Second Tymoshenko government

Creation

The appointment of the government of Ukraine was scheduled for the December 11, 2007. The session was opened late due to awaiting of the President of Ukraine who after arriving was giving the first word. At first there were 271 parliamentarians registered that morning with only Party of Regions and four people's deputies from the Communist Party being absent. During the voting for the appointment, however, the rest of the Communist Party and Lytvyn Bloc were absent together with Ivan Plyushch from Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc. Beside that for some reason the electronic counting system of the parliament seemed to malfunction and did not count votes of two parliamentarians showing only 225 approving votes.

The creation of the new cabinet was rescheduled on December 18, but the political parties Party of Regions, Communist Party of Ukraine, and Lytvyn Bloc completely boycotted that session registering zero representatives from their parties. Only 227 people's deputies registered that day and there were five issues on agenda during that session: a) appointment of the Prime Minister of Ukraine, b) dismissal of the Prime Minister of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych, c) dissolution of the current Cabinet of Ministers, d) formation of the new Cabinet of Ministers, e) an early termination of powers for parliamentarians elected to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. The voting on the first issue was decided to conduct without the parliamentary electronic counting system "Rada". The counting of votes started at 11 o'clock in the morning and was finished at 11:40 during the whole procedure it was found that one parliamentarian from Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc was missing. At 12:30 the head of the counting commission Mykola Shershun announced the results.

Before voting for his dismissal as the Prime Minister of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych gave a speech (below is end of it):

The voting on the next issues was continued to be conducted without the utilization of the electronic counting system by showing hands. For the dismissal of Yanukovych all 226 parliamentarians registered in the session hall voted approvingly. The same results were obtained for the dismissal of the current Cabinet of Ministers. For the appointment of the new government 227 parliamentarians raised their hands that afternoon.

Events

March 18, 2009 the Cabinet of Ministers halved the salaries of the Prime Minister and all other ministers from April 1, 2009, to January 1, 2010 to fight the current economic crises of Ukraine.

On June 18, 2009 Parliament Speaker and leader of Bloc of Lytvyn Volodymyr Lytvyn stated that his party is not seeking posts in the Cabinet of Ministers even though at the time there were three posts vacant and the Transport and Communications Minister Yosyp Vinskyi turned in his resignation one day earlier. According to Lytvyn he had no intention of changing this position because he valued voters.

On June 26, 2009 Prime Minister Tymoshenko nominated Oleksandr Klymenko for coal minister, Mykhailo Zgurovsky and Yuriy Liubonenko for vice premiers, Fedir Yaroshenko for finance minister, Tariel Vasafze for transport and communications minister, and Viktor Shemchuk for justice minister.

On November 16, 2009 First Vice Prime Minister Oleksander Turchinov stated that the government's vacant ministerial posts could be filled only after the upcoming presidential elections.

Fall

Newly elected President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych wanted to oust the current Cabinet and form a new Cabinet with his Party of Regions after his election on February 7, 2010. On February 20, 2010 Parliament Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn stated he would announce the dissolution of the coalition the next plenary week if its activity by then was not confirmed in documents. On February 17 Lytvyn had asked the coalition to provide within ten days documents that confirmed its existence, in particular, a list of at least 226 Members of Parliament who are members. Lytvyn stated that it was possible to ensure "the effectiveness of the current coalition" or create a new coalition in parliament. Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko stated on February 22 she was holding negotiation "to unite in the Verkhovna Rada the democratic and pro-Ukrainian forces, all rational deputies of Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc, the Lytvyn Bloc and Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc". If the current Cabinet could not be preserved Tymoshenko has stated she would go into Parliamentary opposition. During a Cabinet of Ministers meeting on February 24, 2010 Tymoshenko stated “I am certain that Our Ukraine group leaders … will stand firmly in the defense of Ukraine and everything Ukrainian. I am certain that these leaders will not change their ideology or beliefs and join a majority coalition led by Party of Regions” (the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc or Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc faction where needed to form a new coalition). On February 24 Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine’s parliament) Volodymyr Lytvyn received a document that had been drafted by the Party of Regions faction that had been submitted for examination by all factions, except the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, according to the Party of Regions the document was not the draft of a new coalition agreement but "a document submitted to the head of the Lytvyn Bloc faction in the process of talks so that he can consider this draft and we proposed that our colleagues consider this coalition agreement and make their amendments and remarks, if they deem it necessary".

On March 2, 2010 Chairman Lytvyn announced in parliament that the government had collapsed “In line with the constitution of Ukraine ... I announce that the coalition in parliament has ceased its activity". 37 (of the 55) Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc faction members had voted for the continuation of the coalition. Ivan Kyrylenko, leader of the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc faction, blamed the Lytvyn Bloc for the collapse of the coalition and according to Prime Minister Tymoshenko "The coalition was disbanded illegally", she also blamed the Lytvyn Bloc and "Our Ukraine, including the leader of Our Ukraine who announced the position of the faction".

