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Government of Ukraine
Encyclopedia
Government of Ukraine is often associated with the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
. However it should be considered that Ukraine
is a country
under a semi-presidential system
with separate legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government. And like a lot of European countries with the semi-presidential system a head of state
, the President of Ukraine
, has a great influence on the executive branch of the government. The highest government body of the executive branch is the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
not the president. The legislative branch is represented by a unicameral parliament, Verkhovna Rada
, consisting of 450 People's Deputies (members of parliament). The judicial branch is very complex and has two independent court systems such as constitutional, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine
, and general, the Supreme Court of Ukraine
.
The administrative reforms that followed the Orange Revolution
saw to give more influence of the parliament over the cabinet and in the way creating a drift within the executive branch between the president and the cabinet. Those reforms were discontinued through the cancellation of constitutional amendments in 2010. There were also some ideas to reform the parliament into bicameral, however there was not much of public support for its realization. A reform to local self-government has been suggested, but is yet to be formally approved.
According to the Constitution, the state symbols of Ukraine are the State Flag of Ukraine
, the State Coat of arms of Ukraine
and the State Anthem of Ukraine
.
Flag
The State Flag of Ukraine
is a banner of two equally-sized horizontal bands of blue and yellow.
Coat of arms
The Great State Coat of arms of Ukraine
will be established with the consideration of the Small Coat of Arms of Ukraine as its main element. The Small Coat of Arms of Ukraine ("the Trident") is based on the emblem of the Rurik Dynasty
of the rulers of Kievan Rus'
.
Anthem
"Ukraine's glory has not perished
" is the national anthem set to the music by Mykhailo Verbytskyi
with the words by Pavlo Chubynskyi.
is the head of state
. The current president of Ukraine is Viktor Yanukovych
(since January 23, 2010). The president guarantees the state sovereignty, territorial indivisibility, the observance of the Constitution as well as human and citizens' rights and freedoms.
President is elected by popular vote for a five-year term. The last presidential elections were held in 2010 (See: Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
). The elections of the president are held on the last Sunday of October of the fifth year of the term of authority or in special circumstances within ninety (90) days from the day of termination of the authority.
During the Constitutional reform in Ukraine in 2004 the Presidential authority became substantially reduced, however the reforms of 2004 were reverted by the Constitutional Court of Ukraine
in 2010.
Requirements
Restrictions
The presidential authority to disband the parliament
(Verkhovna Rada
) has been however somewhat widened, though the current Constitution of Ukraine
still provides for such action only under a narrow set of conditions. The conditions that allow the President to dismiss the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
, including the Prime Minister
have been substantially restricted as well. The presidential participation in the choice of the Prime Minister and most other members of the Cabinet has been reduced. While both the choice of the candidate for the Prime Minister and its final approval is now the responsibility of the parliament, it is the President who makes a formal nomination of the candidate proposed to him by the parliamentary coalition back to the full Verkhovna Rada
for an up and down approval vote. The issue on whether the presidential role in the nomination is purely ceremonial, that is whether he has to nominate the candidate offered to him by a coalition or whether he can refuse and, thus force the coalition to come up with a different nomination, remains unresolved as of August 2006 and is a matter of an intense political debate.
Although most of the members of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
are chosen and nominated to the Parliament by the Prime Minister, the President still retains the authority to nominate the Ministers of the Foreign Affairs and of Defense for the parliamentary approval.http://zakon.rada.gov.ua/cgi-bin/laws/main.cgi?page=3&nreg=254%EA%2F96%2D%E2%F0 The President also nominates for the heads of the central enforcement-related bodies that do not belong to the Cabinet, such as the Prosecutor General of Ukraine
and the head of the Security Service of Ukraine, but not of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine
, the largest governmental security arm whose responsibility includes most of the police (militsiya
) agency.
Also, the President appoints and dismisses the Heads of the Local State Administrations (i.e. governors) by nomination of the Cabinet of Ministers. The debate on whether the President could hypothetically reject the candidate for the governernorship officially proposed by the Prime Minister, thus forcing the latter to come up with a different nomination, is yet to be resolved.
