Translated material
Elections again
In a televised address to the Ukrainian people on the evening of October 8, President Viktor Yushchenko announced that he was dissolving the Verkhovna Rada because he “had not received proposals from any political force to form a coalition majority.” “Parliamentary forces,” in his words, “have taken their work to a dead end,” so now early elections must be held. The current convocation of the Rada lasted less than a year. Elections are scheduled for December 7.
The Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc (BYuT) is not participating in the Rada meeting on October 9, at which deputies must adopt changes to the budget providing for financing the election campaign. The pro-presidential “Our Ukraine” - too. Later, BYuT members blocked the podium and the presidium of parliament with a demand to consider the 2009 budget and make changes to the 2008 budget, that is, according to faction leader Ivan Kirilenko, “to consider what the people need” and then “to deal with elections.” Moreover, Kirilenko said that the notorious coalition, in fact, has already been formed - either the current one,
or one that may be formed after the elections.
BYuT also talked about other types of reaction to the president’s actions, including Tymoshenko leaving the government and organizing protests. True, Yushchenko announced on October 9 that Tymoshenko and all other ministers would remain in their posts until a new government was elected.
The parties are already discussing election lists. In particular, it is being discussed whether the leader of the People’s Self-Defense, Minister of Internal Affairs Yuriy Lutsenko, will get into the top five of the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc. In the current Rada, “People’s Self-Defense” formed a bloc of NU-NS with the pro-presidential “Our Ukraine”. Since the split of the BYuT-NU-NS coalition, Lutsenko and his party have not supported Yushchenko’s supporters.
Meanwhile, Vasily Kiselyov, a deputy from Viktor Yanukovych’s Party of Regions, noted that the Rada of the current convocation is competent until the end of the new election campaign.