A battle of power between Ukraine's president and its prime
minister grew sharper Thursday with both men refusing to back down
over a new election and threatening each other with
prosecution.
President Viktor Yushchenko has issued a decree to dissolve
parliament and stage a new election in what is seen as a final bid
to reassert his authority. Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich has
refused to take part in the poll.
"I stress one more time that it is obligatory to implement the
decree of Ukraine's president. Any refusal to implement it will
result in criminal proceedings," Yushchenko told a meeting of
Ukraine's Security Council Thursday, where he sat next to
Yanukovich.
"I will not take a single step towards rescinding the decree."
Yanukovich responded by saying Ukraine should wait for the
Constitutional Court to rule on whether parliament's dissolution
was legal. A ruling is expected to take more than a month.
"We reject any form of early elections," Yanukovich told a news
conference after the meeting.
He urged the president to start talks and asked Austria to
mediate to help resolve the crisis. Polish President Lech Kaczynski
offered his services as a mediator - a role his predecessor
performed during the 2004 revolution.
"If the decree is unconstitutional, then the heads of law
enforcement agencies... should get involved to look into how the
situation got to this point and who started it," Yanukovich
said.
(China Daily via agencies April 6, 2007)
