Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko on Wednesday dissolved parliament and called an early election amid mounting political chaos at home and threat from the spreading international financial crisis.

"In accordance with the Constitution I announce the dissolution of the sixth parliament and call an early vote," he said in a televised address to the nation after lawmakers missed a deadline to form a new coalition government. He later set Dec. 7 as the date for elections.

Yushchenko's "Our Ukraine-People's Self-Defense" bloc withdrew from the nine-month-old coalition with Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Sept. 3 after the latter joined with the opposition Party of Regions in a parliamentary vote to adopt a series of law which strip the president of some powers.

Under Ukraine's constitution, the president can dissolve the parliament if a new governing coalition is not formed within 30 days after the previous one collapses.

Wednesday's announcement came as the often prickly relationship between Yushchenko and Tymoshenko, the two former allies, were sent into a nose-dive driven by their divergence on domestic and foreign policies.

The two were strong allies in the 2004 presidential election and 2007 parliamentary votes, but they have long been at odds on how to tackle the country's rampant inflation, sell state assets and spend budgets.

On foreign policy, Yushchenko is seeking closer ties with the European Union and NATO, while the prime minister favors balanced ties with Russia.

Trading of accusations between the two has also escalated, with Yushchenko accusing Tymoshenko of "selling out" Ukraine to others and adding that her bad management has resulted in the country's slow economic growth and caused inflation to soar.

"I am deeply convinced that the democratic coalition was ruined by one thing -- the ambition of one person and her greed for power. There were no economic reforms, just social populism, which lead to inflation and declines in living standards," Yushchenko said in Wednesday's televised address.

Tymoshenko, on the other hand, has accused the president of orchestrating the collapse of the coalition in his bid to get rid of potential rivals and win the presidential election scheduled for 2010. Both are seen as likely rivals in the 2010 race, and Tymoshenko is far ahead of Yushchenko in recent opinion polls.

The December vote will be the third parliamentary election in three years and is almost certain to mark the end of the efforts to maintain the troubled Yushchenko-Tymoshenko alliance.

Yushchenko's announcement has caused further worries about the country's economy which is facing a difficult situation amid the spreading of the international financial crisis.

Inflation hit 16.1 percent in the first nine months of this year. The country's currency has seen large devaluations in recent weeks. The real estate market has been plunged into a downturn. Falling prices of steel, Ukraine's top export item, have led to the shutdown of most iron and steel plants. Lack of liquidity has troubled banks.

Recently polls showed that a snap election would not produce a clear victory for any party. The Tymoshenko-led coalition got a support rate of just 23.3 percent, the Regional Party led by Viktor Yanukovich netted some 20.6 percent, while Yushchenko's party, 7.1 percent.

Thus, no political stability or economic prosperity is likely to be in the offing after the elections, analysts said.

(Xinhua News Agency October 10, 2008)