Ukrainian PM submits resignation after tapes

KYIV, Ukraine (AP):

Ukraine’s prime minister submitted his resignation Friday, days after he was caught on tape saying President Volodymyr Zelenskiy – a former sitcom star with no previous political experience – knows nothing about the economy. But political analysts said the resignation is unlikely to go through.

The furore comes at a fraught moment for Zelenskiy, who has found himself in the middle of the impeachment case unfolding against President Donald Trump in Washington. Trump stands accused of withholding nearly $400 million in military aid to Ukraine to pressure the country’s leader to investigate Trump political rival Joe Biden.

In a Facebook post, Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk praised Zelenskiy as “an example of transparency and decency to me” and added: “In order to dispel any doubts about our respect and trust for the president, I have written a resignation letter and submitted it to the president for introduction to parliament.”

PARLIAMENT’S VOTE

The Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, must vote on whether to accept the offer to step down. Zelenskiy’s office said only that he would take the letter under consideration. But analysts expressed doubt the resignation would happen.

“Zelenskiy doesn’t want to dismiss Honcharuk,” said Volodymyr Fesenko, head of the Penta think tank.

Ukraine’s president fears prompting a political crisis in the country by doing it and doesn’t want to complicate his relationship with foreign investors and the International Monetary Fund, said Volodymyr Sidenko, an analyst with the Razumkov Center think tank.

“Honcharuk’s resignation can destroy the idea of the government’s unity and cast a doubt on Zelenskiy’s ability to control the situation,” Sidenko said.

Earlier this week an audio recording surfaced in which Honcharuk appeared to make disparaging comments about Zelenskiy’s understanding of economics. He called Zelenskiy “a layman” in economics and said the president should be better educated about the national currency.