Dec. 1 - 10 days!

KIEV, Ukraine - Ukraine's parliament brought down the government of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich on Wednesday, approving a no-confidence motion as international mediators gathered in the capital to try to bring the spiraling political crisis to a peaceful resolution.

The dramatic vote came only days after the Election Commission certified Yanukovich as winner of Ukraine's disputed presidential run-off, though opposition leader Victor Yushchenko has said the vote was fraudulent, an allegation backed by Western governments and tens of thousands of opposition supporters.

President Kuchma, who was to step down after the election, "announced he supported holding an entirely new presidential election, not just a revote of the disputed second round."

The Washington Post is speculating that Kuchma is trying to "buy time" and end the mass demonstrations and vigils that have blocked government buildings. That seems about right; they hope to gain some breathing room to try to figure out what should be done next.

16:46 - Captain's Quarters reports on a rumoured compromise and a Reuters story which disputes that story although it allows that some grounds have been reached for agreement between the two contending parties.

Posted by: Debbye at 08:56 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 214 words, total size 2 kb.