FAILURE OF COALITION TALKS HURTS TYMOSHENKO

C O N F I D E N T I A L KYIV 001023 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/05/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL UP SUBJECT: FAILURE OF COALITION TALKS HURTS TYMOSHENKO REF: KYIV 00988 Classified By: Political Counselor Colin Cleary for reasons 1.4 (b,d) SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Opposition leader Yanukovych's June 7 withdrawal from talks on forming a "national unity" coalition with Prime Minister Tymoshenko's BYuT faction left Tymoshenko vulnerable as her supporters learn details of concessions that she made in the negotiations. Tymoshenko's denials that she had been willing to agree to constitutional changes that would have done away with direct presidential elections and to extended the current Rada's term by two years have had little resonance. The damage to Tymoshenko opens a window of opportunity for other presidential candidates, most notably former Rada Speaker Yatsenyuk. Though the official date for Presidential elections is still unknown (expected in January 2010),the unofficial presidential campaign has now begun. One BYuT member observed to us that "all guns are drawn." End Summary. YANUKOVYCH BREAKS OFF TALKS -------------- ¶2. (C) Opposition Party of Regions leader Viktor Yanukovych on June 7 announced he was quitting long running coalition talks with Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko and that he would run for president in upcoming elections. He said that he could not agree to rushed constitutional changes that would have foreseen the President elected in the Rada rather than by a popular vote. Yanukovych explained that the new president would have to make many unpopular decisions and needs the direct support of voters. Yanukovych's announcement caught many in the party by surprise, according to Regions deputy faction leader Volodomyr Makeyenko. He told us that Yanukovych had not revealed his decision to key party leaders, including the negotiation team, prior to his press conference. ¶3. (C) Makeyenko told us that many factors contributed to the failure of the negotiations, including public opposition, competing business interests, and opposition within both parties. He said the main reason, however, was that Yanukovych is convinced that he can win the upcoming presidential elections. Makeyenko explained that Yanukovych was only willing to be bound by coalition agreements and elected president in the Rada if it was clear that he could not win the popular vote. Tymoshenko Bloc (BYuT) MP Yuriy Poluneyev told us that neither side trusted the coalition �A;agreement guarantees enough to fully commit to the deal. TYMOSHENKO SURPRISED, LEFT BACKPEDALING -------------- ¶4. (C) Tymoshenko called Yanukovych's decision "unilateral and unexpected." She claimed that the her refusal to back Yanukovych's demand to raise the minimum age to run for president from thirty five to fifty and guarantee him the presidency caused the negotiations to falter. Tymoshenko, who also announced her candidacy for president on June 7, is now publicly distancing herself from the most controversial parts of the coalition's proposed constitutional changes. She categorically denied that that constitutional amendments to elect the president in the Rada and extend the current Rada's term by two years, thereby avoiding any national elections until 2014, were included in the coalition's proposed constitutional changes. Tymoshenko claimed in an interview on June 11 that the constitutional draft leaked to Zerkala Nedeliya newspaper that included these changes was a "forgery", despite telling Ambassadors (Ref) on June 5 that it was an accurate version of the coalition's amendments. STRONG PUBLIC OPPOSITION TO THE COALITION -------------- ¶5. (C) Public opinion was strongly against a BYuT-Regions coalition and their proposed changes to the constitution, according to local analysts. Orysia Lutsevych, Executive Director of the Open Ukraine foundation, told us that she expected widespread public protests against indirect presidential elections and extending the term of the Rada, had the amendments passed. She highlighted the positive role the press played in publishing detailed information on the negotiations and said that many in the NGO community were already discussing how to organize protests against changing the constitution. Chairman of the Agency for Legislative Initiatives, Ihor Kohut, told us that more than 80 percent of Ukrainians opposed the changes to the constitution and that protests against them could have gathered significant support by the fall. Inna Pidluska, Executive Director of NGO Yalta European Strategy, said that European reaction also helped to