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Ukraine opposition leader barred from national TV - party

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KIEV, June 29 (RIA Novosti) - Viktor Yanukovych, leader of Ukraine's opposition Party of Regions, had a scheduled appearance on the country's main state television channel cancelled Wednesday, the party's press service said Thursday.

Former prime minister Yanukovych, whose party won the largest share of the parliamentary vote, was expected to speak Wednesday night to mark Ukraine's Constitution Day, but his address was postponed as President Viktor Yushchenko also intended to appear at the same time.

The party's press service said the channel's decision was a "convincing answer... to the question of why the so-called democratic coalition does not want to give the opposition any parliamentary committee to control its activities, including the committee for freedom of speech."

Pro-presidential grouping Our Ukraine, the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc and the Socialist Party agreed June 22 to form a parliamentary coalition, ending months of wrangling following elections March 22 that failed to produce a clear winner.

The pro-Russian Party of Regions, which was not invited to join the coalition, has said it intends to thwart its plans to elect Tymoshenko, a prominent figure in the "orange revolution" whose recent career has courted controversy, as prime minister, and Petro Poroshenko, a businessman and former secretary of Ukraine's Security Council, as parliamentary speaker.

Members of the Party of Regions blocked the rostrum in the Supreme Rada, or parliament, Tuesday in a bid to stop a parliamentary session from convening.

"We are prepared to block the parliament's work for 30 days if it is necessary," Yanukovych said, adding that the Rada would have to be dissolved in 30 days if its members failed to hold a session.

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