KIEV, July 13 – Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko agreed to postpone a reshuffle of the government until September, seeking to win support from the opposition Regions Party for two anti-crisis bills.

Tymoshenko’s lawmakers asked for an emergency session of Parliament on Tuesday seeking to approve the bills that allow recapitalization of troubled commercial banks and unlock spending on Euro-2012 infrastructure projects.

But Parliament, blocked by the Regions Party for the past two weeks, may resume work only after opposition lawmakers, unhappy about the upcoming reshuffle, unblock the podium.

“We call on the Regions Party to stop dazzling itself by political struggle and to start seeing the country that urgently needs the anti-crisis bills,” Tymoshenko said in a statement. She promised not to “insist” on the reshuffle of the government “until the fall.”

The emergency session’s agenda may also include approval of the bill on presidential election. This bill was criticized by President Viktor Yushchenko for allowing Parliament’s biggest groups – the Regions Party and the Tymoshenko Bloc – to effectively control vote counting during the election due on January 17, 2010.

Tymoshenko’s promise means that the 25-strong government will continue to work for the next three months without key ministers, including the finance minister, the defense minister, the foreign minister and the transportation minister. A total of nine vacancies make the government incapable.

Tymoshenko was not able to appoint any new ministers since February, when Finance Minister Viktor Pynzenyk had resigned, citing serious policy differences with the prime minister.

This underscores the fact that Tymoshenko has not been enjoying support from majority in the 450-seat Parliament and has been essentially running a minority government. She repeatedly denied this, because otherwise her government would have to resign.

Meanwhile, the Regions Party has been also demanding an approval of bills that would significantly increase social spending, something that Tymoshenko has been ruling out because the government had not enough funds.

“The Regions Party insists that the initiative, which would make life easier for those treated unfairly, be supported by Parliament,” Regions Party leader Viktor Yanukovych said in a statement.

However, Yanukovych said other legislative “problems” also need to be solved, an indication that the Regions Part may finally lift the blockade on Tuesday.

“But we understand that life demands solving other problems as well,” Yanukovych said. “These problems include issues connected with the Euro-2012. Also, we need to approve the bill on [presidential] election. We also need to think about depositors of the [troubled] banks whose deposits are losing value.”

The comments suggest that the Regions Party and Tymoshenko have been holding talks over the weekend to agree on the agenda of the emergency session, according to Parliamentary Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn.

“Obviously, there will be the emergency session tomorrow,” Lytvyn said. “The agenda indicates that the preliminary consultations have been conducted.” (tl/ez)