Ukraine’s Power Struggle Sparks Crisis Over Reform : Politics: Legislators refuse to accept reformist premier’s resignation. They also reject president’s bid for control but give him added powers.

The country was thrown into a constitutional crisis Friday, a day after the prime minister tried to resign and the president tried to take direct charge of government.

The Parliament refused to accept Prime Minister Leonid Kuchma’s resignation offer of a day earlier and left him in office, although stripped of extra powers he was given last year to introduce rapid privatization and reduce a huge budget deficit.

Deputies also rejected President Leonid Kravchuk’s bid to take personal charge of the government, but they compromised by granting him broad powers to issue decrees on economic measures not governed by existing legislation.

Nonetheless, Kravchuk condemned the Parliament and threatened to “turn to the people.” It was unclear what he meant or whether he would call a referendum like the one Russian President Boris N. Yeltsin used last month to eclipse his parliamentary foes.

Like the Russian Congress of People’s Deputies, Ukraine’s Parliament was elected before the collapse of the Soviet Union. More than half its members are former Communists, and it has resisted free-market reforms.

“What happened here is likely to occur every day from now on,” Kuchma said after Friday’s session. “Yeltsin is fighting the same battle in Russia. It’s absurd. We have to come before Parliament every time someone sneezes.”

President Kravchuk said he proposed sweeping constitutional changes putting him at the head of government to end the infighting and safeguard national security.

“I was ashamed at the way deputies were walking all over the government. Now criticism is being directed against me,” he said.

“Not a single decision has been adopted since April. I do not insist on the president taking over all the powers. But the question of powers must be addressed.”

Kravchuk said he advised Kuchma against resigning. But Kuchma’s aides said the prime minister had been told of Kravchuk’s proposed constitutional changes only an hour before they were announced Thursday.

Deputies rejected Kuchma’s resignation 223-90 and then overwhelmingly approved granting extra powers to Kravchuk, although this fell far short of what Kravchuk originally sought.