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Regions break ranks with Socialist coalition allies over calls for extraordinary parliamentary session, indicating a split in ranks

The Regions Party led by Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych broke ranks with its Socialist Party coalition allies, refusing to show up to parliament for an “extraordinary session” called by Rada chairman and Socialist leader Oleksandr Moroz.

On July 27, Moroz signed an order calling for parliament to convene on July 31 – two days before the official start of the election campaign.

According to Moroz’s order, 179 legislators requested the extraordinary session to address five items: a recent Constitutional Court ruling that reinstated social payments, the legal status of the early election, the status of laws passed June 5-27, changes to the law on adoption, and changes to the Constitution. But a day ahead of the planned session, Regions announced it would not take part.

Moroz backed down but immediately issued another order postponing the dates for the extraordinary Rada session by one week. Yanukovych indicated that he saw no reason for holding a parliamentary session between July 7 and July 10, according to the Regions’ press service.

Speaking in his hometown of Yenakievo in Donetsk Region on July 31, Yanukovych tried to downplay the tension with his coalition partners while warning that his party could still back a session of parliament that would increase tensions with the country’s president, Viktor Yushchenko, who has insisted that parliament has no legal right to hold sessions after he decreed its dissolution, setting the stage for snap elections.

“I assured the head of parliament that there are no acute issues right now that warrant an extraordinary session,” Yanukovych said, adding that his party reserves the right to convene a session of parliament if it deems necessary.

He said that the party could gather its members under the Rada cupola, “because life continues, the country is alive… if it becomes necessary to hold an extraordinary session and we determine that it is justified, then we reserve that right,” Yanukovych said.

“This is a strike against Moroz, as the new team in the Party of Region wanted to show him his place and send a message that relations with Yushchenko are more important,” said political analyst Kost Bondarenko.

According to Bondarenko, a “new team” led by Regions campaign manager Borys Kolesnikov, Raissa Bohatyriova and billionaire Rinat Akhmetov is gaining more influence within the party over the “old” leadership team, qwhich includes deputy ministers Mykola Azarov and Andriy Klyuyev. Good relations with Yushchenko are more important for this group than salvaging relations with Moroz, a politician whose days in the spotlight appear numbered.

Political analysts generally agree that the Sept. 30 snap election is bad news for Moroz, whose party must fight an uphill battle to be represented in the next legislature.

According to recent public opinion polls, the Moroz-led Socialists enjoy the least public support among the five political forces represented in the last Rada and run the risk of not qualifying for the next parliament.

The Rada is currently scheduled to convene in early September, setting the stage for a confrontation with Yushchenko, himself convinced that legislators have no legal grounds to hold sessions after being dissolved.

While the political arena will remain noisy, Bondarenko sees no serious threat to the elections, insisting they would go ahead on Sept. 30.

“Everyone is geared toward elections, funds have been allocated for campaigns,” the analyst said.

Separately, President Yushchenko signed a new decree on Aug. 1 designating early elections for Sept. 30. A presidential official said that the decree was a formality, adding that the law on early elections requires the president to issue a decree before the election campaign can begin.