Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko, Deputy Prime Minister Ivan Vasiunyk, and Interior Minister Yuri Lutsenko have blamed each other for the collapse of the democratic coalition at a session of the Cabinet of Ministers on Wednesday.
According to an UNIAN correspondent, after the opening address of Yulia Tymoshenko, I.Vasiunyk decided to ask several political questions to his partners in coalition.
Yulia Tymoshenko tried to interrupt the speech of the Deputy Prime Minister, saying that he will have opportunity to express his point of view at a press conference. However, I.Vasiunyk neglected Prime Minister’s remark and blamed the BYuT faction for their double standards in parliament.
In particular, according to him, BYuT, supporting the drafty law on state service and the draft law on referendums, helps Victor Yanukovych implement his strategy aimed at giving a state status to Russian language, and at carrying out two referendums at once – on giving the state status to Russian and on Ukraine’s joining NATO.
“If we speak about a real consolidation of society, and not about a dubious consolidation of political leaders, let us not only proclaim but also undertake real steps to consolidate the society”, I.Vasyunyk said.
At the same time, the Deputy Prime Minister stressed that the best way for the state would be to restore the democratic coalition. In his opinion, it is up to BYuT to make this step. “If the statements about your support to restoring the work of the democratic coalition with the participation of Lytvyn’s Bloc are true, then we should start talks without any conditions, at least in a coalition council format”, the Deputy Prime Minister proposed.
In his turn, Interior Minister Yuri Lutsenko called on I.Vasiunyk, who was appointed to the government from Our Ukraine – People’s Self Defense Bloc, to not transfer chaos from parliament to the Cabinet of Ministers.
“At night, without consulting with not only BYuT, but also your colleagues in the bloc – I’d like to remind you that we [People’s Self-Defense] ran for parliament as a part of Our Ukraine – People’s Self-Defense Bloc, which includes 9 parties – and members of Our Ukraine, who make the minority of the faction, if I do not mistaken, 23 lawmakers, - without consulting with the coalition council, you destroyed the democratic coalition. And, after that, you cynically, basing on double standards, accuse of that anybody but yourself. You, by a telephone call from one oligarch from abroad and another oligarch from Bankova Str. [where the Presidential Secretariat is situated], destroyed the democratic coalition, for which all those present here had been fighting for 8 years in every region of Ukraine”, Yuri Lutsenko claimed.
He also proposed Our Ukraine representatives to summon up their courage and make first step to restore the democratic coalition.
