Yanukovych approved as Ukraine PM

The two rivals shook hands after the parliamentary vote

Ukraine's parliament has approved Viktor Yanukovych as prime minister, ending a four-month political crisis.

The vote was held a day after pro-Western President Viktor Yushchenko backed the candidacy of his arch-rival.

In return, Mr Yanukovych - who favours closer ties with Russia - signed a pact aimed at preserving key areas of the president's policies.

It is a dramatic comeback for Mr Yanukovych, who was ousted in Mr Yushchenko's 2004 "Orange Revolution".

Mr Yanukovych, 56, was backed by 271 lawmakers in the 450-member parliament, easily passing the required majority of 226 votes. Nine MPs voted against him.

"I am itching to get down to work," he was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency before the vote.

Political reforms mean the new prime minister will have increased powers. The president formally submitted the candidacy of Mr Yanukovych to parliament on Thursday, hours after a constitutional deadline.

Some Orange Revolution supporters see Mr Yushchenko's move as a betrayal, and they have accused the president of weakness.

But Mr Yushchenko's aides say the other option - of dissolving parliament and calling new elections - would merely have sharpened the stand-off.

Ukraine has been in political turmoil since a parliamentary ballot in March in which no party won a majority, although Mr Yanukovych's Party of Regions polled the most votes.

Prolonged deadlock

Mr Yanukovych draws his support from the mainly Russian-speaking industrial south-east of Ukraine, where many voters are suspicious of the pro-Western, liberal Orange Revolution agenda.

KEY DATES 21 Nov 04 Yanukovych declared winner of presidential election - protests begin 3 Dec 04 Election annulled 11 Jan 05 Yushchenko declared winner of re-run election 8 Sep 05 Yushchenko sacks Tymoshenko government 26 Mar 06 Yanukovych party wins most votes in general election 3 Aug 06 After four-month deadlock, Yushchenko agrees Yanukovych can be PM Press on Yanukovych triumph

He was a prime minister in 2002-04, before deciding to run for presidency in late 2004.

He was initially declared the victor, but the result was then annulled by the Supreme Court, which ruled that the vote was fraudulent.

Mr Yushchenko was elected president in the re-run of the second round ordered by the court.

Parliamentary elections on 26 March were followed by months of political wrangling.

The three parties which supported the Orange Revolution failed to form a government, and Mr Yanukovych created "an anti-crisis" coalition of parties which back closer ties with Russia.

The alliance then nominated him for prime minister, and Mr Yushchenko had to decide whether to forward the nomination to parliament.

The president has pushed for press freedom, tackling corruption, market reforms, and Ukraine's membership in the EU and Nato.