Ukrainian President's Ally Is Elected as New Prime Minister

[bemildred]

The speaker of the Ukrainian parliament was elected the country's new prime minister Thursday in a vote that the government hopes will end a months-long political crisis but which reformers say gives Ukraine's oligarchs a free hand in running the country.

In recent months, political tensions have risen in Ukraine and some respected reformers have resigned, citing disenchantment with the government's cronyism and entrenched corruption.

The Supreme Rada on Thursday voted 257-50 in favor of Volodymyr Groysman, a compromise choice nominated by President Petro Poroshenko after his apparent first choice, U.S.-born Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko, was rejected by the governing coalition.

"The new prime minister and the cabinet will help to bring the government out of a months-long lethargy," Kiev-based analyst Vadim Karasyov said.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/ukraines-president-nominates-ally-prime-minister-38385813

[KoKo]

1. Natalie Jaresko...

Meet and Greet Natalie Jaresko, US Government Employee, Ukraine Finance Minister
Posted on December 4, 2014 by Yves Smith/Naked Capitalism

The new finance minister of Ukraine, Natalie Jaresko, may have replaced her US citizenship with Ukrainian at the start of this week, but her employer continued to be the US Government, long after she claims she left the State Department. US court and other records reveal that Jaresko has been the co-owner of a management company and Ukrainian investment funds registered in the state of Delaware, dependent for her salary and for investment funds on a $150 million grant from the US Agency for International Development. The US records reveal that according to Jaresko’s former husband, she is culpable in financial misconduct.

Natalie Jaresko was appointed on Monday, and approved by a vote of the Verkhovna Rada on Tuesday evening. A presidential tweet and an announcement from the office of President Petro Poroshenko say a decree has been signed granting Jaresko Ukrainian citizenship to qualify her to take office. The legality of the decree was challenged today by the head of Poroshenko’s bloc in parliament, Yury Lutsenko.

On Tuesday at the State Department, spokesman Marie Harf was asked: “apparently a U.S. national has been appointed finance minister. Has Washington something to do with this appointment?” Harf replied: “No, this is a choice for the Ukrainian people and their elect [sic] representatives. This is their decision. Certainly, I don’t think we had anything to do with it at all… the Ukrainian people and their representatives are able to pick whoever they want to be part of their government. That’s the beauty of how this process works.”

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2014/12/meet-greet-natalie-jaresko-us-government-employee-ukraine-finance-minister.html