By Serhiy Kudelia
The election of Viktor Yanukovych as Ukraine’s fourth president in February 2010 led to a sharp discontinuity in the country’s foreign and domestic policies. After a few months in office, President Yanukovych has already renounced many of the legacies of his predecessor, Viktor Yushchenko. He takes a distinctly different approach to the issues of language politics, national history, energy relations, and national security. Yanukovych has also managed to consolidate his political power by securing control over the government, the parliament, the courts, and the electronic media.
What impact will this have on the country’s democratic credentials and European aspirations? Will Yanukovych’s presidency turn Ukraine into another post-Soviet hybrid regime dependent on Moscow for political and economic survival? Or will Yanukovych fall victim to the same peculiarities of Ukraine’s ethno- linguistic makeup that prevented all of his predecessors from pushing the country decisively in one direction?