The President
is elected through direct universal popular vote for a five-year-term. He is the head of state and has the right to act in the name of the state. He is also officially considered to be the guarantor of the Constitution, the independence, security and unity of the state.
His functions include the following:
The President can also give decrees and executive orders obligatory on the whole territory of Ukraine, however, the decrees of the President must be in conformity with the Constitution and laws adopted by the Parliament (and some categories of the presidential decrees also require a counter-signature of the Prime-Minister and a minister responsible for the enforcement of such a decree; this concerns the decrees of four categories: appointment and dismissal of the Ukrainian ambassadors to foreign states and international organizations, enforcement of the decisions of the National Security and Defense Council, foundation of courts and the proclamation of the emergency situation). Lately, there have been a lot of debate between the presidential part and the part of the coalition on whether giving such counter-signatures is an obligation of the Prime-Minister (according to the point of view of the President) or not. The Law on the Cabinet of Ministers adopted by the Parliament lately (and which is not recognized as a legal document by the President, who claims it to be "gravely unconstitutional") states, that giving a counter-signature must precede the official publication of a decree, and the Prime-Minister or a responsible minister may refuse to give such a counter-signature,the consequence of the latter is that the respective presidential decree may not be officially publicized (and therefore may not come into force). However, the President usually ignores this article of the law, and enforces the respective decrees independently of the Cabinet, which in turn often refuses to recognize such decrees of the President.
The President also has some other minor functions determined by the Constitution (e.g. granting state decorations and accepting the credentials of foreign diplomats etc.).
Verkhovna Rada
, a unicameral parliament (450 seats) amends the Constitution of Ukraine, drafts laws, ratifies international treaties, appoints a number of officials, and elects judges.
Elections were last held on September 30, 2007. (See Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2007
).
Following the Constitutional Reform in Ukraine the authority of the Verkhovna Rada
over the selection and oversight of the executive branch has been substantially increased.
(the head of the Cabinet) and the Cabinet are appointed by the Verkhovna Rada
(the parliament). The Prime Minister is nominated by a parliamentary coalition and approved by the parliament. A candidate is proposed by the parliamentary coalition to the President and the latter submits an official nomination back to Verkhovna Rada
for a formal approval vote. http://zakon.rada.gov.ua/cgi-bin/laws/main.cgi?page=3&nreg=254%EA%2F96%2D%E2%F0 While the official nomination of the candidate for the parliamentary approval is still made by the President, the Head of the State, formally, takes no part in the nominee's selection and there is an ambiguity whether the President may turn down the candidate suggested by the parliamentary coalition.
The Prime Minister, following his appointment, nominates other members of the Cabinet (ministers) for approval by the Verkhovna Rada, except the Ministers of the Foreign Affairs and of Defense, who are nominated by the President. The Cabinet of Ministers also nominates the heads of the local state administrations (i.e. governors) to be appointed by the President. The debate on whether the President could hypothetically reject the candidate for the governorship officially proposed by the Prime Minister is yet to be resolved.
The Prime Minister and his Cabinet could now be dismissed only by the Parliament while formerly the President could dismiss the entire cabinet unilaterally at any time, as it happened in 2005 for the First Tymoshenko Government
.
The Prime Minister
(currently Mykola Azarov
) is appointed and dismissed by the 450-seat parliament, the unicameral Verkhovna Rada
(the Supreme Council). The parliament also approves the members of the Cabinet of Ministers
, that are appointed on a proposal of the Prime-Minister (excluding the Minister for the Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Defense, that are appointed on a proposal of the President, which has been a subject for a significant dispute lately between the parliamentary coalition and the President). According to the Constitution The Cabinet of Ministers is the highest institution of the executive branch. Within the limits of its competence the Cabinet of Ministers gives executive orders and decrees. The Cabinet is responsible before the Parliament and may be dismissed only if the Parliament passes a censure motion (this in turn may be done on a proposal of the President or a group of deputies). The President may not dismiss the Cabinet nor any of the ministers by himself (as it was done according to the previous edition of the Constitution), however, he takes part in the formation of the Cabinet, by formally nominating the Prime-Minister (whereas he nominates the candidate not at his own discretion, but on a proposal of the parliamentary coalition). He also nominates the Minister for the Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Defense. The heads of regional and district administrations are appointed by the President on a proposal of the Prime-Minister. This system virtually requires an agreement between the President and the Prime-Minister, however the President Yushchenko lately prefers to use a legally controversial way to evade this law by appointing not the actual governors or the heads of the local administrations, but the so called "temporarily acting" officers (in practice, there is no other big difference than the name), thus evading the need to seek for a compromise with the Prime-Minister in this aspect. This practice is very controversial and still has to be reviewed by the Constitutional Court.
