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Ukrainian president to announce parliament's fate on TV

Other News Materials 3 August 2006 10:38 (UTC +04:00)

(RIA Novosti) - Ukraine's President Viktor Yushchenko will announce his decision on whether to dissolve parliament in a statement on national TV Wednesday evening, the president's press secretary said.

"Viktor Yushchenko will announce his final decision on how he intends to act on TV this evening," Irina Gerashchenko said, adding that the time would be clarified later, reports Trend.

Western-leaning President Viktor Yushchenko has so far refused to approve his "orange revolution" arch-rival Viktor Yanukovych for the premiership, and has urged leaders of the parliamentary coalition led by the Party of Regions to sign a "unity pact" on key policy areas, while threatening to break up parliament and call new elections if they fail to do so.

The 15-day deadline for the president to sign off the premier's nomination expires on Wednesday at midnight.

Yushchenko presented the unity agreement as a means of ending the country's four-month political crisis, but the document has met with resistance from members the pro-Russian side, due to the pro-Western policies it proposes, including joining NATO and securing Ukrainian as the country's sole official language.

The anti-crisis coalition in parliament, comprising the Pro-Russian Party of Regions, which received the largest number of parliamentary seats in a March election, Speaker Oleksandr Moroz's Socialist Party, and the Communists, nominated Viktor Yanukovych for prime minister earlier this month.

Yanukovych said Wednesday the anti-crisis coalition in the Supreme Rada was ready to form a new government.

"Today we are ready to form a professional and responsible government that will immediately start resolving many problems in the country," he said adding that Ukraine's economic growth was the key issue.

Deputy head of the Party of Regions parliamentary faction, Yevheniy Kushanrev said the party was considering Yanukovych's appointment as prime minister as the only scenario of developments in Ukraine.

"We will vote for his candidacy and form a government tomorrow," he said.

A senior member of the Party of Regions warned Monday that if Yushchenko calls new elections, the party, which is likely to gain a major victory in new elections, would be able to impeach the president.

Yushchenko is currently holding consultations on a possible dissolution of the Supreme Rada with Speaker Oleksandr Moroz, Deputy Speaker Adam Martynyuk, and leaders of parliamentary factions.

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