Global General

Ukraine parliament votes out Tymoshenko govt

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-03-03 22:25

KIEV - Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko's government came to an end Wednesday when Ukraine's parliament passed a non-confidence vote.

The motion, put forward by the Party of Regions, was supported by 243 lawmakers in the 450-member assembly, 17 more than the 50 percent plus one needed to oust Tymoshenko's government.

Parliament speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn announced on Tuesday that Tymoshenko's ruling coalition had collapsed after losing its majority in the parliament.

Under Ukraine's constitution, political leaders have 30 days to form a new coalition. If they fail, President Viktor Yanukovych can exercise his right to dissolve the parliament and call early elections.

"A new majority coalition is expected to form around Yanukovych's Party of Regions and would then be able to put forward a new prime minister," a political analyst was quoted by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency as saying.