While checking out the financial news this morning - noticed this interesting report
about the new political crisis in Kiev:
KIEV (Thomson Financial) - The party of Ukrainian President Viktor
Yushchenko decided to quit the pro-Western governing coalition on Wednesday,
plunging Ukraine into a new political crisis as relations with Russia worsened.
Leaders of Yushchenko's Our Ukraine party were due to announce their
decision officially to parliament at around 0700 GMT and were expected to hold
talks with the president starting from 0900 GMT.
The decision would come into force in 10 days if maintained. It was approved
by a narrow majority of 39 out of the party's 72 deputies in the parliament,
Ukrainian media reported, citing officials.
The move came in response to the adoption on Tuesday of a series of laws
that would weaken the powers of the president, laws initiated by the pro-Russian
opposition in league with the Tymoshenko Bloc.
The Tymoshenko Bloc is headed by Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who is
sharply at odds with the president, despite broadly sharing his pro-Western
political goals.
Yushchenko has accused Tymoshenko of "high treason and political corruption"
for allegedly siding with Moscow over the conflict in Georgia last month, a
charge she has denied.
If the pro-Western allies Our Ukraine and Tymoshenko Bloc do not get back
together and the decision to split comes into effect, members of parliament
would have a further 30 days to form another coalition government.
The president would have the right to dissolve parliament if talks failed.
