KIEV, May 17 ??“ Ukraine on Thursday was rapidly drifting towards a major clash between the pro-Western president and the pro-Russian ruling coalition following the collapse of talks that had been aimed at ending political crisis.

The coalition, led by Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, apparently used controversial tactics to hijack the Constitutional Court by promoting its loyalists to top positions.

The court is now expected to move quickly to issue a ruling that would undermine President Viktor Yushchenko??™s decrees that had dissolved Parliament last month and called early election.

The National Security and Defense Council, the president??™s top security body, is expected to meet on Friday to review the developments, Oleksandr Chaliy, the deputy chief of staff at the presidential office, said.

There were speculations among political figures that the council may vote to oust the government of Yanukovych. The council may take over some of the government??™s functions in order to open financing for the early election, something that Yanukovych had apparently refused to do.

???This creates a very dangerous situation,??? Chaliy said after the talks had collapsed as the coalition had flatly refused to accept the early election. ???This undermines the principle political deal between the prime minister and the president over settling the crisis. I believe an analysis by the council is needed in the situation like this.???

Yanukovych and Yushchenko agreed in principle on May 4 that the political crisis may be solved by holding the early election, but a special working group had failed over the past 10 days to agree on the election date.

Yushchenko and pro??”Western opposition groups have been insisting on the election no later than middle of July, while the Regions Party has been favoring the election at the end of October.

The Socialist Party and the Communist Party, two small allies of the Regions Party that have very low public support, have been refusing to accept the election whatsoever.

The failure to agree on the date for the election means that Yushchenko will push hard for the election to be held on June 24 as had been set by his decree issued on April 26.

The failure in the talks and the reshuffle at the Constitutional Court on Thursday suggest that the political crisis in Ukraine may escalate within hours, analysts said.

The coalition has been sending thousands of its supporters to Kiev from Donetsk, the stronghold of Yanukovych??™s Regions Party, during the past several days, a sign that the coalition had been preparing for the clash. (tl/ez)