The Constitution of Ukraine provides for trials by jury. This has not yet been implemented in practice. Moreover, some courts provided for by legislation as still in project, as is the case for, e.g., the Court of Appeals of Ukraine. The reform of the judicial branch is presently under way.
General Prosecutor of Ukraine
The office of the General Prosecutor has not been clearly defined to which government branch it belongs.
- public institution established by the Decree of Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
to facilitate administrative reform in Ukraine and to enhance the adaptation of the civil service to the standards of the European Union.
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ukraine is the highest body of state executive power in Ukraine also referred to as the Government of Ukraine...
. However it should be considered that Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
is a country
Country
A country is a region legally identified as a distinct entity in political geography. A country may be an independent sovereign state or one that is occupied by another state, as a non-sovereign or formerly sovereign political division, or a geographic region associated with a previously...
under a semi-presidential system
Semi-presidential system
The semi-presidential system is a system of government in which a president and a prime minister are both active participants in the day-to-day administration of the state...
with separate legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government. And like a lot of European countries with the semi-presidential system a head of state
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
, the President of Ukraine
President of Ukraine
Prior to the formation of the modern Ukrainian presidency, the previous Ukrainian head of state office was officially established in exile by Andriy Livytskyi. At first the de facto leader of nation was the president of the Central Rada at early years of the Ukrainian People's Republic, while the...
, has a great influence on the executive branch of the government. The highest government body of the executive branch is the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ukraine is the highest body of state executive power in Ukraine also referred to as the Government of Ukraine...
not the president. The legislative branch is represented by a unicameral parliament, Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
, consisting of 450 People's Deputies (members of parliament). The judicial branch is very complex and has two independent court systems such as constitutional, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine
Constitutional Court of Ukraine
The Constitutional Court of Ukraine is the sole body of constitutional jurisdiction in Ukraine. The Constitutional Court of Ukraine interprets the Constitution of Ukraine and decides whether laws and other legal acts are constitutional....
, and general, the Supreme Court of Ukraine
Supreme Court of Ukraine
The Supreme Court of Ukraine is the highest judicial body in the system of courts of general jurisdiction in Ukraine.The Court derives its authority from the Constitution of Ukraine, but much of its structure is outlined in legislation...
.
The administrative reforms that followed the Orange Revolution
Orange Revolution
The Orange Revolution was a series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter...
saw to give more influence of the parliament over the cabinet and in the way creating a drift within the executive branch between the president and the cabinet. Those reforms were discontinued through the cancellation of constitutional amendments in 2010. There were also some ideas to reform the parliament into bicameral, however there was not much of public support for its realization. A reform to local self-government has been suggested, but is yet to be formally approved.
Country summary information
.- Country name
- conventional long and short form: Ukraine
- local long and short form: Україна
- former: Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (for previous names see History of UkraineHistory of UkraineThe territory of Ukraine was a key center of East Slavic culture in the Middle Ages, before being divided between a variety of powers. However, the history of Ukraine dates back many thousands of years. The territory has been settled continuously since at least 5000 BC, and is also a candidate site...
)
- Country codes
- ISO 3166-1ISO 3166-1ISO 3166-1 is part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization , and defines codes for the names of countries, dependent territories, and special areas of geographical interest. The official name of the standard is Codes for the representation of names...
Alpha-2: UA; ISO 3166-1 Alpha-3: UKR; ISO 3166-1 Numeric: 804; ITUInternational Telecommunication UnionThe International Telecommunication Union is the specialized agency of the United Nations which is responsible for information and communication technologies...
