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Ukraine crisis: PM Arseny Yatseniuk resigns over his country's precarious energy situation Ukraine crisis: PM Arseny Yatseniuk resigns over his country's precarious energy situation
(35 minutes later)
Ukraine's prime minister Arseny Yatseniuk has tendered his resignation, berating parliament for failing to pass legislation to take control over an increasingly precarious energy situation and to increase army financing. Ukraine’s prime minister announced his resignation today, opening the way for new elections in the country, which is still dealing with the aftermath of the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 as well as a separatist insurgency in the east of the nation.
Prime Minister Yatseniuk's resignation could leave a hole at the heart of decision-making as Ukraine struggles to fund a war with pro-Russian rebels in its east and deals with the aftermath of the Malaysia Airlines crash. Arseniy Yatsenyuk said that by blocking legislation, like a bill to exert tighter control over the energy sector in the face of dwindling natural gas supplies from Russia, the parliament was putting Ukraine’s future at risk.
The usually mild-mannered Mr Yatseniuk bellowed at politicians who had failed to pass a law to allow a liberalisation of control over Ukraine's pipeline system. Earlier in the day, President Petro Poroshenko welcomed the departure of two parties from a parliamentary coalition, a move that opened the way for new parliamentary elections to give the country what he called “a full reset”.
He said politicians risked losing the hearts and minds of Ukrainians who had protested for months in the “Maidan” demonstrations in favour of joining Europe and against Mr Yanukovich. Two Ukrainian parties, the nationalist Svoboda, or Freedom, and Udar, or Punch – led by former boxer Vitali Klitschko – said they had left the majority coalition in parliament to allow a new election. Politicians and activists have complained that while Ukraine has a new president, it has yet to elect a new parliament since the toppling of pro-Russian leader Viktor Yanukovych in February.
“History will not forgive us,” he told the parliament. “Society wants a full reset of state authorities,” Mr Poroshenko said in a statement. According to the Ukrainian constitution, the parliament has 30 days to try to forge a new coalition. If that fails, the president then can dismiss parliament and call a new election.
“Millions of people made this revolution. We did not take the European choice but the 'heavenly hundred' and thousands of other Ukrainians did,” he said, referring to those killed, mainly by sniper fire, during the protests. The parliament speaker, Oleksandr Turchynov, said it was up to Udar and Svoboda to propose a candidate for temporary prime minister to lead the government until early parliamentary elections can be held.
Politicians and pro-European activists have complained that while Ukraine has a new president, it has yet to elect a new parliament since the toppling of Mr Yanukovich in February, and accuse his supporters of hampering its work. Amid the political wrangling, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he fears some remains of the victims of the MH17 tragedy will never be recovered unless security is tightened around the site of the wreckage.
Mr Yatseniuk said that by blocking legislation, like a bill to allow consortiums with European or US companies to operate Ukraine's ageing gas distribution system and storage facilities, parliament was putting Ukraine's future at risk. US officials say the plane was probably shot down by a missile from territory held by the pro-Russian separatists, likely by accident. There have been numerous interviews by separatist leaders in recent days giving conflicting accounts about whether they possessed the Buk missile system, supposedly used to bring MH17 down. Many Western nations have accused Russia of backing the rebels with arms, money, logistical support and personnel.
By not tackling budget spending, it was also putting the lives of Ukraine's soldiers in jeopardy, he said. Mr Abbott spoke of a multinational force to protect the crash site, mounted by countries such as Australia, the Netherlands and Malaysia, all of which lost citizens when the 298 victims were killed in the disaster.
“It's unacceptable that because laws have not been passed, we now have no means with which to pay soldiers, doctors, police, we have no fuel for armoured vehicles, and no way of freeing ourselves from dependence on Russian gas,” he said. Mr Abbott said today that he had dispatched 50 police officers to London to be ready to join any organisation which may result. Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, alongside her Dutch counterpart Frans Timmermans, were said to be in Kiev to seek an agreement with the Ukraine government to allow international police to secure the site.
“Those people who are sitting there under fire, can we just think of them?” Two more transport planes containing additional bags of human remains left Ukraine and arrived in the Netherlands, where experts will begin the stark task of trying to identify them. Officials have asked relatives of the passengers and crew to provide DNA samples to help the process.
Mr Yatseniuk, who has been central to talks with the European Union and the United States, cannot leave office immediately, political analysts said, because he is obliged to continue his duties before a new prime minister and government are installed. A total of 40 bodies arrived in the Netherlands on Wednesday, where they were met by Dutch King Willem-Alexander. Dozens more coffins of victims arrived in Amsterdam on Thursday.
But his impassioned speech underlined the frustration of many in Ukraine that change in the higher echelons of power was taking too much time. Dutch police spokesman Ed Kraszewski told the Associated Press that a team of 25 forensic experts, along with dozens of support staff, began working to identify remains Wednesday evening at a military barracks in the city of Hilversum.
Earlier today, two parties quit the government coalition, forcing new elections to a parliament whose make-up has not changed since before the toppling of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovich in February. Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak said it might take “weeks or months” before remains of the Malaysian passengers and crew who died in the downing of the plane were returned home. It had been hoped the remains of the 43 Malaysians who died would be returned before the Muslim holiday of Eid, or Hari Raya.
His successor, President Petro Poroshenko, supported the move, saying: “Society wants a full reset of state authorities.” “We cannot avoid a very painstaking process. This is both the technical requirement and the legal requirement,” the Premier said after signing a condolences book at the Dutch embassy. “Therefore it is highly unlikely that the bodies can be brought back in time for Hari Raya.”
Reuters