Ukrainian premier hails parliament's decision to dismiss foreign minister

Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko has welcomed the parliament's decision to dismiss Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko.

"Ohryzko was radically inconvenient to me as prime minister. This person was not a professional. He was involved in systematic provocations against the government," she told journalists in the government on Tuesday.

Tymoshenko said that she had asked MPs from the parliamentary faction of her bloc not to support the dismissal of Ohryzko.

"Understanding the moods among the faction that wanted to give all of its 155 votes to dismiss Ohryzko, we asked MPs to refrain from voting on this issue, for the sake of calmness and so that the situation did not escalate," she said.

"But our faction, although it is being criticized, has rather democratic moods and the MPs failed to curb their emotions and finally dismissed Ohryzko," Tymoshenko said.

She said that "if there had been no crisis in the country, he [Ohryzko] should have been dismissed a long time ago, because all issues have not been resolved, and systematic work to discredit the government has been carried out for a long time."

She also expressed confidence that First Deputy Foreign Minister Volodymyr Khandohiy "would work much better and more effectively and help the government work as one team."