Former Ukrainian Opposition Leader Named Interim President

Parliament in Ukraine has named its speaker as interim president. Oleksandr Turchynov takes charge following the dismissal of President Viktor Yanukovych on Saturday. Mr Turchynov told MPs they had until Tuesday to form a new unity government. Later, in a TV address, Mr Turchynov suggested Ukraine would re-open talks with the EU about closer links. Mr Yanukovych's rejection of an EU-Ukraine trade pact triggered the protests that toppled him. In his address, Mr Turchynov said he was "open to dialogue with Russia" as long as Moscow respected "Ukraine's European choice", according to translated remarks carried by the AFP news agency. Meanwhile, opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko, who was freed from jail on Saturday, has ruled out becoming prime minister again. Her release was one of the conditions of the EU-Ukraine trade pact that Mr Yanukovych rejected last year.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26312008