Ukraine president accepts prime minister’s resignation

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych accepted the resignation letter submitted by Prime Minister Mykola Azarov on Jan. 28, the presidential website reported. First Deputy Prime Minister Serhiy Arbuzov will serve as the acting prime minister, reported the Cabinet of Ministers press secretary.

 

The Presidential Administration led by Andriy Klyuyev attempted to convince the Party of Regions parliamentary faction on Jan. 28 to support a state of emergency scenario, former faction member Inna Bohoslovska told the 5 Kanal news network on Jan. 28. The proposal was rejected by 40 MPs loyal to Rinat Akhmetov and 38 MPs loyal to Serhiy Tihipko.

 

The nationalist Freedom party won’t vote in favor of renewing the 2004 constitutional amendments restoring a parliamentary-presidential republic, party head Oleh Tiahnybok told the Rada television network. Such a move would require holding early elections, he said. “In theory, we’re not against early parliamentary elections, but in our opinion they would have to be held together with early presidential elections,” he said. “What’s the point of returning to the 2004 Constitution if parliament is dismissed and the president is left with a large part of his authority?”

 

Political repressions are continuing in Ukraine, news reports said, with the latest targets becoming Dnipropetrovsk businessmen Gennady Korban and Boris Filatov, who said they were forced to flee Ukraine. They allowed the broadcast of an opposition television news network on an outdoor plasma screen on a shopping mall they own. “The government of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast led by Vice Prime Minister (Oleksandr) Vilkul has persecuted us and our business, namely cutting energy supplies and heating, Berkut raids on our property, renewing criminal charges and informational attacks on Internet resources,” Filatov said in a statement. “The reasons for the above-mentioned actions are our clear civic position oriented against the escalation of violence in the country.”

 

The standard repressions are still being reported by news agencies, particularly ongoing beatings, kidnapping attempts, as well as incarcerations and house arrests on allegedly false criminal charges for activists who didn’t engage in violence or seizures of state buildings. About 30 EuroMaidan activists remain missing and AutoMaidan leader Dmytro Bulatov has been missing for a week. His lawyer has asked for the involvement of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) because police investigators “haven’t done anything,” in his words. For example, police did not try to establish the location of his mobile phone despite it being activated for several days after his disappearance.

 

Another extraplenary parliamentary session will be held today with a possible vote for amendments to an amnesty law passed in December. Majority MPs are reportedly willing to grant amnesty to protesters in exchange for the opposition freeing the 11 state oblast administrations under their control, including the Kyiv City State Administration building. That has drawn accusation from the opposition that the government is using its EuroMaidan prisoners as hostages. Meanwhile, amnesty for law enforcement authorities is also being considered with opposition leaders insisting it won’t apply to those engaged in beatings and murders.

 

Zenon Zawada: Not only were Akhmetov and Tihipko instrumental in preventing a state of emergency being implemented, but it’s quite possible they played a role in Azarov’s resignation. Nevertheless, his ouster offers little to celebrate for those interested in Ukraine’s EU integration. Yanukovych intends to remain as president for as long as possible, offering the prime minister post to opposition leader Arseniy Yatsenyuk as part of a trap that was wisely resisted. Aligning with Yanukovych ruined the political career of former President Viktor Yushchenko and such attempts severely hurt the popularity of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who lost the 2010 presidential vote. No current opposition leader will repeat their fates by serving in the Yanukovych administration.

 

The oligarchs’ position for peace and avoiding violence doesn’t necessarily mean their support for the EuroMaidan, though many are widely believed to have supported Euro-integration. Fleeing oligarchs and dismissed ministers has created thrown open another phase of power struggles in Ukraine. Arbuzov, a Yanukovych clan insider, is already jockeying to remain as prime minister, expressing his sorrow for the families of victims and injured journalists.

 

It will be difficult to gather 300 votes to return the parliamentary-presidential form of government without the support of the Freedom party. Without that reform, the political crisis won’t likely be resolved in Ukraine until Yanukovych’s presidential term concludes. Ukraine’s EU-oriented electorate doesn’t believe he can win an election fairly, based on the polls. Therefore, a majority of the populace will reject the election results if they’re manipulated to declare him the winner.

 

We can’t rule out another attempt to call a state of emergency in the near future, which is why the EuroMaidan protest remains active. Two water cannons and two armed personnel carriers arrived at the government side of the barricades this morning.