Ukraine PM renews push for austerity measures
KIEV (Reuters) – Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk on Monday called on lawmakers to pass budget amendments on a second attempt to secure financing for the military and maintain Kiev’s bailout deals with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Yasteniuk tendered his resignation last week, berating parliament for failing to pass legislation to take control over an increasingly precarious energy situation and increase army financing.
“The government is introducing again to the parliament all laws necessary for the country,” the prime minister, whose resignation has not been accepted, told a news conference.
He called on Ukrainian lawmakers to take part in an extraordinary plenary session due on Thursday and pass the laws, saying the failure to do that last week amounted to “a breakdown of our programmes with the IMF and the World Bank.”
Ukraine depends on international lenders to keep its economy going. It is also fighting a pro-Russian rebellion in the east, which is putting additional strain on state coffers, and says it only has resources to finance its troops until the end of July.
The budget amendment would introduce an additional personal income tax of 1.5 percent until the end of the year to finance the military, Yatseniuk said.
(Reporting by Natalia Zinets; Writing by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
