The speaker of the Ukrainian parliament, the closest confidante of freed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko, was temporarily handed the role of president on Sunday following the ouster of Viktor Yanukovich.
Parliament on Sunday voted to give Oleksander Turchinov, elected speaker on Saturday, Yanukovich's duties as president. A presidential election has been set for May 25.
Turchinov, 49, hails from the same city as Tymoshenko, Dnipropetrovsk in southeastern Ukraine, and is deputy leader of her Fatherland party. He served as head of Ukraine's state security service (SBU) following the 2004-05 Orange Revolution that was co-led by Tymoshenko. Tymoshenko was freed by her jailors on Saturday on a day of high drama and intrigue that upturned the political order in the former Soviet republic. Her release sets up a possible run for the presidency.
Parliament on Sunday voted to give Oleksander Turchinov, elected speaker on Saturday, Yanukovich's duties as president. A presidential election has been set for May 25.
Turchinov, 49, hails from the same city as Tymoshenko, Dnipropetrovsk in southeastern Ukraine, and is deputy leader of her Fatherland party. He served as head of Ukraine's state security service (SBU) following the 2004-05 Orange Revolution that was co-led by Tymoshenko. Tymoshenko was freed by her jailors on Saturday on a day of high drama and intrigue that upturned the political order in the former Soviet republic. Her release sets up a possible run for the presidency.