On March 1, 2010 Prime Minister Tymoshenko demanded a vote of no confidence in the government in parliament. Ukraine's parliament held a vote of no confidence in the government on March 3, 2010, in which the cabinet was dismissed with 243 lawmakers voting in favour out of the 450. Before the vote and on March 3 Prime Minister Tymoshenko stated "If the dismissal of the government is passed today, at that very same moment our government will leave the cabinet. Our political force will cross into the opposition".

Until a new coalition was formed the government remained in place, as acting ministers; thus the ministers stayed on till March 11, 2010 when the First Azarov Government was elected.

Achievements

According to Tymoshenko, the protection of Ukraine from financial and economic collapse amid the global crisis is the main achievement of the work of the government she had led. On May 13, 2010, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov claimed that ninety percent of decisions taken by the second Tymoshenko government had not been implemented in Ukraine.

On March 18, 2010, Accounting Chamber Head Valentyn Symonenko accused the second Tymoshenko government of falsifying budget indicators and noted a rise in the debt load on the budget in 2010 compared with 2009.

Composition

Prime Minister Tymoshenko resigned from the post of Prime Minister on March 4, 2010. Oleksandr Turchynov was empowered to fulfill the Prime Minister's duties until a new government was formed on March 4, 2010, his reign lasted a week.

Changes

Criminal cases against former ministers

Late January 2011 the Control and Revision Office of Ukraine identified violations of law and the procedure for the use of public funds worth $12 billion in 2008-2009. Since April 2010 the General Prosecutor of Ukraine have launched several criminal case against former ministers in the Second Tymoshenko Government Early December 2010 Ukraine's Prosecutor General Viktor Pshonka had stated that there were no political reasons for the interrogations of the opposition leaders Tymoshenko, Lutsenko and Oleksandr Turchynov. But Tymoshenko has dismissed the probe against her as "terror against the opposition by President Yanukovych".

Yulia Tymoshenko and Yuriy Lutsenko

Former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko have been jailed since October 2011 and February 2012. On 7 April 2013 a decree by President Viktor Yanukovych freed Lutsenko from prison and exempted him, and his fellow Minister in the second Tymoshenko Government Heorhiy Filipchuk, from further punishment.

Valeriy Ivaschenko

Former acting Acting Ukrainian Defense Minister Valeriy Ivaschenko was arrested on 25 August 2010 for illegally making a decision to sell Government property. In 2013 Ivashchenko claimed he was prosecuted because he refused to testify against Tymoshenko and Oleksandr Turchynov and that the accusations against him where fabricated by his former deputy minister of defence, Ihor Montrezor, who he had fired because he was “fixing dirty corrupt deals in the upper echelons of power”. Ivaschenko was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment for abuse of power on 12 April 2012. The United States Embassy in Kiev named Ivaschenko's verdict an "latest example of selective justice in Ukraine" and it called for his release. On 14 August 2012 a Court of Appeals replaced the five-year imprisonment for Ivaschenko with a suspended sentence with a one-year probation period. On 13 February 2013 Ivaschenko was granted political asylum in Denmark. On 12 March 2013 the Higher Specialized Court of Ukraine for Criminal and Administrative Cases upheld his suspended five-year sentence.

Heorhiy Filipchuk

Environment minister in the second Tymoshenko Government, Heorhiy Filipchuk, was detained and charged with abuse of office early December 2010, Filipchuk was sentenced to 3 years imprisonment for abuse of power on 5 April 2012. Members of the German Bundestag (parliament) criticized this verdict. In June 2012, Kyiv’s Court of Appeals changed the verdict against Filipchuk, giving him a two-year suspended sentence. President Viktor Yanukovych on 5 April 2013 proposed the presidential commission on pardons urgently to consider the request by Verkhovna Rada Human Rights Commissioner Valeriya Lutkovska to pardon Filipchuk. Filipchuk had asked President Yanukovych for a pardon on 5 April 2013. On 7 April 2013 a decree by Yanukovych granted this request (among others) for health reasons.

Bohdan Danylyshyn

Former economy minister Bohdan Danylyshyn was detained in the Czech Republic in October 2010 on abuse of office charges. Danylyshyn was granted political asylum by the Czech Republic in January 2011.

Yevhen Korniychuk

Former First Deputy Justice Minister Yevhen Korniychuk was detained on 22 December 2010 but was excluded from criminal proceedings on 9 December 2011 (On 15 February 2010 the investigator had changed the pre-trial restrictions from arrest to a written undertaking not to leave Kiev).

Mykhailo Pozhyvanov

Former a deputy minister of economy Mykhailo Pozhyvanov was put on a wanted list by the Prosecutor General on 31 January 2011; since then he lives in Austria.