Ukrainian PM: Constitutional reform necessary to re-balance power

KIEV, Ukraine, April 22 (UPI) -- Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk reaffirmed Tuesday that constitutional reform is necessary to re-balance power in Ukraine.

Speaking alongside U.S. Vice President Joe Biden during his visit to Kiev, the prime minister said, "We are doing the constitutional reform not for the sake of complying with the Geneva agreements (of April 17), let alone in response to Russia's demands. The constitutional reform in our country is a path towards restoring the balance of power. This is the demand of the Ukrainian people."

Yatsenyuk also reiterated the central government's decision to grant more power to the local regions in order to "ensure that every Ukrainian can influence both central and local authorities."

[Interfax Ukraine News Agency]