Borys Tarasyuk and Anatoliy Hrytsenko, the Western-leaning president's appointees, delivered reports to the parliament dominated by pro-Russian parties in mid-November over ineffectiveness and corruption accusations, reflecting an ongoing power struggle in the post-Soviet state.
"It is a very dangerous trend, when President [Viktor] Yushchenko presides over an 'orange' sabotage in Ukraine," Petro Symonenko said, referring to the president's supporters in the Cabinet.
"The ministers appointed in August by the president have paralyzed the Cabinet's activity, indulging in demagogy, rather than working," he said.
"Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk and Defense Minister Anatoliy Hrytsenko, who have lobbied for U.S. and NATO interests to the detriment of Ukraine's national interests, must be immediately dismissed," Symonenko said.
The resignations of Tarasyuk and Hrytsenko, strong advocates of NATO accession, who were appointed by the president under a power-sharing deal with the anti-crisis coalition in parliament, has been sought by the Russian-oriented Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, who has accused them of disloyalty.
Several Yushchenko supporters in the Cabinet tendered their resignations in October, and the pro-presidential Our Ukraine party said it was going into opposition amid a growing rift with the governing coalition led by Yanukovych's pro-Russian Party of Regions.
The Communist leader said Tarasyuk is turning Ukraine into a U.S. tool to pursue its doctrine of global domination, whereas Hrytsenko is simply destroying the Ukrainian Army.
"The presidential administration, and those who invested considerable sums in Yushchenko's election campaign, are conducting subversive activities, and are thwarting initial steps by the anti-crisis coalition and the Cabinet," Symonenko said.
