Thu | May 28, 2026

Opposition leader assumes presidential powers

Published:Monday | March 3, 2014 | 12:00 AM
Ukrainian soldiers guard a gate to their military base in the village of Perevalne, outside Simferopol, Ukraine, yesterday. Hundreds of armed men in trucks and armored vehicles surrounded a Ukrainian military base yesterday in Crimea, blocking its soldiers from leaving. - AP

 

A top Ukrainian opposition figure assumed presidential powers yesterday, plunging Ukraine into new uncertainty after a deadly political standoff - and boosting long-jailed Yulia Tymoshenko's chances at a return to power.

The whereabouts and legitimacy of President Viktor Yanukovych are unclear after he left the capital for his support base in eastern Ukraine. He maintains that parliament's decisions in recent days are illegal, and a top presidential aide told The Associated Press yesterday that he would continue to fulfill his presidential duties.

power struggle

The newly emboldened parliament, now dominated by the opposition, struggled yesterday to work out who is in charge of the country. Fears percolated that some regions might try to break away after three months of political crisis that has left scores of people dead in a country of strategic importance to the United States (US), European nations, and Russia.

Ukraine is deeply divided between eastern regions that are largely pro-Russian and western areas that widely detest Yanukovych and long for closer ties with the European Union. Yanukovych's shelving of an agreement with the EU in November set off the wave of protests, but they quickly expanded their grievances to corruption, human rights abuses, and calls for Yanukovych's resignation.

Orange Revolution

The Kiev protest camp at the centre of the anti-Yanukovych movement filled with more and more dedicated demonstrators yesterday, setting up new tents after two days that saw a stunning reversal of fortune in Ukraine's political crisis.

Tymoshenko, the blond-braided heroine of Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution, increasingly appears to have the upper hand in the political battle, winning the backing yesterday of a leading Russian lawmaker and congratulations from German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US senators on her release.

Russia's position will be important for the future of this country since Moscow has been providing financing to keep Ukraine's economy afloat, and the two countries have deep but complicated ties.

- AP