: UP - Dialing code: 380
- ISO 3166-1
- Government type
- republicRepublicA republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
- republic
- Capital
- KievKievKiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
(also spelled Kyiv)
- Kiev
- Administrative divisions
- 24 oblastOblastOblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
s (provinces), 1 Autonomous RepublicAutonomous republicAn autonomous republic is a type of administrative division similar to a province. A significant number of autonomous republics can be found within the successor states of the Soviet Union, but the majority are located within Russia. Many of these republics were established during the Soviet...
, 2 cities with special status - for details see Subdivisions of Ukraine
- 24 oblast
- Independence
- August 24, 1991, proclaimed by the parliament (from the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
) - approved by referendum (popular vote) on December 1, 1991
- August 24, 1991, proclaimed by the parliament (from the Soviet Union
- National holiday
- Independence Day, August 24, (1991)
- Constitution
- The Constitution of UkraineConstitution of UkraineThe Constitution of Ukraine is the nation's fundamental law. The constitution was adopted and ratified at the 5th session of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on 28 June 1996. The constitution was passed with 315 ayes out of 450 votes possible .Other laws and other normative legal acts of Ukraine...
was adopted June 28, 1996, amended December 8, 2004, amendments reverted in 2010
- The Constitution of Ukraine
- Legal system
- The Ukrainian legal system is based on the civil lawCivil law (legal system)Civil law is a legal system inspired by Roman law and whose primary feature is that laws are codified into collections, as compared to common law systems that gives great precedential weight to common law on the principle that it is unfair to treat similar facts differently on different...
and the judicial review of legislative acts.
- The Ukrainian legal system is based on the civil law
- Suffrage
- 18 years of age; universal except legally disabled.
State symbols
![](http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/f/fl/flag_of_ukraine.svg.png)
![](http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/l/le/lesser_coat_of_arms_of_ukraine.svg.png)
Flag of Ukraine
The flag of Ukraine is the national flag of Ukraine. The national flag was officially adopted for the first time in 1918 by a short-lived Ukrainian People's Republic. At that time the commonly used yellow–blue flag had already turned into blue and yellow and sported a trident in the upper left...
, the State Coat of arms of Ukraine
Coat of arms of Ukraine
The state coat of arms of Ukraine or commonly the Tryzub is the national coat of arms of Ukraine, featuring the same colors found on the Ukrainian flag; a blue shield with yellow trident, called the tryzub...
and the State Anthem of Ukraine
Ukraine's glory has not perished
"Shche ne vmerla Ukraina" is the national anthem of Ukraine again since 1992 . Before its re-adaptation a concourse for a national anthem among three patriotic songs was taken place with one of the other songs being Za Ukrainu by Mykola Voronyi....
.
Flag
The State Flag of Ukraine
Flag of Ukraine
The flag of Ukraine is the national flag of Ukraine. The national flag was officially adopted for the first time in 1918 by a short-lived Ukrainian People's Republic. At that time the commonly used yellow–blue flag had already turned into blue and yellow and sported a trident in the upper left...
is a banner of two equally-sized horizontal bands of blue and yellow.
Coat of arms
The Great State Coat of arms of Ukraine
Coat of arms of Ukraine
The state coat of arms of Ukraine or commonly the Tryzub is the national coat of arms of Ukraine, featuring the same colors found on the Ukrainian flag; a blue shield with yellow trident, called the tryzub...
will be established with the consideration of the Small Coat of Arms of Ukraine as its main element. The Small Coat of Arms of Ukraine ("the Trident") is based on the emblem of the Rurik Dynasty
Rurik Dynasty
The Rurik dynasty or Rurikids was a dynasty founded by the Varangian prince Rurik, who established himself in Novgorod around the year 862 AD...
of the rulers of Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
.
Anthem
"Ukraine's glory has not perished
Ukraine's glory has not perished
"Shche ne vmerla Ukraina" is the national anthem of Ukraine again since 1992 . Before its re-adaptation a concourse for a national anthem among three patriotic songs was taken place with one of the other songs being Za Ukrainu by Mykola Voronyi....
" is the national anthem set to the music by Mykhailo Verbytskyi
Mykhaylo Verbytsky
Mykhailo Mykhailovych Verbytsky was a Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest and composer. He is considered to be one of the first professional Ukrainian composers of Halychyna...
with the words by Pavlo Chubynskyi.
