Askold Krushelnycky

Also by Askold Krushelnycky

• August 24, 2008

  Could Crimean Peninsula Become Next Flashpoint?

  Ukrainian fighter jets swooped low over the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, and tanks and armored personnel carriers rumbled along the city's main Khreschatyk Boulevard as part of the country's Independence Day celebrations. But many in the crowds marking the country's 17th year as a sovereign state likely wondered if the jets and tanks might soon be headed into a real conflict with a resurgent Russia.

• March 27, 2006

  Ukrainian Ballot's Complexity Reflects Election Choices

  Election officials say turnout in today's parliamentary polls in Ukraine was approximately 60 percent. Some 45 parties were contesting four elections that were being held simultaneously -- the parliamentary vote and three additional local elections: the mayor of Kyiv, the Kyiv City Council, and the local district council. Ballots were very long and not easy to read. As the average voter took around 15 minutes to fill out their ballot form, there were long lines outside some polling stations.

• March 25, 2006

  Who's Who In The Ukrainian Legislative Elections

  According to polls, some five or six parties and blocs have a solid chance of winning seats in the new Ukrainian legislature. RFE/RL has been speaking to some of their leaders.

• March 24, 2006

  Tymoshenko Discusses Postelection Scenarios

  Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko's ouster of Yuliya Tymoshenko as prime minister in September 2005 resulted in her forming her own political bloc, which is now competing with the president's Our Ukraine bloc for the same votes in March 26 parliamentary elections. As a result, the party of Yushchenko's main rival in the 2004 presidential poll, Viktor Yanukovych's Party of Regions, is expected to win the most parliamentary seats. In an exclusive interview with RFE/RL, Tymoshenko discussed the prospect of Yanukovych's Party of Regions running the parliament, her split with the president, and whether she would consider a reconciliation and possible alliance with his Our Ukraine bloc following the election.

• March 23, 2006

  Our Ukraine Envisions New Tymoshenko Alliance

  Rumors that President Viktor Yushchenko and his Our Ukraine bloc might form a coalition with the main opposition Party of Regions led by Viktor Yanukovych following Ukraine's parliamentary elections on March 26 refuse to go away. Such a scenario would mark a tremendous turn of events. Yushchenko won the presidency in late 2004 only after the Orange Revolution managed to overturn the initial, falsified results naming Yanukovych president. But the Orange coalition suffered a severe split when Yushchenko dismissed Yuliya Tymoshenko as prime minister. And today, the Yuliya Tymoshenko Bloc is running neck-and-neck with Our Ukraine for second place in the parliamentary elections. But Our Ukraine's deputy campaign head says that despite the feud he is confident a new alliance can be forged with Tymoshenko.

• May 20, 2005

  Ukraine: Kyiv Abuzz As It Hosts Eurovision Song Contest

  Tomorrow sees the finals of the 50th Eurovision Song Contest, which is being staged in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. Many in Western Europe have for years viewed the contest as an exercise in kitsch and said most of the songs are dull and lack imagination. But when Ukrainian singer Ruslana won the contest last year, the honor -- or as some see it, the burden -- of hosting the show fell to Ukraine. Ukraine has taken the organization of the event very seriously, seeing it as an opportunity to put the spotlight on a country that many in Europe knew little about until the dramatic events of the Orange Revolution, which brought a western-leaning government to power. RFE/RL visited the Eurovision venue to watch rehearsals and spoke to some of the foreign visitors and to Ukrainians about the event.

• May 13, 2005

  Ukraine: Interview -- Yuliya Tymoshenko Marks First 100 Days as PM

  Tymoshenko says rooting out corruption is a key government priority Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko is Ukraine's most flamboyant politician. She was one of the leading figures in last year's Orange Revolution, which propelled the Ukrainian opposition to power and installed its leader, Viktor Yushchenko, as president. There is little doubt that Yushchenko's decision to appoint her as prime minister was based on her popularity during those mass protests. Sunday marks Tymoshenko's 100th day in power.

• January 23, 2005

  Ukraine's New President Takes Oath Of Office

  (file photo) Kyiv, 23 January 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Viktor Yushchenko was sworn in as the new president of Ukraine today in Kyiv.

• January 14, 2005

  Ukraine: Kateryna Yushchenko -- A Bridge To The West

  Kateryna and Viktor Yushchenko, with one of their children at a late-November rally Ukraine looks set to turn its gaze westward under new President-elect Viktor Yushchenko. But few people appear more capable of bridging Ukraine's cultural and geographic divide than Yushchenko's wife, Kateryna. The daughter of a Ukrainian emigre family, she was brought up in the bustling city of Chicago in the heart of the American Midwest. Ukraine's future first lady recently sat down for an interview with RFE/RL in a Kyiv restaurant where staff had prepared free meals for some of the thousands of participants in the recent "Orange Revolution."

• December 30, 2004

  Ukraine: Interview With Borys Tarasyuk, Yushchenko's Foreign Policy Adviser

  The man responsible for foreign relations in the Ukrainian opposition, Borys Tarasyuk, has told RFE/RL his country intends to reorient itself toward the West. The man set to be declared Ukraine's new president, Viktor Yushchenko, has said Moscow will be his first destination as head of state. But Tarasyuk says while Russia will remain important, the EU, NATO, and the United States will become the country's priorities.

