Yanukovych's party forming coalition in Ukraine parliament
09/02/201015:27
KIEV, February 9 (RIA Novosti) - Ukraine's opposition Party of Region, whose leader Viktor Yanukovich looks set to become president after tight polls on Sunday, said on Tuesday it could put together a coalition this week giving him control over parliament.
Yanukovych is leading a mere 3.47 percentage points over Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, a populist leader of the 2004 "orange revolution" protests that overturned his declared victory. A majority coalition in parliament nominates prime minister in Ukraine.
"I believe the establishment of a new coalition will be announced on Thursday," Party of Regions lawmaker Vasyl Hrytsak was quoted as saying by the Unian agency.
Mykola Azarov, a party leader who was mentioned in media reports as Yanukovych's possible prime minister, said it was premature to talk about a coalition, confirming that "talks are underway" but declining further comment.
The Party of Regions is the largest party in the 450-seat parliament, with 175 seats, but the current coalition comprises the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc (156 seats), the pro-presidential Our Ukraine (76) and ex-speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn's bloc (20).
The Lytvyn Bloc said it had not received an offer to join any new coalition.
The Communists, who hold 27 seats in the Supreme Rada, said on Tuesday they might join the coalition if Tymoshenko's bloc and President Viktor Yushchenko's party were not there.
"We cannot imagine a coalition comprising both Communists and the Tymoshenko bloc, or Communists and Our Ukraine. It is unrealistic, impossible," said Oleksandr Holub, a Communist Party leader.
Even if both the Lytvyn Bloc and the Communists agreed to join a coalition, the Party of Regions would still need the support of some deputies from the Tymoshenko Bloc or outgoing President Yushchenko's Our Ukraine.
The parliament was elected for a five-year term in September 2007. Efforts by Yushchenko to hold snap polls in late 2008 foundered on opposition from both Tymoshenko's and Yanukovych's parties, but Yanukovych has vowed to call early elections once he is president.
The Party of Regions leader has already made clear that he will not retain Tymoshenko as prime minister and promised to name his candidate as soon as election smoke clears.
International monitors declared Sunday's election was fair, but the premier has pledged to challenge the results in a court and possibly even take people to the street to protest.