Head of state
According to the constitution the President of UkrainePresident of Ukraine
Prior to the formation of the modern Ukrainian presidency, the previous Ukrainian head of state office was officially established in exile by Andriy Livytskyi. At first the de facto leader of nation was the president of the Central Rada at early years of the Ukrainian People's Republic, while the...
is the head of state
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
. The current president of Ukraine is Viktor Yanukovych
Viktor Yanukovych
Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych is a Ukrainian politician who has been the President of Ukraine since February 2010.Yanukovych served as the Governor of Donetsk Oblast from 1997 to 2002...
(since January 23, 2010). The president guarantees the state sovereignty, territorial indivisibility, the observance of the Constitution as well as human and citizens' rights and freedoms.
President is elected by popular vote for a five-year term. The last presidential elections were held in 2010 (See: Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
The Ukrainian presidential election of 2010 is Ukraine's fifth presidential election since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The first round was held on January 17, 2010...
). The elections of the president are held on the last Sunday of October of the fifth year of the term of authority or in special circumstances within ninety (90) days from the day of termination of the authority.
During the Constitutional reform in Ukraine in 2004 the Presidential authority became substantially reduced, however the reforms of 2004 were reverted by the Constitutional Court of Ukraine
Constitutional Court of Ukraine
The Constitutional Court of Ukraine is the sole body of constitutional jurisdiction in Ukraine. The Constitutional Court of Ukraine interprets the Constitution of Ukraine and decides whether laws and other legal acts are constitutional....
in 2010.
Requirements
- 35 years of age
- right to vote
- resided in Ukraine for the last ten (10) years prior to the elections
- has command of the state language
Restrictions
- serve the position more than two consecutive terms
- have another representative mandate
- hold office in bodies of state power or in citizen associations
- perform any other paid or entrepreneurial activities
- be a member of an administrative body or board of supervisors of an enterprise that is aimed at making profit
The presidential authority to disband the parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
(Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
) has been however somewhat widened, though the current Constitution of Ukraine
Constitution of Ukraine
The Constitution of Ukraine is the nation's fundamental law. The constitution was adopted and ratified at the 5th session of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on 28 June 1996. The constitution was passed with 315 ayes out of 450 votes possible .Other laws and other normative legal acts of Ukraine...
still provides for such action only under a narrow set of conditions. The conditions that allow the President to dismiss the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ukraine is the highest body of state executive power in Ukraine also referred to as the Government of Ukraine...
, including the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Ukraine
The Prime Minister of Ukraine is Ukraine's head of government presiding over the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, which is the highest body of the executive branch of the Ukrainian government....
have been substantially restricted as well. The presidential participation in the choice of the Prime Minister and most other members of the Cabinet has been reduced. While both the choice of the candidate for the Prime Minister and its final approval is now the responsibility of the parliament, it is the President who makes a formal nomination of the candidate proposed to him by the parliamentary coalition back to the full Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
for an up and down approval vote. The issue on whether the presidential role in the nomination is purely ceremonial, that is whether he has to nominate the candidate offered to him by a coalition or whether he can refuse and, thus force the coalition to come up with a different nomination, remains unresolved as of August 2006 and is a matter of an intense political debate.
Although most of the members of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ukraine is the highest body of state executive power in Ukraine also referred to as the Government of Ukraine...
are chosen and nominated to the Parliament by the Prime Minister, the President still retains the authority to nominate the Ministers of the Foreign Affairs and of Defense for the parliamentary approval.http://zakon.rada.gov.ua/cgi-bin/laws/main.cgi?page=3&nreg=254%EA%2F96%2D%E2%F0 The President also nominates for the heads of the central enforcement-related bodies that do not belong to the Cabinet, such as the Prosecutor General of Ukraine
Prosecutor General of Ukraine
The Prosecutor General of Ukraine heads the system of official prosecution in courts known as the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine...
and the head of the Security Service of Ukraine, but not of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine
Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine is the main body in the system of central bodies of exeecutive power that provides formation and realization of the state policy in the sphere of protection the rights and liberties of citizens, unlawful acts against the interest of society and state,...
