Tymoshenko’s Batkivshchyna Party leaves coalition talks in Ukraine’s Rada

The parliamentary faction of Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) party has left the coalition talks in the Ukrainian parliament and joined the opposition, Batkivshchyna leader Yulia Tymoshenko says.

“Today I can announce the consolidated decision of our political force. We have decided to withdraw from the dead-end talks for establishment of a new coalition. We are joining democratic, pro-European opposition,” Tymoshenko told a news conference.

It was reported earlier that the Petro Poroshenko Bloc, the People’s Front, the Radical Party and the Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) are holding coalition talks. However, the parliamentarians have been failing to achieve an agreement for more than two weeks.

At the same time, Deputy Head of the People’s Front Party Viktoriya Syumar said all the key arrangements for a new coalition have been made, and negotiations continue to determine the number of the parties that will make the new coalition.

The former coalition was established in the Supreme Rada on November 27 2014. It comprised the Petro Poroshenko Bloc, the People’s Front, Samopomich, Batkivshchyna, and the Radical Party. It finally split on March 24 2016, when the members of the Radical Party recalled their signatures from under the coalition agreement.