KIEV, July 16 – An effort began on Wednesday to call an emergency session of Parliament for approval of amendments to the 2008 budget, and the move may eventually get the support of President Viktor Yushchenko.

Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko’s group said it was seeking to collect the 150 signatures from lawmakers required to call an emergency session of the 450-seat Parliament.

The effort began after the legislature rejected Tymoshenko’s amendments last week, effectively postponing disbursement of 32 billion hryvnias in extra spending.

Yushchenko’s office indicated Wednesday that the session may get support from the president, but only under condition that Yushchenko’s own amendments are incorporated into the bill.

“Parliament could debate the amendments on Friday” next week, Andriy Honcharuk, a deputy chief of staff at the Yushchenko office, said Wednesday.

Tymoshenko has largely ignored Yushchenko’s calls to increase spending on the army and on some other projects, prompting the president to submit his own amendments to Parliament last week.

Both, Tymoshenko’s and Yushchenko’s bills, have failed to win support in Parliament.

Our Ukraine-People’s Self-defense, the group supporting Yushchenko, said Wednesday it would join the emergency session if lawmakers incorporate Yushchenko’s amendments to the bill.

“It shouldn’t be the prime minister’s paper, but a joint product of the president, coalition and the government,” Viachelsav Kyrylenko, the leader of Our Ukraine, said in a statement.

Tymoshenko said the government will try to find ways of disbursing at least some of the money bypassing the amendments, but said the amendments must be approved as soon as possible.

“Some of the steps can be done, but these are limited steps that will not solve the problem,” Tymoshenko said. “The amendments for 2008 budget, of course, must be approved as soon as possible.”

Support from Yushchenko’s Our Ukraine is crucial for the government to approve the amendments in Parliament especially as the pro-government coalition does not command a clear majority in Parliament.

Yushchenko’s own support is also required to sign the amendments into law.

The government is by law required to submit the amendment if inflation exceeds the government’s forecast in order to compensate social benefits for the poor people.

Tymoshenko originally forecast inflation at 9.6% in 2008, but was later forced to increase the forecast to 15.9% after consumer prices have skyrocketed earlier this year.

Yushchenko and the National Bank of Ukraine believe the new forecast is still too optimistic.

The prices increased 15.5% in January through June, according to the State Statistics Committee. (tl/ez)