, the largest governmental security arm whose responsibility includes most of the police (militsiya
Militsiya
Militsiya or militia is used as an official name of the civilian police in several former communist states, despite its original military connotation...
) agency.
Also, the President appoints and dismisses the Heads of the Local State Administrations (i.e. governors) by nomination of the Cabinet of Ministers. The debate on whether the President could hypothetically reject the candidate for the governernorship officially proposed by the Prime Minister, thus forcing the latter to come up with a different nomination, is yet to be resolved.
Duties
Information about the Law on the Cabinet of Ministers should be updated because a new such Law was passed.The President
President of Ukraine
Prior to the formation of the modern Ukrainian presidency, the previous Ukrainian head of state office was officially established in exile by Andriy Livytskyi. At first the de facto leader of nation was the president of the Central Rada at early years of the Ukrainian People's Republic, while the...
is elected through direct universal popular vote for a five-year-term. He is the head of state and has the right to act in the name of the state. He is also officially considered to be the guarantor of the Constitution, the independence, security and unity of the state.
His functions include the following:
- formal nomination of the Prime-Minister, which is made on a proposal of the parliamentary coalition (there have been a significant dispute between the President and the current coalition on whether this proposal is binding for the President or not);
- appointment of the ambassadors (requires the counter-signature of the Prime-Minister);
- may dissolve the Parliament if it fails to gather for a session within 30 consecutive days, or if it is incapable of forming a coalition and the Cabinet;
- proposes to the Parliament the candidates for the posts of the Minister for the Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Defense;
- appoints and dismisses the General Prosecutor and the Head of the State Security Agency (requires the consent of the Parliament);
- may temporarily suspend the acts of the Cabinet if he founds a contradiction between a respective act and the Constitution (however, should the Constitutional Court rule out that there is no contradiction, the act of the Cabinet regains its full power);
- is the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, appoints and dismisses the high officers of the Army;
- is the head of the National Security and Defense Council;
- appoints and dismisses one third of the Constitutional Court (the Law on the Constitutional Court states, that the President must consult the Prime-Minister before appointing a judge, and his decree has to bear a counter-signature of the Prime-Minister and the Minister of Justice). However, the President Yushchenko preferred to ignore this requirement in the course of the latest events in Ukraine, when he dismissed three judges of the Constitutional Court that were likely to favor the decision to nullify the controversial presidential decree on dissolving the Parliament. As expected, the coalition did not recognize this decree and claims it to be "illegal".
- grants clemency; decides on granting the Ukrainian citizenship; grants state decorations;
- promulgates the laws adopted by the Parliament. He may veto a law and ask for a new deliberation; however if the Parliament adopts that law by a two third majority, the presidential veto is superseded and he is obliged to sign and publicize the law no matter what; however, if even in this case the President refuses to sign the law within the specified term, it is immediately promulgated and publicized by the speaker of the Parliament. Until now this happened only once, when the Parliament adopted the Law on the Cabinet of Ministers, which reduced significantly the President's opportunities to influence the Cabinet. "Of course", this law was vetoed by the President, but the Parliament succeeded to gather the required majority and supersede the presidential veto. The President nevertheless refused to sign it, and it was finally signed and publicized by the Speaker Oleksandr Moroz. Following that, the President refused to recognize this law as a legal document, claiming, that the legislative procedure was incorrect and that the law itself is "gravely unconstitutional".
The President can also give decrees and executive orders obligatory on the whole territory of Ukraine, however, the decrees of the President must be in conformity with the Constitution and laws adopted by the Parliament (and some categories of the presidential decrees also require a counter-signature of the Prime-Minister and a minister responsible for the enforcement of such a decree; this concerns the decrees of four categories: appointment and dismissal of the Ukrainian ambassadors to foreign states and international organizations, enforcement of the decisions of the National Security and Defense Council, foundation of courts and the proclamation of the emergency situation). Lately, there have been a lot of debate between the presidential part and the part of the coalition on whether giving such counter-signatures is an obligation of the Prime-Minister (according to the point of view of the President) or not. The Law on the Cabinet of Ministers adopted by the Parliament lately (and which is not recognized as a legal document by the President, who claims it to be "gravely unconstitutional") states, that giving a counter-signature must precede the official publication of a decree, and the Prime-Minister or a responsible minister may refuse to give such a counter-signature,the consequence of the latter is that the respective presidential decree may not be officially publicized (and therefore may not come into force). However, the President usually ignores this article of the law, and enforces the respective decrees independently of the Cabinet, which in turn often refuses to recognize such decrees of the President.
