- Sputnik International
World
Get the latest news from around the world, live coverage, off-beat stories, features and analysis.

Ukraine's PM urges grand coalition in parliament

Subscribe
Ukraine's prime minister said Tuesday that a broad coalition involving the opposition Party of Regions should be formed in parliament to end the long-running legislative deadlock.

KIEV, July 4 (RIA Novosti) - Ukraine's prime minister said Tuesday that a broad coalition involving the opposition Party of Regions should be formed in parliament to end the long-running legislative deadlock.

"There will be no order in the Supreme Rada until a broad coalition is formed," Yuriy Yekhanurov said.

Yekhanurov said "radically minded" members of the parliamentary factions involved should demonstrate self-control and their leaders should sit down at the negotiating table.

Pro-presidential grouping Our Ukraine, former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko's eponymous bloc and the Socialist Party formed a Western-leaning, "orange" coalition in late June with an overall 243 seats in the Rada and distributed key Cabinet and parliamentary positions between their members, leaving the Party of Regions out in the cold.

Members of the opposition party, which won the largest number of seats (186), have since been blocking the Rada's rostrum, demanding a parliamentary vote on candidates for prime minister and other key posts in the Cabinet and parliament.

President Viktor Yushchenko is expected to hold a conciliation meeting later Tuesday in a bid to break the political deadlock that has paralyzed legislative work since the inconclusive March 26 elections.

If the Rada fails to start work in the next three weeks, or fails to elect a prime minister and speaker, the president is entitled to dissolve it and call new elections, though Yushchenko has indicated that the move could prove too costly.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала