President Victor Yushchenko on Tuesday told a news conference his new decree to schedule early parliamentary elections for September 30 was consistent with the May 27 Joint Statement he had signed with Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych and Speaker Oleksandr Moroz, according to the President`s press-office.

      “The spirit of today’s decree fully corresponds to the spirit as well as the letter of the political statement approved by all the parliamentary forces in Ukraine and signed by the speaker, the premier and the president,” he said, adding that his decree was based on article 82 of the constitution, under which the Verkhovna Rada has no authority with fewer than 300 deputies. “In my decree, I establish a fact that Ukraine’s parliament has no authority.”

Видео дня

      Yushchenko added that the snap election would be held in September, as stated in last month’s agreement.