Yanukovych: Elimination of poverty and social inequality in Ukraine a top priority

The eradication of poverty and social inequality in Ukraine is top priority, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has said.

"The eradication of poverty and social inequality will be a top priority during the reform. To do so, we will create the most favorable conditions for the disclosure of an entrepreneurial initiative of the people and do everything to ensure that the earnings of working people guarantee them a decent life," he said in an annual address to the nation at the Ukraina Palace in Kyiv on Thursday.

Yanukovych said that as a result of social reform in Ukraine, he expected "a radical reduction in the number of our citizens living below the poverty line," he said.