Ukraine’s Radical Party leaves coalition government

Oleh Liashko’s Radical Party is leaving the coalition government to join the “patriotic opposition,” its leader announced on Sept. 1. The 21 MPs of the parliamentary faction unanimously supported the decision, which Liashko said was based on the coalition’s support for the constitutional amendments. Vice Prime Minister Valeriy Voshchevskiy, a member of the party, submitted his resignation. Later that evening, Liashko and his party members alleged that one of their MPs was assaulted by an MP from the Petro Poroshenko Bloc. At least nine MPs from their faction attempted to meet with the president to address the incident and were denied a meeting, Liashko reported on his Facebook page.

“We don’t see it being possible to remain in the coalition, which was practically ruined yesterday by (Ukrainian) President Poroshenko and (Parliamentary) Head Volodymyr Groysman,” Liashko told a press conference. “Contrary to the position of the majority of the coalition factions, they submitted to parliament legislation to amend the Constitution,” Liashko said. The consequence was the deaths in front of parliament and the bloody provocations, the result of which hundreds of people suffered. The Radical Party faction doesn’t see it possible to remain in a coalition incapable of leading a course to improve living standards and resolving people’s social problems. The result of its activity is that we practically have the revenge of the Yanukovych gang and practically have a new coalition in parliament.”

The coalition government will continue its work without the Radical Party faction, said Ihor Kononenko, the first deputy head of the Poroshenko Bloc faction, as reported by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency. As a result of the Radical Party’s departure, the coalition’s membership will decline to 281 from 302, he said. To secure necessary votes, the coalition will rely on other parliamentary factions and groups, as well as independent MPs, he said. A majority of 226 MPs is necessary for a parliamentary coalition.

Zenon Zawada: Liashko is an astute political actor, having been a master at playing the populist card, and this move makes sense for his political prospects. The government has already been pursuing criminal charges against members of populist and nationalist parties, so it makes sense to be in the opposition, where Liashko and his allies can claim political persecution. Meanwhile, the coalition government can just as easily recruit the MPs it needs for voting without having to be beholden to the Radical Party anymore. Ukraine’s parliamentary coalitions have always been largely symbolic.

In terms of the nation’s stability however, Liashko’s move is negative and creates rifts among pro-Western forces that the Kremlin can exploit. Indeed this growing rift between the pro-Western moderates in the government, and the pro-Western radicals and nationalists, could be the very fault line the Putin regime is seeking to collapse the Ukrainian state and undermine Western support for Ukraine.

Although Liashko and the nationalists aren’t considered to be serious political forces by Ukraine’s urban population, they enjoy considerable support among residents of more rural areas. It’s these areas that are more directly impacted by the war, especially since the military draft targets poorer citizens. Therefore, support for the radicals can realistically swell if the war drags on for months, if not years. The president ought to at least strive for compromise with these forces to keep them from being a threat.