No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2008 5 2007: THE YEAR IN REVIEW Ukraine: turbulence and elections, again bservers of the scene in Ukraine expected 2007 to be a turbulent year, and developments quickly Ofulfilled those expectations. Three political forces – the coalition government of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, the Presidential Seretariat of President Viktor Yushchenko and the opposition led by Yulia Tymoshenko – were pulling in three different directions as the year began. “We face a year of instability in political configura- tions,” predicted Oles Doniy, chair of the Kyiv-based Center for Political Values Research, who was quoted in The Ukrainian Weekly on January 21. Ukraine was already mired in a political crisis when January rolled around, almost exclusively the result of an aggressive government usurpation campaign led by Mr. Yanukovych and Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksander Moroz, according to many political observers. After President Yushchenko had invited both Mr. Yanukovych and Mr. Moroz to the Presidential Secretariat to begin the new year in cooperation, they responded two days later with a political maneuver that Mykola Lazarenko/UNIAN further exacerbated the crisis, bringing it to a near boil- ing point. Verkhovna Rada Chair Oleksander Moroz, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko and Prime Minister On January 12 the Parliament voted overwhelmingly Viktor Yanukovych exchange smiles and handshakes after announcing their compromise agreement on pre- – overriding a presidential veto – to pass the Cabinet of term parliamentary elections early in the morning on May 27. Ministers law that attempted to transfer to the prime diplomat serving as vice prime minister for foreign created a parliamentary-presidential republic. That same minister and his Cabinet much of the president’s remain- affairs who had foreign policy positions similar to those evening the president met with more than 200 national ing authority, which had already been sharply reduced of Mr. Tarasyuk. Mr. Ohryzko’s candidacy was an deputies at the Presidential Secretariat, urging them not after the January 1, 2006, constitutional change that Mr. attempt by Mr. Yushchenko to maintain his influence in to cave into attempts by the coalition government to buy Yushchenko had agreed to during the Orange Ukrainian foreign policy. But Mr. Ohryzko’s Ukrainian Revolution. their votes in order to create a 300-vote constitutional At their meeting, Mr. Yanukovych had agreed to work patriotism and commitment to North Atlantic Treaty majority in Parliament to override his vetoes. with the president in drafting the Cabinet of Ministers Organization integration meant his candidacy was While Mr. Yatsenyuk’s election had healed divisions law. But he turned around and ordered his Party of the doomed to failure before the Russian-oriented Anti- within government, the other shift in the political land- Regions (PRU) parliamentary faction to lead a second Crisis Coalition. scape became the last straw for Mr. Yushchenko. attempt to override the president’s veto on the law. The Rada rejected Mr. Ohryzko’s candidacy on Anatolii Kinakh, the president’s Orange Revolution ally Requiring 300 votes to do so, his Anti-Crisis Coalition February 22, and the president re-nominated him a week and former secretary of the National Security and recruited the opposition Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc faction later, on February 28. After a deal supporting the Defense Council, announced on March 21 that he was to its cause, giving it a total of 366 votes. On January 18 Ohryzko candidacy was reportedly reached by the presi- abandoning the opposition to become the economy min- President Yushchenko again vetoed the bill, but Mr. dent, the prime minister and the Verkhovna Rada chair- ister in Mr. Yanukovych’s government. Not only was Mr. Moroz published the bill on February 2, thus taking the man, the Rada for some reason delayed voting on the Kinakh’s move a moral defeat for Mr. Yushchenko, but it final step of making it official law. It was the first time in nomination. The nomination was rejected yet again on accelerated the landslide of national deputies abandoning Ukraine’s 15-plus years of independence that a law was March 20, after which Mr. Yushchenko nominated the opposition to join the coalition government. Joining enacted without the president’s signature. Arseniy Yatsenyuk, an independent politician with close Mr. Kinakh were seven deputies of his Party of The temporary union of the Yanukovych and ties to both the coalition government and the opposition, Industrialists and Entrepreneurs who had belonged to the Tymoshenko forces surprised and outraged even some of for the post. Mr. Yatsenyuk was overwhelmingly Our Ukraine faction. Only Mykola Onischuk resisted, Ukraine’s Orange electorate, but Ms. Tymoshenko was approved by Parliament on March 21. eventually being rewarded with the justice minister’s already two steps ahead of her competitors, maneuvering Meanwhile, Ms. Tymoshenko kept the