Ukraine's Coalition Process Turns To High Stakes Poker.

After the failure of the orange parties to reach an agreement, the Ukrainian media has been awash with different possible coalition scenarios. The Socialists, who supposedly caused the breakdown in the orange coalition talks last weekend by demanding the Speaker seat, have said they are willing to give Our Ukraine the post. However, Our Ukraine is sending mixed signals, with some party members suggesting they could make a deal with the Regions party, while others deny it. Regions has said it is close to a deal with Our Ukraine, while also claiming it could form a coalition with the Communists and individual MPs from other factions. President Yushchenko came out last night saying he still supports an orange coalition, while Tymoshenko threatened to launch a protest movement against any Our Ukraine-Regions government. Concorde Capital: This looks like a conflict within Our Ukraine, but since Yushchenko is saying he still favours an orange coalition, we believe that is the way things will turn out. The bitter relations between him and Tymoshenko, and between her and “blue-leaning” Our Ukraine MPs would be a problem for any orange government, but the potential costs for Yushchenko and most Our Ukraine MPs of a coalition with Regions are even higher.