Yesterday, on the 25th of February, 2010 Viktor Yanukovych was inaugurated Ukraine president. He has been sworn in as the country’s fourth leader since it gained independence. More than 100 representatives of other countries, including 9 presidents, 7 heads of government, 13 foreign ministers and 41 heads of international delegations came to congratulate Viktor Yanukovich with this event. Ex-president of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma, His Holiness Patriarch of Kyiv and all Rus-Ukraine Filaret, the former Parliament speaker Oleksandr Moroz, the former Prime Minister Yuriy Yekhanurov and the Head of Ukraine Security Service Valentyn Nalyvaychenko attended the inauguration ceremony. Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and her entourage decided not to share Yanukovich’s happiness and ignored the holiday. The first president of independent Ukraine Leonid Kravchuk didn’t show up at the ceremony as well.

The whole ceremony, including a double listening to the Ukrainian anthem, the inaugural speech and a chorus singing of “Mnogaya Leta” (“Many Years”) took no more than forty minutes. Yanukovych came out of the Parliament, saluted his supporters, got in the presidential “Mercedes” and literally a minute later he was in the yard of the residence on Bankova Street to meet Viktor Yuschenko.

For the first time in the history of Ukraine, the head of state was blessed by the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill.

Ukrainian politics is unpredictable, like anything else in Ukraine, including business, etc, etc….. Just remember the Orange Revolution five years ago!
This time Viktor Yanukovich triumphed in a contest that international observers called an “impressive display of democratic elections.” But what is that really: the Triumph of Democracy — or the Empire Strikes Back?

It’s Ukraine for you!

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