OPPOSITION leader Viktor Yanukovych emerged as the apparent winner in Ukraine’s presidential contest yesterday, holding onto a lead of almost 3% with about 99% of ballots counted.

Pro-Russian opposition leader Viktor Yanukovych declared victory in Ukraine’s presidential run-off today, but his opponent rejected the claim, saying the vote was too close to call.

The arch-enemy of Ukraine's pro-democracy movement won a first-place finish in the initial round of presidential voting, setting him up for a showdown with the heroine of the 2004 Orange Revolution, exit polls showed.

SOMALI pirates have released a Ukrainian ship carrying tanks following a ransom payment.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin today insisted that a written deal on sending EU monitors to Ukraine must be signed before Russia resumes gas supplies to a freezing Europe.

Europeans left freezing and in the dark saw their hopes for an end to the Russia-Ukraine gas dispute sink after officials failed to reach a deal which would restore power to millions of homes.

There was cautious optimism last night that Russian gas will begin flowing into Europe again next week following agreement on monitors in both Russia and Ukraine.

Russian gas monopoly Gazprom said it cut all gas supplies to Ukraine today after talks broke down over payments for past shipments and a price for 2009.

THE death toll from an explosion that levelled an apartment building in southern Ukraine reached 27 yesterday as the country observed a day of national mourning, officials said.

UKRAINIAN president Viktor Yushchenko yesterday called early general elections after dissolving parliament when parties failed to resurrect a ruling pro-western coalition in the former Soviet state.

Ukraine’s president Viktor Yushchenko has set a December 7 date for snap elections after dissolving parliament.

Ukraine's president called for a new governing coalition today and threatened fresh elections, accusing his rival prime minister and opposition parties of attempting a "constitutional coup".

The Scottish Football Association have asked to be considered as alternative hosts of the 2012 European Championship should Poland and Ukraine lose the honour.

Nato bowed to Russian pressure today by delaying plans to expand eastwards to include two former Soviet republics.

RUSSIAN energy monopoly Gazprom restored gas supplies to Ukraine yesterday, ending a three-day crisis between the two ex-Soviet neighbours that has put the European Union on alert.

Russia may target nuclear missiles at Ukraine if the former Soviet republic joins Nato, President Vladimir Putin warned today.

Ukraine’s president today called for coalition talks between the five parties elected to parliament, a measure of the continuing uncertainty over the outcome of Sunday’s ballot.

Ukraine’s feuding president and prime minister today agreed on a date for an early parliamentary election.

The uninhabited and contaminated region around the shuttered Chernobyl nuclear power plant must be put to use again, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko said today on the eve of the 21st anniversary of the world’s worst-ever nuclear accident.

Detectives in the UK investigating the death of ex-KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko were tonight planning to fly to Moscow in their hunt for clues into the dissident’s poisoning, sources have confirmed.

The European Union today dashed Ukraine's hopes for any quick membership in the bloc, saying that neither Ukraine nor the EU were ready for it to join.

President Viktor Yushchenko signed a memorandum of national unity today with his former Orange Revolution foe, Viktor Yanukovych – a pact the president hopes will secure his pro-Western, reformist policies when his ex-foe becomes prime minister.

Former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko announced in Ukraine’s parliament that a coalition of Orange Revolution allies had formed a new government.

Ukrainian media today reported that the estranged Orange Revolution allies had reached a coalition agreement that will restoreYulia Tymoshenko as prime minister, ending nearly three months of political uncertainty.

Russia’s state-controlled gas giant Gazprom has raised the threat of another gas crisis with Ukraine, warning that the ex-Soviet nation was building up its winter gas supplies too slowly, possibly endangering smooth deliveries to Europe.

Russian President Vladimir Putin today said European demands for access to Russian energy assets were unfair.

Ukraine president Viktor Yushchenko’s party today increased the pressure on its leader to reunite the estranged Orange Team, passing a resolution that put potential deal-breaking restrictions on the pro-Moscow opposition leader.

Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko says his country should produce its own nuclear fuel, part of an effort to reduce its reliance on Russia for energy following a bitter dispute over natural gas prices.

UKRAINE president Viktor Yushchenko warned that the sacking of his pro-Western government by lawmakers over a controversial gas deal with Russia would destabilise the country less than three months before a key parliamentary election.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko today accused his nation’s parliament of destabilising the political situation there .

Russian and Ukrainian officials aimed to resume negotiations tonight on resolving a price dispute that led to a cut-off of Ukraine’s natural gas supply, but Russia gave no indication it was in the mood for compromise.

IRELAND’S gas supplies will be unaffected by the row in Europe over Russian supplies of the fuel, according to the Commission for Energy Regulation.

The stand-off between Russia and Ukraine over gas supplies sent a shiver running through western European countries fearing they may become innocent victims of the dispute between Moscow and Kiev.

Ukraine has dug in its heels in a bitter dispute with Russia over gas deliveries, with its president Viktor Yushchenko rejecting Vladimir Putin’s offer of a multi-billion loan to help the country adjust to a huge increase in Moscow prices.

Ukraine today forwarded bird flu samples to a British laboratory to test for the deadly H5N1 strain, blaming turmoil in the state veterinary department for the five-day delay.

Thousands of Georgians jammed the main streets and squares of the capital Tbilisi today to mark the second anniversary of the Rose Revolution protests that drove out the country’s longtime leader and brought Mikhail Saakashvili to office.

Tens of thousands of Ukrainians flooded Kiev’s main square today to mark the first anniversary of the Orange Revolution with rock music, vodka toasts and fiery speeches.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko headed to Britain today to discuss his ex-Soviet republic’ prospects for joining the European Union with Prime Minister Tony Blair and to pick up a prestigious award from the Queen.

A visit by TDs and Senators to the Ukraine is expected to strengthen parliamentary ties between both countries.

MARY ROBINSON and Gerry Adams played starring roles in Bill Clinton’s summit of world leaders and tycoons in New York over the weekend.

Ukraine’s president, Viktor Yushchenko, should turn to an entirely new team of technocrats, not politicians, to form the next government, Parliament speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn said today.

An international agreement between Ireland and the Ukraine has been proposed by officials in the former Soviet State in a bid to crack down on organised crime, it emerged tonight.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko is to receive the 2005 Philadelphia Liberty Medal, awarded to those who demonstrate leadership in the pursuit of freedom.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko can visit Moscow this week without fear of arrest, but a criminal case against her on bribery charges will not be dropped, Russia’s top prosecutor said today.