Ahead of Ukraine-Russia talks Poroshenko Dissolves Parliament
Amidst heightened tensions in eastern Ukraine with fighting continuing between the government forces and pro-Russian rebels, President Petro Poroshenko dissolved Ukraine's Parliament Monday announcing early elections to be held on October 26.
"We must begin purification from the highest legislative body. The current composition of parliament (the Verkhovna Rada) has been the mainstay of (former president Viktor) Yanukovych for the one and half years," the presidential press service quoted him as saying, according to Xinhua news agency.
He added that many lawmakers - who were "direct sponsors and accomplices or at least sympathisers" of the separatists - and it was because of their "dictatorial laws" that pro-European activists lost their lives during last year's protests.
Poroshenko's decision was expected ever since the ruling coalition in the country - which overthrew the Russia-backed President in February leading to fresh rebellion from separatists in the eastern regions - collapsed July 24, Reuters reports.
He further stressed that the 2012 election was not just unfair, but was also not democratic. "Corruption, unemployment and poverty cause no less damage than 'Grad' (rocket system) or 'Buk' (anti-aircraft system). The society has changed so fast that members of parliament could reflect the historical development," Poroshenko said.
This move came on the eve of a summit in Belarus, where Poroshenko was to meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. The summit will also be attended by Belarus' President Alyaksandr Lukashenka, Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbaev, and some European Union officials.
The talks are "an opportunity for discussions on how to create conditions that would be conducive for the political solution for the crisis," said Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, to RFE/RL.
Poroshenko and Putin last met in France early June during celebrations to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.
According to Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the summit will offer an opportunity for "an exchange of opinions about the state of the efforts to begin a political process aimed at resolving the crisis in Ukraine."
