Yanukovych urges parliamentary factions to form new coalition to avoid early elections

19:07

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has called on parliamentary political factions to build a new majority coalition as soon as possible in order to avoid snap parliamentary elections.

Yanukovych said this at a meeting with leaders of the parliamentary factions and the Verkhovna Rada's leadership on Wednesday, the presidential press service said.

"I do not want to law any conditions to you. Even to the Regions Party. I would like you to reach agreement among yourselves within the next few days to set up a coalition that would propose candidates for prime minister and the government. Find the political will and reach an agreement. We must overcome the crisis of government and move on. The public and our international partners are waiting for this," Yanukovych said.

He urged the faction leaders to start coalition talks on Wednesday.

The faction leaders and parliament's leadership agreed that such talks should be launched.

However, Deputy Speaker Mykola Tomenko of the Bloc of Yulia Tymoshenko (BYT), announced that the BYT will go into opposition and will not talk part in coalition talks.