• December 28, 2004

  Ukraine: Yushchenko Wins, But Country Does Not Have A New President Yet

  Yushchenko supporters will have to wait some more (photo from 26-27 December rally) Ukrainian opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko has won the 26 December presidential election -- defeating rival Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych 52 percent to 44 percent. But a final certification of the results might still be days away. Yanukovych has lodged a complaint to contest the result in court, alleging widespread infringements of the election law.

• December 27, 2004

  Ukraine: New Vote Reflects Transformed Political Landscape

  Outgoing President Leonid Kuchma has dominated Ukraine's political life for a decade (file photo) As balloting ended last night in Ukraine’s presidential election, unofficial exit polls gave opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko a clear lead over his rival, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. Observers described the ballot as apparently free from the open fraud and manipulation that forced the cancellation of the previous vote in November. Yesterday’s ballot was a Supreme Court-mandated re-run of the second round of the election. Judges annulled the results of that vote after finding the results were rigged in favor of Yanukovych.

• December 27, 2004

  Ukraine's Opposition Wins Vote, But Rival To Contest Results

  Yushchenko (center) and ally Yuliya Tymoshenko (right) celebrate during an overnight rally, hours before Yushchenko declared victory in the vote Kyiv/Prague, 27 December 2004 (RFE/RL) -- Ukrainian opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko had an unassailable lead over his rival candidate with nearly all the ballots counted from yesterday's presidential election, but Viktor Yanukovych has said he will protest the results with the country's highest court.

• December 23, 2004

  Ukraine: Marathon Election Heading Toward 26 December Resolution

  Supporters of the two candidates face off in Kyiv Ukraine's marathon presidential election process has already triggered an "Orange Revolution" and shattered the mould of the country's postcommunist politics. On 26 December it enters its decisive phase with the rerun of an election last month that was declared massively fraudulent by the opposition and international monitors. Ukraine's Supreme Court agreed the vote had been heavily distorted in favor of the government candidate, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, and ordered a fresh election. The vote pits opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko, who advocates Ukraine's entry into NATO and the European Union, against Yanukovych, openly backed by the Kremlin, to replace the outgoing Leonid Kuchma.

• December 09, 2004

  Ukraine: Opposition Wondering If It Conceded Too Much

  Did opposition parliamentarians concede too much? The parliamentary changes approved in Ukraine have paved the way for the rerun vote that could very well see opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko elected president. Parliament passed the changes - which affect both election laws and the presidency - after a compromise between pro-opposition and pro-government lawmakers. RFE/RL reports from Kyiv that pposition supporters were overjoyed at the news, but many are wondering if the opposition might have conceded too much.

• December 04, 2004

  Ukraine: Opposition Says Government, Electoral Body Must Be Purged Before Runoff

  Yushchenko and the opposition want further changes ahead of the new vote (file photo) An atmosphere of euphoria and triumph was lingering among thousands of opposition supporters gathered in the center of Kyiv today following last night's Supreme Court decision ordering a new presidential runoff on 26 December. The stage is now set for a re-run between pro-Western opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko and Moscow-backed Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. RFE/RL reports from the Ukrainian capital that members of the opposition are calling for a change in the makeup of both the government and the central electoral body.

• November 29, 2004

  Ukrainian Political Crisis Deepens

  The opposition continues to surround Ukraine's parliament building (file photo) The crisis in Ukraine has deepened with an ultimatum by the opposition to President Leonid Kuchma to fire Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. The ultimatum gives Kuchma 24 hours to fire Yanukovych, his cabinet and the prosecutor-general, and initiate legal action against regional governors calling for eastern parts of Ukraine to break away. The opposition says that if their terms are not met they will swamp wherever Kuchma is staying and prevent him from leaving.

• November 24, 2004

  Ukraine: Rivals For Ukraine's Presidency Seek Peaceful Solutions -- But No Quick End To Crisis Is Likely

  The dispute in the Ukraine over the 21 November presidential runoff results shows no sign of diminishing. Instead, as protestors brave increasingly inclement weather, the positions of both sides -- of government candidate Viktor Yanukovych and opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko -- appear be hardening. As RFE/RL reports from Kyiv, that could mean a quick solution to the crisis is increasingly unlikely.

• November 23, 2004

  Ukraine: Protests Continue As Opposition Demonstrators Seek To Overturn Vote

  Protests in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv are continuing as opposition demonstrators step up efforts to overturn the result of the presidential runoff on 21 November. They say their candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, was cheated out of victory by fraud engineered by the government and its candidate, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. The Central Election Commission says Yanukovych won by a slender margin. Opposition deputies are holding a special session in parliament. Pro-Yushchenko rallies were reported elsewhere in Ukraine. Some cities -- including Lviv -- have said they will recognize only Yushchenko as their president.

• November 22, 2004

  Ukraine: Amid Protests, Both Candidates Claim Runoff Victory

  Both candidates in yesterday's Ukrainian presidential election claimed to have won. With nearly all of the vote counted, the Central Election Commission (TsVK) said the government candidate, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, edged ahead of opposition candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, by 3 percentage points and was in an unassailable lead. Yushchenko accused the government of fraud, and tens of thousands of his supporters have gathered in the capital, Kyiv, as the streets are filled with security forces' vehicles.

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