Arseniy Yatsenyuk threatens to quit as Ukraine PM

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk on Friday threatened to quit along with his entire government in the latest development of a political crisis rocking the former Soviet state.

"We all came in as one team and we will continue working in the future as one team," the 41-year-old cabinet leader told a televised session of parliament.

"And if it is decided that this team should be changed, then we will all leave together," Yatsenyuk said.

Ukraine has been on edge since the shock resignation on Wednesday of its reformist Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius.

The Lithuanian-born economy chief accused a top member of President Petro Poroshenko`s party of trying to get his own people into senior ministry posts and blocking his efforts to break the tycoons` years-long stranglehold on state industries.

Abromavicius`s resignation sparked alarm among Ukraine`s Western allies and prompted Poroshenko to hold a meeting with ambassadors from the G7 countries in a bid to allay their concerns.

The economy minister had been praised abroad for trying to make the country`s corruption-riven business practises more transparent and to push through a stalled privatisation drive that could help fill Ukraine`s depleted state coffers.

Poroshenko came out of Thursday`s meeting with the foreign envoys with slightly mixed message.

"The president underscored his determination to continue the reforms that the Ukrainian society expects from the authorities," his website said.

"For this to happen, it is essential to reset the government," it quoted him as saying...
  [AFP - zeenews.india.com]
 5/2/16