opposition portfolio in the Democratic Forces Coalition. for the president to call for pre-term parliamentary elec- vibrant and active, leading the Parliament to vote over- Mr. Kinakh immediately became the opposition’s lead tions. Her strategy consisted of pushing Mr. Yushchenko whelmingly on February 7 in support of a law to protect whipping boy, labeled a Judas for selling out his friends deeper into political desperation and to the brink of los- Ukraine’s natural gas transit system from the Russian and drawing comparisons to Mr. Moroz. Mr. ing most of his authority, thus leaving him with no Federation and its businessmen. Selling, renting or bar- Yushchenko was particularly disheartened by the move, option other than to dismiss Parliament, observers said. tering management or ownership rights to foreign inter- calling it “a shame of a moral type.” Eventually, her strategy worked, but only because the ests was declared forbidden according to the law, At around the same time, the Procurator General’s coalition continued unrestrained on its path of govern- approved amidst concern that the Russian-oriented Anti- Office led by Oleksander Medvedko decided to raid the ment usurpation. Crisis Coalition would allow Russian interests to control personal residence of Yurii Lutsenko, the former internal The Presidential Secretariat immediately filed com- or influence Ukraine’s natural gas system, as in Belarus affairs minister who had been sacked in December 2006 plaints with Ukraine’s Constitutional Court, claiming the and Moldova. Ms. Tymoshenko’s opponents and critics by the Yanukovych government. Cabinet of Ministers law was unconstitutional. By year’s said such restrictions were already written into Afterwards Mr. Lutsenko launched the People’s Self- end, the court had yet to make a ruling. If it is upheld, Ukrainian law and her legislative initiative was a public- Defense movement that held anti-government demon- the Cabinet of Ministers law would largely reduce the ity ploy. strations and drew thousands of protesters throughout Ukrainian presidency to a figurehead post. All the presi- Weeks later, her opposition parliamentary faction Ukraine. A planned demonstration in Kyiv anticipated dent’s decrees would require signatures by the prime wreaked havoc in the Verkhovna Rada, cutting electrici- up to 100,000 protesters. On March 19 the Procurator minister and minister responsible for its execution. The ty and blocking access to the electrical control unit in General charged Mr. Lutsenko with illegal distribution president would also lose his ability to influence foreign order to force First Vice-Chairman Adam Martyniuk to of firearms and abuse of power. The next day police policy by appointing the foreign affairs and defense min- allow a vote on a bill forbidding utility price hikes. Such raided Mr. Lutsenko’s apartment at 6:25 a.m., launching isters. increases caused a winter wave of protests drawing tens a morning drama that played itself out on national televi- The Anti-Crisis Coalition’s usurpation campaign also of thousands of demonstrators throughout Ukrainian sion. Opposition leaders accused the Yanukovych gov- targeted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After the cities, most notably in Kyiv and Kharkiv. ernment of engaging in political persecution and return- Parliament voted to sack Borys Tarasyuk as foreign Among Ms. Tymoshenko’s biggest accomplishments ing Ukraine to authoritarianism. If that was the intention, affairs minister in December, 2006, he refused to leave, was securing a February 24 agreement with the Our the coalition government shot itself in the foot because citing support from the Presidential Secretariat. First Ukraine bloc to form the Opposition Union. The union the raid only served to enhance Mr. Lutsenko’s populari- Vice Prime Minister Mykola Azarov decided to play served as a vehicle to unite the pro-Western forces and ty, leading him to help launch the Our Ukraine – hardball and cut financing to the Foreign Affairs gain momentum in the drive to convince Mr. People’s Self-Defense political bloc. Ministry in January. Then coalition ministers began Yushchenko to call pre-term parliamentary elections In the midst of all this upheaval, the pro-presidential blocking Mr. Tarasyuk from entering Cabinet meetings. within three months. The Opposition Union proved itself Our Ukraine People’s Union held its congress on March As a result of such tactics, the ministry’s bills weren’t a success, and its agreement served as the basis for the 30 and elected a new leader, Viacheslav Kyrylenko, in getting paid, diplomats were missing their salaries and Democratic Forces Coalition that emerged after the par- an attempt to refurbish its image. Mr. Yushchenko had Mr. Tarasyuk was denied financing for overseas trips. He liamentary elections of September. led the party since it was formed in 2001, but he with- resigned on January 30, stating that he wasn’t capitulat- As the spring season approached, the political crisis drew his candidacy for chairman. The nearly 1,500 dele- ing but rather wishing to end a conflict.