influences Ukraine

News / 29 May 2009 | 16:00

The President of Ukraine Viktor Yushchenko noted that Ukraine and Russia should have equal and pragmatic relations. He said that in an interview to “Independent” newspaper, ForUm’s correspondent informs.

“I want Russians not to treat actions of the Ukrainian power as anti-Russian ones. We develop our state, respecting independence and sovereignty of other countries. So we demand the same attitude from our neighbours: it is time to forget about ambitions of mother country and offences of colony, their place is in history,” Yushchenko said.

According to him, taking into consideration this understanding, we need to develop new relations – equal and pragmatic.

At the same time the President noted that he imitated several time a meeting with Dmitriy Medvedev, but the issue is not solved yet.

 

Answering the question whether Russia influences the situation in Ukraine, Yushchenko said that Russia is a big state which influenced and will influence the policy in region.

 

Speaking about the winter conflict in the gas sphere, V. Yushchenko noted that “the gas war” was lost by Ukraine and Russia. But it is also important that the European Union, as a result of Ukrainian-Russian gas agreements signed in January, failed to get assured that “the conflict is settled and will not ever repeat.”

ForUm

Opinion: Yanukovych, Tymoshenko, Yatseniuk can win presidential election

News / 28 May 2009 | 17:40

If the presidential election in Ukraine took place next Sunday, Party of Regions leader Victor Yanukovych, BYuT leader Yulia Tymoshenko, and ex-Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Arseniy Yatseniuk would get the biggest support of electors, according to UNIAN.

These are the results of a poll carried out by Sophia Center for Social Studies and presented at a press conference in UNIAN on Thursday by Oleksander Levtsun, director of Center’s sociological programs department.

In particular, some 24.8% of those polled would vote for Victor Yanukovych, some 16.6% – for Yulia Tymoshenko, and some 14.7% – for Arseniy Yatseniuk.

At the same time, some 3.7% of respondents would vote for Communist Party leader Petro Symonenko, some 3.5% – for Verkhovna Rada Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn, some 2.1% – for President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko, some 1.3% – for Svoboda leader Oleh Tyahnybok, some 1.1% – for ex-Defense Minister Anatoliy Hrytsenko, and some 1.0% – for Serhiy Tigipko. Other candidacies would receive less than 1% of votes.

According to the results of the poll, if Victor Yanukovych and Yulia Tymoshenko would enter the second round of the presidential election, the Party of Regions leader would have better chances to win. Thus, in the second round, some 35% of those polled are ready to vote for Victor Yanukovych, and some 29.6% – for Yulia Tymoshenko.

At the same time, an overwhelming majority of respondents is skeptical about the chances of Victor Yushchenko to be re-elected for the second term: some 79.9% of those polled are confident that he has no chances, some 14.6% believe he has a little chance, and some 2.9% believe that Victor Yushchenko may become the President of Ukraine for the second time.

The poll was carried out on May 13-22 in all the regions of Ukraine. On the whole, 2013 respondents were involved. The error margin does not exceed 2.2%.

ForUm

Yushchenko: government is a partner for church

News / 28 May 2009 | 17:16

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has stated that the Ukrainian government has always been and will be an active partner of the church in building constructive relations, Kyiv Post reported.

“The government cares about how� the life of the church is organized,” he said during his meeting with students and professors of the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv on Thursday, the presidential press service reports.

He said that the state had always provided constructive assistance to the church in building church relations.

“I would like this mission of the state to be viewed this way, [and] this wish is simple: to bring harmony to the church, freeing [religious] communities from conflict,” the president said.

Speaking about the role of spirituality in building the Ukrainian state, Yushchenko said: “The Ukrainian church, and I am speaking here about all its parts, including the Greek-Catholic church, gives strong national directives. This allows us, both politicians and other people, to seriously reconsider our role.”

The president also invited the rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University Borys Hudziak to participate in an official visit by a Ukrainian delegation to the Vatican on June 1.

ForUm

Yanukovych denies negotiations with BYuT

News / 28 May 2009 | 17:00

Party of Regions suspended negotiations with BYuT, the leader of the PR Viktor Yanukovych said, the ForUm’s correspondent informs.

“No negotiations are being held now, they are suspended,” he said.

At the same time Yanukovych did not answer what issue negotiations were held. According to him, negotiations stopped long ago.

Answering the question whether there is common draft changes to the Constitution, elaborated by BYuT and PR, Yanukovych said that there are no official documents.

As a reminder, mass media recently has discussed actively the issu on possible negotiations between the PR and BYuT.

ForUm

Yanukovych calls not to deceive people

News / 28 May 2009 | 16:52

The Party of Regions can resort to protest actions if the power does not take measures on crisis solution. The PR leader Viktor Yanukovych said that today during the opposition government session, the ForUm’s correspondent informs.

According to him, if the Cabinet of Minister does not take measures on crisis solution and does not take into account demands of the PR this week, protest actions are possible.

