After speedy negotiations, proposals for the new Ukrainian national unity government were announced in the night of Wednesday 26 February.
The three parties that organised and led the pro-European manifestations had to divide key positions, knowing that the arrangement will be valid only until the 25 May elections.
YuliaTymoshenko’s
Batkvishchina (Fatherland) party got the lion’s share, by obtaining the top two positions in the state: both the interim president Oleksandr Turchynov, and the prime minister Arsenyi Yatsenyuk, 39, are from among Tymoshenko’s closest collaborators.
The new foreign minister Andriy Deshchytsais also from Tymoshenko’s party, and so is Andriy Parubiy,the head of Council of National security & defense. He was main coordinator of thevolunteer security corpsfor theMaidanprotesters.A leader of the far right group
PravySektor (Right Sector), Dmitry Yaroshwas proposed to become the Council’s deputy head.
Boris Tarasyuk, 65, also of the Fatherland party, was given the seat of vice premier in charge of European integration. He is a pro-Western politician who served as Ukraine’s Foreign Minister between 1998 and 2000 and, then again from February 2005 till January 2007.
AleksandrShlapakwas suggested to head the Finance Ministry. He occupied the post between July 2001 and August 2002. Fatherland’s MP Pavel Petrenkois Justice Minister and Pavel Sheremeta- will be proposed to the parliament asUkraine’s Economy Minister.
Acting interior minister, also a Fatherland’s MP and public figure Arsen Avakov retained his post as the head of the ministry.
“This government is fated to serve only three to four months as it will need to take some unpopular decisions,”interim president Oleksandr Turchynov told the thousands of people gathered on the Maidan, Kiev’s central square.
Udar party leader Vitali Klitschko is conspicuously absent from the government. He intends to run for president, against, in all probability,Yulia Tymoshenko, and against Petro Poroshenko, the billionaire who openly backed the protests.
Parliament will vote on the new cabinet members on Thursday.
Representatives of churches expressed discontent for the fact that list of new government members wasn't agreed with the Maidan demonstrators, as promised initially. Hardcore protestor sannounced they decided to stay there until presidential elections scheduled for May 25, or, in case of a run-off – until June 15.