The President also has some other minor functions determined by the Constitution (e.g. granting state decorations and accepting the credentials of foreign diplomats etc.).
Legislative branch
![](http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/u/uk/ukrainian_parliamentary_election,_2007_chart.png)
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
, a unicameral parliament (450 seats) amends the Constitution of Ukraine, drafts laws, ratifies international treaties, appoints a number of officials, and elects judges.
Elections were last held on September 30, 2007. (See Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2007
Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2007
Early parliamentary elections in Ukraine took place on 30 September 2007. The date of the election was determined following agreement between the President Viktor Yushchenko, the Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych and the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Oleksandr Moroz on 27 May 2007, in an attempt...
).
Following the Constitutional Reform in Ukraine the authority of the Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
over the selection and oversight of the executive branch has been substantially increased.
History
The Prime Minister of UkrainePrime Minister of Ukraine
The Prime Minister of Ukraine is Ukraine's head of government presiding over the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, which is the highest body of the executive branch of the Ukrainian government....
(the head of the Cabinet) and the Cabinet are appointed by the Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
(the parliament). The Prime Minister is nominated by a parliamentary coalition and approved by the parliament. A candidate is proposed by the parliamentary coalition to the President and the latter submits an official nomination back to Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
for a formal approval vote. http://zakon.rada.gov.ua/cgi-bin/laws/main.cgi?page=3&nreg=254%EA%2F96%2D%E2%F0 While the official nomination of the candidate for the parliamentary approval is still made by the President, the Head of the State, formally, takes no part in the nominee's selection and there is an ambiguity whether the President may turn down the candidate suggested by the parliamentary coalition.
The Prime Minister, following his appointment, nominates other members of the Cabinet (ministers) for approval by the Verkhovna Rada, except the Ministers of the Foreign Affairs and of Defense, who are nominated by the President. The Cabinet of Ministers also nominates the heads of the local state administrations (i.e. governors) to be appointed by the President. The debate on whether the President could hypothetically reject the candidate for the governorship officially proposed by the Prime Minister is yet to be resolved.
The Prime Minister and his Cabinet could now be dismissed only by the Parliament while formerly the President could dismiss the entire cabinet unilaterally at any time, as it happened in 2005 for the First Tymoshenko Government
First Tymoshenko Government
The first Tymoshenko Government was appointed on February 4, 2005 by 373 Parliamentarians of the Verkhovna Rada . It was supported opposition factions' Parliamentarians, including three Communists, 18 Social Democratic Party of Ukraine members, 46 Regions faction members.September 8, 2005...
.
Recent development
![](http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/v/vl/vladimir_putin_and_yulia_tymoshenko-2.jpg)
Prime Minister of Ukraine
The Prime Minister of Ukraine is Ukraine's head of government presiding over the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, which is the highest body of the executive branch of the Ukrainian government....
(currently Mykola Azarov
Mykola Azarov
Mykola Yanovych Azarov ; born Nikolai Yanovich Pakhlo on 17 December 1947, is a Ukrainian politician who has been the Prime Minister of Ukraine since 11 March 2010. He was the First Vice Prime Minister and Finance Minister from 2002 to 2005 and again from 2006 to 2007, and he also served as acting...
) is appointed and dismissed by the 450-seat parliament, the unicameral Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
(the Supreme Council). The parliament also approves the members of the Cabinet of Ministers
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ukraine is the highest body of state executive power in Ukraine also referred to as the Government of Ukraine...