Yanukovych noted that now economic and social crisis is deepening in Ukraine. He noted that for the first quarter the state budget was not fulfilled. It is only said that it was fulfilled for incompetent people. How long more can people be deceived?

ForUm

Lytvyn is against to change Constitution by means of referendum

News / 28 May 2009 | 15:15

Verkhovna Rada Chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn has cautioned against holding a referendum on amendments to Ukraine’s constitution in the current political conditions, ForUm informs, referring to Interfax-Ukraine.

The speaker said this at a briefing on Thursday, while commenting on President Viktor Yuschenko’s statement that if the draft amendments to the constitution prepared by the Regions Party and the Bloc of Yulia Tymoshenko are submitted to the parliament, the president will call a nationwide referendum.

“I would advise against holding a referendum, especially during this troubled period,” the speaker said.

The issue of holding the referendum on entering NATO could simultaneously arise, Lytvyn said, assuming that referendums on several issues could be merged into a single all-Ukrainian referendum.

“If you want to tear the country apart, then call a referendum,” the speaker

said

ForUm

Nemyria met Riksdag speaker of Sweden

News / 28 May 2009 | 14:58

Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Hryhoriy Nemyria has held a meeting with Speaker of the Riksdag (Parliament) of the Kingdom of Sweden Per Westerberg&#-2079;ccording to government portal.

In the course of meeting the parties considered prospects of development of bilateral relations between our countries in both political and economic areas.

The interlocutors dwelt on Eurointegration aspirations of Ukraine. In this connection Hryhoriy Nemyria expressed gratitude to Sweden for the consistent support of this course of our country and emphasized “Sweden is one of the European states which understands Ukraine not only from the point of view of its history but future opportunities also”.

The Vice Premier and Riksdag Speaker also concerned prospects of relations between Ukraine and the EU during its Swedish presidency in the second half of year.

“We have every reason to consider Swedish presidency will be successful in whole and, in particular from the point of view of European perspective of Ukraine,” Hryhoriy Nemyria underlined.

The other issue raised was results of the Summit which dealt with launch of Eastern Partnership Initiative (held on May 7 in Prague).

The efforts made by the governments of Ukraine and Sweden in the direction of mitigation of consequences of the global financial turmoil and recent achievements of Ukraine in cooperation with the IMF, World Bank and EBRD were also discussed.

ForUm

Pogrebinskyi: Issue on wide coalition is not closed yet

Analytics / 28 May 2009 | 14:42

The theme of the Holodomor is still of much concern of government officials. They are so concerned about the case of long past days, so the Security Service of Ukraine could not resist and brought criminal charges on committing genocide in Ukraine in 1932-1933. Why this issue is raised again if there are so many other urgent issues now. Mykhaylo Pogrebinskyi, director of the Kyiv Center for Political and Conflict Studies, told ForUm in an interview.

- Mykhaylo Pogrebinskyi, how do you evaluate the action by North Korea? This is the beginning of war?

 

- No, the war will not start. Now North Korea has found itself in complete isolation. If in the past China refrained from condemning actions of this country, but now it is not. North Korea is trying to blackmail the international community. I assume that North Korea have very serious problems, for example, the threat of famine, which forced the government to resort to such blackmail. But this happens not for the first time. North Korea has already used this kind of leverage. It helped to get financial and material assistance. But now Korea went too far. With the help of China, it can have serious pressure. I do not think that this pressure will force most likely to impose economic sanctions. But maybe global community will meet North Korea demands and help it financially.

- Is there a chance to unite BYuT and PR?

 

- Of course. The nominations of ministers are not submitted for voting in the parliament because the topic of wide coalition is not closed yet. During this and next week BYuT and PR may agree to establish a �wide� coalition, or at least on the coordinated action before the presidential election. Then the Government will submit agreed candidates for Ministers.

- The Security Service filed criminal charges on committing genocide in Ukraine in 1932-1933. Why this issue is raised again? 

 

- It’s very simple. SBU has its own functions to be performed. SBU understands that if it does not appease Viktor Yushchenko in his political loyalty, the President will not allow SBU to work. The resumption of the case on genocide – this is for demonstrations of loyalty to the President. There is no sense in it, because all guilty people are dead long ago. And to use the topic of genocide in order to gain the support of public opinion abroad, it also makes no sense.

ForUm

PR forms new party affiliates in the regions

News / 28 May 2009 | 13:00

The Party of Regions is actively engaged in the process of fortifying the party affiliates in the regions. Special attention is paid to development and strengthening of the Party of Regions affiliates in Central and Western Ukraine, ForUm informs, referring to the Party of Regions press service.

In particular, having talked to the heads of the party local affiliates, Leader Viktor Yanukovych drew attention to the necessity of boosting work in Lviv affiliate. In this view changes in the guidance of this and some other affiliates are expected.

ForUm