Yushchenko to seek full place in EU for Ukraine

VIKTOR Yushchenko became Ukraine’s president yesterday and vowed to seek a full place in Europe for the people he led in a peaceful revolt against a rigged national election and pressure from Russia.

Watched by outgoing US Secretary of State Colin Powell, seven presidents of ex-communist states and relatively minor dignitaries from Moscow, Mr Yushchenko took the oath of office in parliament to cap his two-month Orange Revolution.

He then made his way to Independence Square, focal point of weeks of protests by supporters sporting orange banners, scarves and hats and told hundreds of thousands massed there that they had every right to be part of a broader Europe.

"Our way to the future is the way of a united Europe. We, along with the people of Europe, belong to one civilisation. We share similar values," Mr Yushchenko told cheering supporters, many clambering on iron gates and telephone boxes for a better view.

In his 20-minute address on a chilly afternoon he made no direct mention of Russia, where he meets Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin today on his first foreign trip before launching a tour of western and central Europe.

Mr Yushchenko, his face disfigured from dioxin poisoning he blames on secret services, said Ukraine sandwiched between former imperial master Russia and three new members of the 25-nation European Union would act in its own interests.

"Our place is in the European Union," he said, his US-born wife standing with their five children nearby. "We are no longer on the edge of Europe. We are situated in the centre of Europe."

"Ukraine will not be a buffer zone or a testing ground for anyone else," he said. "We are prepared to respect the interests of other states. But for me and for you, national interests are above all else."

Before the ceremony, Mr Yushchenko appeared well aware of the turning point in Ukraine's history, telling Mr Powell he was happy "that I have lived to the time when the Ukrainian president is elected not in Moscow, not in Washington, but in Ukraine."

Mr Yushchenko wants to eradicate corruption and build a country with a transparent economy and institutions.

He has pledged to build on economic growth of recent years by establishing fair rules for investors.

He must now put together a cabinet from the competing interests making up his election team, with appointments expected early next month.

Many Ukrainians disillusioned by post-Soviet poverty see Mr Yushchenko as one of the best hopes for a fresh start after 14 years of corrupt or inept rule. But the new president will have to win the trust of the country's Russian-speaking industrial east, which solidly supported his defeated rival, Viktor Yanukovich.