Yushchenko Owes Political Debt

KIEV, Ukraine -- The main news in Kiev was not the one that people voted Yuri Ekhanurov in. The most amazing was the fact of who gave their voices for Ekhanurov and thus saved Viktor Yushchenko from another political blow – the fatal one. It was not Yulia Timoshenko who changed the balance on the weights in favor of Yushchenko. It was no other than Viktor Yanukovich – the main antagonist of current Ukrainian president.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko (L) and former prime minister Viktor Yanukovich (R) meet in Kiev
This was the main news and that can effectively change today’s Ukrainian political map by mixing the orange, yellow-blue and other colors in a strange combination.

However, the combination looks strange only from the first glance. The logic of the events pushed two Viktors to this necessary for both of them union. And now, the political fates of Yushenko and Yanukovich depend on this union.

Several weeks after Yushchenko took presidential office he found out that there are many obstacles on the way of his beautiful, even if a little bit abstract, idea of making a world to rediscover a new Ukrainian nation.

If this idea, which gathered thousands of people on the streets, would die – the Yushchenko’s political death would follow right after. And it wouldn’t even matter if he still would be sitting in presidential chair or if he would keep his powers after the political reform.

Now, after receiving a chance to move forward, President Yushchenko will still remain in the eyes of Ukrainians as their national leader.

The political survival of Viktor Yanukovich also depends of Yushchenko, and not of his recent sponsor Rinat Akhmetov, Donetsk’s billionaire, or the Leonid Kuchma’s associates, or even the Kremlin.

To be in hard opposition to the president would not benefit Yanukovich or pay him political dividends. The empty niche of the number one in Ukrainian political opposition was already taken by Yulia Timoshenko.

And she was not planning to make any kind of alliances with Yanukovich. The alliance with Yanukovich would compromise former prime minister’s “orange idea.” Besides, charismatic Timoshenko is able to create her own political future without any help from the former Kuchma’s cadre.

She might need him only as a target for her electoral campaign.

Not finding a place for himself neither at the power, nor in opposition, Viktor Yanukovich ended up in political vacuum. However, now he got the leverage to influence new Ukrainian politics. Yushchenko has a debt to pay to Yanukovich and big one too.

Moscow is fine with this course of events. From now on, it doesn’t see Yushchenko as dangerous as he was during the “orange revolution.”

Source: Kommersant