KIEV, Oct. 4 ??“ President Viktor Yushchenko said Tuesday he will not seek to postpone constitutional amendments that are due to come into force on Jan. 1, 2006 and are to cut presidential powers significantly.

Yushchenko reacted to speculations among political groups that the president may actually seek to derail the amendments, which slash his powers in favor of the prime minister.

???I gave my word that I will take no destructive actions towards the amendments so that 47 million Ukrainians don??™t have an impression that Yushchenko thinks about [keeping] his powers,??? Yushchenko said in a televised interview.

However, Yushchenko suggested he will seek to change the amendments at an unspecified later date, perhaps after general election in March 2006, to reflect the needs of the society.

The amendments were a compromise approved by Parliament in December 2004 with then-President Leonid Kuchma to find a way out of a sharp political standoff in the country that had been triggered by fraud during the presidential election in November 2004.

Kuchma suggested the compromise in exchange for allowing free and fair presidential election that had been later won by Yushchenko at a rerun vote in December 2004. The amendments allow Parliament groups to nominate the prime minister and to form the government, except for key ministers, such as the defense minister and the foreign minister that will still be nominated by the president.

Now, Yushchenko said the way the amendments had been approved under pressure from Kuchma and without comprehensive discussions among political groups leave a lot of room for criticism.

???The political reform is needed. Which one? Let??™s think,??? Yushchenko said. ???If the concept of the reform has been changed three times over the past 1.5 years then maybe some may live with that. But I can??™t. This is not honest for the nation. This is an adventure that is being approved under pressure.???

???If that??™s the way to change the constitution then we will never have any respect towards laws,??? Yushchenko said.

Yushchenko??™s criticism of the amendments suggests he may try to change them later, but not sooner than after the election in March 2006. Any amendments to the constitution must be approved by 300 lawmakers in 450-seat Parliament, which suggests the president will have to find consensus among the groups.

In the meantime, Yushchenko said he will make sure that Ukraine will run free and fair general election.

Yushchenko also defended the government of Prime Minister Yuriy Yekhanurov, who replaced populist leader Yulia Tymoshenko after her dismissal on Sept. 8.

???This is the government that has some unique circumstances to work productively,??? Yushchenko said. ???It doesn??™t have the burden of critical promises and it is taken away from political competition [at the general election].??? (tl/ez)