President slams Kinakh

Victor Yushchenko told reporters on Wednesday Anatoly Kinakh’s appointment as the country’s new economy minister was a “moral disgrace.”

“I am convinced no one will like this ‘recruitment.’ This is a dishonest act in politics,” he said while attending a counter-terrorism exercise, president's press office reported.

The President said Ukraine’s democratic forces, which Anatoly Kinakh virtually represents, “symbolize the spirit of changes” for many Ukrainians.

“I am really sorry that a person that stood near me at the Maidan and was among the five leaders of the Our Ukraine bloc did it,” he said.

He, however, added that the situation was not fatal and described it as an “episode in Ukraine's politics.”