Tymoshenko camp vows to challenge Ukraine vote

By PETER LEONARD, Associated Press Writer Peter Leonard, Associated Press Writer – 48 mins ago

Tymoshenko‘s allies say she will not concede until appeals have run their course and recounts have taken place at a number of disputed polling stations.

"We will recognize defeat only after a decision by the courts," said Andriy Shkil, a prominent member of the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc in parliament. "We will appeal both the preparation and conduct of the election."

Tymoshenko has not yet issued any calls for mass protests against the vote like those of Ukraine‘s 2004 pro-Western Orange Revolution, where she was a leading figure. On Monday she canceled two planned news conferences but she plans a news conference later Tuesday.

"A decision has been taken to challenge results in certain polling stations and to demand a recount at those stations," said Yelena Shustik, a deputy with the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc.

Ukrainskaya Pravda and ITAR-Tass cite deputy speaker Mykola Tomenko, also a member of Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, as saying at a party meeting Monday that Tymoshenko should accept defeat and take up her new role as the opposition.

"There will be no third round," Mykola Azarov, deputy head of the Party of Regions, told parliament on Tuesday. "They are dragging us into an unnecessary war."

In comments apparently directed at Tymoshenko, a top European election observer urged Ukraine‘s politicians to heed the official vote tally.

A Yanukovych victory would close a chapter in the country‘s political history by ousting the pro-Western leadership of the past five years that was ushered in by the Orange protests. That government foundered due to internal divisions, fierce opposition from Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine and the collapse of Ukraine‘s economy.

Associated Press Writer Yuras Karmanau contributed to this report.



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