, that are appointed on a proposal of the Prime-Minister (excluding the Minister for the Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Defense, that are appointed on a proposal of the President, which has been a subject for a significant dispute lately between the parliamentary coalition and the President). According to the Constitution The Cabinet of Ministers is the highest institution of the executive branch. Within the limits of its competence the Cabinet of Ministers gives executive orders and decrees. The Cabinet is responsible before the Parliament and may be dismissed only if the Parliament passes a censure motion (this in turn may be done on a proposal of the President or a group of deputies). The President may not dismiss the Cabinet nor any of the ministers by himself (as it was done according to the previous edition of the Constitution), however, he takes part in the formation of the Cabinet, by formally nominating the Prime-Minister (whereas he nominates the candidate not at his own discretion, but on a proposal of the parliamentary coalition). He also nominates the Minister for the Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Defense. The heads of regional and district administrations are appointed by the President on a proposal of the Prime-Minister. This system virtually requires an agreement between the President and the Prime-Minister, however the President Yushchenko lately prefers to use a legally controversial way to evade this law by appointing not the actual governors or the heads of the local administrations, but the so called "temporarily acting" officers (in practice, there is no other big difference than the name), thus evading the need to seek for a compromise with the Prime-Minister in this aspect. This practice is very controversial and still has to be reviewed by the Constitutional Court.
Judicial branch
- Constitutional jurisdiction
- The Constitutional Court of UkraineConstitutional Court of UkraineThe Constitutional Court of Ukraine is the sole body of constitutional jurisdiction in Ukraine. The Constitutional Court of Ukraine interprets the Constitution of Ukraine and decides whether laws and other legal acts are constitutional....
. The Constitutional Court has been formed on October 18, 1996,http://www.ccu.gov.ua/pls/wccu/P000?lang=0 following the adoption of a new Constitution. Initially the judges were appointed for 9 years, and by 2005 the term has been expired for the majority of judges, which resulted in the court being de facto not functioning. Following the Constitutional reform, the new judges, which took oath in the parliament on August 4, 2006 were appointed for 9-year term.
- The Constitutional Court of Ukraine
- General jurisdiction
- The Supreme Court of UkraineSupreme Court of UkraineThe Supreme Court of Ukraine is the highest judicial body in the system of courts of general jurisdiction in Ukraine.The Court derives its authority from the Constitution of Ukraine, but much of its structure is outlined in legislation...
; - High specialized courts: the High Arbitration Court of Ukraine , the High Administrative Court of Ukraine;
- Regional courts of appeal, military courts of appeal, specialized courts of appeal;
- Local district courts, military garrison courts.
- The Supreme Court of Ukraine
The Constitution of Ukraine provides for trials by jury. This has not yet been implemented in practice. Moreover, some courts provided for by legislation as still in project, as is the case for, e.g., the Court of Appeals of Ukraine. The reform of the judicial branch is presently under way.
General Prosecutor of Ukraine
The office of the General Prosecutor has not been clearly defined to which government branch it belongs.
Other bodies
- National Bank of UkraineNational Bank of UkraineNational Bank of Ukraine is the central bank of Ukraine. Its headquarters building, constructed between 1902 and 1934, is located at no. 9 Institutska St., in Kiev-History:...
- Office of the Prosecutor General of UkraineProsecutor General of UkraineThe Prosecutor General of Ukraine heads the system of official prosecution in courts known as the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine...
- Central Election Commission of UkraineCentral Election Commission of UkraineThe Central Election Commission of Ukraine ; sometimes referred to as the Central Electoral Commission of Ukraine) is a permanent and independent collegiate body of the Ukrainian government.- Mission and Authority :...
- National Security and Defense Council of UkraineNational Security and Defense Council of UkraineNational Security and Defense Council of Ukraine , locally referred by its abbreviation RNBO, is an organizational state body in Ukraine tasked with developing national security policy on domestic and international matters in advising the President of Ukraine .The Council was originally created in...
See also
Center for Adaptation of Civil Service to the Standards of EUCenter for Adaptation of Civil Service to the Standards of EU
Center for Adaptation of the Civil Service to the Standards of the European Union was established under by the Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine # 485 of 14 April 2004 in order to ensure informational and analytical, expert and organizational support for...
- public institution established by the Decree of Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ukraine is the highest body of state executive power in Ukraine also referred to as the Government of Ukraine...
to facilitate administrative reform in Ukraine and to enhance the adaptation of the civil service to the standards of the European Union.
External links
- Ukraine at Erik Herron's Guide to Politics of East Central Europe and Eurasia hosted at Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies at Kansas University