sway people and that German Chancellor Angela Merkel's refusal to meet with Tymoshenko on June 4 in Poland sent a message that Europe saw Tymoshenko's moves as un-democratic. TYMOSHENKO'S SUPPORT DECLINING -------------- ¶6. (C) Tymoshenko's willingness to negotiate with Yanukovych and the leaked details of their agreement have cost the PM some public support, analysts told us. Pidluska explained that many Tymoshenko supporters were shocked by the concessions she made to Yanukovych and see her moves as mostly driven by her desire to retain the Premiership. She described Tymoshenko's claim that leaked copies of proposed constitutional amendments were forgeries as a "blatant lie" and said that the public knows she is lying. Former Yushchenko Chief of Staff and head of the Suspilnist Foundation, Oleh Rybachuk, told us that Tymoshenko would take a hit in the polls for attempting a coalition with Yanukovych, but that the state of the economy this fall is the most important factor in her ability to win the presidency. Pidluska said that in a few months many voters will have forgotten this episode and that Tymoshenko had a core constituency of about 15 percent who would support her no matter what. AN OPENING FOR YATSENYUK OR OTHERS -------------- ¶7. (C) The damage done to Tymoshenko's standing creates an opening for another "democratic" candidate to rise up and challenge Yanukovych, according to Kohut. He said that former Rada speaker Arseniy Yatsenyuk is the best poised for taking advantage of Tymoshenko's troubles, but other candidates such as Sergiy Tigipko could also benefit. Rybachuk emphasized -- and all other analysts with whom we spoke agreed -- that the collapse of the BYuT-Regions coalition talks did not create an opening for President Yushchenko to make a comeback. Yushchenko will not be a player in the election, Rybachuk affirmed, except that he will devote himself to his "obsession: destroying Tymoshenko." Pidluska said that Tigipko is in a better position than Yatsenyuk to capitalize on the situation because he has quietly built a extensive national organization with strong local leaders. Lutsevych, whose Open Ukraine foundation was founded by Yatsenyuk, agreed that Yatsenyuk's campaign lacked a strong organization, but asserted that Yatsenyuk was the logical candidate for disaffected Tymoshenko supporters. She said that this episode also helps differentiate Yatsenyuk from Tymoshenko and burnishes his credentials as the main "democratic candidate." "ALL GUNS ARE DRAWN" FOR PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN -------------- - ¶8. (C) Although the official presidential campaign has not yet started, the real campaign began with Yanukovych's withdrawal from coalition talks, according to BYuT MP Poluneyev. He explained that everyone had held back to see if the coalition deal would succeed, but that now "all guns are drawn" and attacks between candidates would start to dominate the press almost immediately. Poluneyev predicted the candidates would quickly resort to "black PR" and mudslinging. Lutsevych said that attacks on Yatsenyuk have already begun with opponents pushing rumors of extramarital affairs and ties to shady oligarchs (specifically RosUkrEnergo's Firtash). Rybachuk said that Tymoshenko can expect almost continuous criticism from the president during the campaign because of Yushchenko's "delusional and irrational hatred" for her. Pidluska said she expects a unscrupulous presidential campaign with all sides employing whatever "dirty tricks" they can get away with. COMMENT -------------- ¶9. (C) One thing now appears clear: there will be direct presidential elections in Ukraine, although the date (likely January 2010) remains to be finalized. Tymoshenko has been hurt by her dalliance with Yanukovych, but must not be counted out. She remains a fierce campaigner and shrewd political operator, although some of her decisions in regard to the failed coalition cast doubts. Yanukovych, by bailing out of a coalition deal that was seen as undemocratic, helped himself. It is, however, unclear by how much since he already was the front runner. Yanukovych should win the first round of elections but continues to have a glass ceiling of support that will make it more difficult for him to win in the second round. Yatsenyuk has an opening to establish himself as the alternative to Tymoshenko as the "democratic" opponent to Yanukovych. However, Yatsenyuk, at present, lacks an effective campaign organization. Yushchenko, recently booed at a major football match, has little or no basis from which to launch a comeback. The presidential campaign promises to be fiercely fought, and will serve to accentuate differences at a time of economic crisis. PETTIT