KIEV (AFP) - Pro-Western opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko narrowly won the first round of Ukraine`s presidential elections against the pro-Moscow candidate, whom he will face later this month in a runoff vote, according to official results.
In a psychologically boosting upset, Yushchenko won 39.87 percent of the vote against Viktor Yanukovich`s 39.32 percent, the central election commission announced.
"I still think there were state-sponsored falsifications with the vote, but people are so frustrated with the authorities that even these could not help Yanukovich end up in front," Yushchenko told reporters.
The second round will be held on November 21, with the outcome of whether Ukraine, with a population of 48 million people and a massive Soviet-era military force, will move closer to Europe after decades of domination by Russia hanging in the balance.
Yanukovich said he had agreed to take part in a live televised debate with Yushchenko before the second round is held, despite earlier ruling out a direct confrontation with his rival.
"I have decided not to take account of my emotions and to take part in debates," he said.
Yanukovich, 54, who is also the acting prime minister, is the anointed successor of outgoing President Leonid Kuchma, who guided Ukraine over the past decade closer to Russia.
But Yushchenko, 50, has the support of Western-leaning and nationalist voters who take a dim view of Ukraine`s Soviet-era links to Moscow and support membership in the European Union and even the US-led NATO military alliance.
Yushchenko`s team at one stage threatened to contest the results of the first round vote, held on October 31, since early figures showed Yanukovich leading by a wide margin.
The first round campaign was condemned by European and US officials because state-controlled television that dominates Ukraine`s screens gave almost no coverage to Yushchenko`s campaign, instead focusing on Yanukovich`s decision to boost pensions just weeks before the elections.
Yanukovich was also officially supported by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who spent three days in Kiev in various public appearances with Yanukovich on the eve of the vote.
And mystery still hangs over Yushchenko`s bizarre poisoning, which threatened to sideline him from the campaign and that his team claimed may have been orchestrated by state officials.
It paralyzed a part of Yushchenko`s face for several weeks, leaving it severely scarred. He was sent for recovery to hospital in Austria, where tests on whether he was intentionally poisoned proved inconclusive.
The wafer-thin victory in the first round, according to analysts, will provide a psychological boost to Yushchenko`s campaign since it came against most expectations, particularly because of the state media slant.
Yushchenko has already picked up the support of third-place finisher Olexander Moroz, the socialist party candidate who won 5.81 percent of the vote.
The fourth-place finisher, Communist Party leader Petro Simonenko, who grabbed 4.97 percent, has so far refused to back either of the candidates despite pressure for him to support Yanukovich by Russia`s Communist Party.
11/10/2004 - 19:12 GMT - AFP