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| Europe |
| Ukrainian High Court Hearing Vote Appeal |
| 2004-11-25 |
| Ukraine's Supreme Court gave the political opposition some breathing room Thursday, ruling that the results of a presidential election are not official until it hears an appeal from a Western-leaning candidate who says it was stolen from him. But there were no indications that opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko's call for a national strike was taking hold, and it was unclear whether the high court even has the right to annul the vote count that gave victory to the Kremlin-backed candidate, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. The election pitting Yushchenko against Yanukovych has led to an increasingly tense tug-of-war between the West and Moscow, which considers Ukraine part of its sphere of influence and a buffer between Russia and NATO's eastern flank. At a summit in The Hague, Netherlands, Russian President Vladimir Putin and European Union leaders staked out starkly opposing views of Ukraine's election dispute but agreed the crisis must be resolved peacefully. Although Yanukovych had widespread official backing, including that of outgoing President Leonid Kuchma, the Supreme Court is respected as an unbiased body. The court's decision boosted Yushchenko's supporters, who have flooded the streets of Kiev since the Sunday run-off. |
| Posted by:Fred |