Yuschenko and his team have started election campaign, say experts
Kyiv, April 17 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukrainian President Viktor Yuschenko and his team have effectively started the election campaign, Director of the Sofia Center for Social Studies Andriy Yermolaev said at a press conference in Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.
"Viktor Yuschenko and his team have actually declared the beginning of their election campaign," he said.
According to Yermolaev, this can be inferred from the president's interview with the Kommersant newspaper and the voting of presidential faction on the IMF credit bills in parliament, which was "devastating for the [president's] competitors."
On the other hand, the expert said that BYT and the Regions Party "have taken a break," which was important for Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, because she needed time to decide on the current coalition.
Yermolaev said that the coalition "is becoming a heavy burden for the Cabinet of Ministers and Tymoshenko personally," and the prime minister "will start getting rid of this responsibility," in the near future.
"I think there will be harsh claims of national treason, threats to the economy and chaos. Thus [Tymoshenko] will point to the guilty ones from a wide range of officials: from the president to coalition members," he said.
On the other hand, the prime minister will work towards more advantageous alliances, including with the Regions Party.
Yermolaev said that the Regions Party would disprove reports regarding a possible coalition with BYT and confirm its support for early presidential and parliamentary elections, which he said are "inevitable."
President of the Open Policy Analytical Center Ihor Zhdanov said that the situation around the coalition between BYT and the Regions Party would be clearer after the May holidays in Ukraine.
"Next week will be pretty quiet in public politics. The officials will be having talks without making any official announcements. We'll see the results after the May holidays, on May 12-14," the expert said.
He said that the probability of a new coalition's formation is no more than 10%.
Director of Political Programs Department of the Political Consulting Center Oleh Protsenko also said that the president had engaged in the election campaign and once again "showed his style."
"It takes time for him to start moving, but after a series of mistakes and uncertain steps he is gaining a lot of momentum," he said.