Billionaire Petro Poroshenko claims victory in Ukraine presidential polls

PanARMENIAN.Net - Petro Poroshenko, a billionaire chocolate manufacturer, claims victory in the Ukrainian presidency on Sunday, May 25. The 48-year-old won 55-percent in exit polls on a first round ballot, Reuters reported.

Runner-up Yulia Tymoshenko, on 13 percent, made clear she would concede, sparing the country a tense three weeks until a runoff round.

Preliminary results with almost 25 percent of votes counted gave Poroshenko 54.1 percent and former premier Tymoshenko 13.1.

The central elections commission said about 60% of Ukraine's 35.5 million eligible voters turned out.

"My first decisive step will be aimed at ending the war, ending chaos, and bringing peace to a united and free Ukraine," Poroshenko said at a press conference in Kiev, according to BBC News.

"I am certain that our decisive actions will bring fairly quick results."

He also promised a dialogue with people in eastern Ukraine if he is elected.

"For those people who don't take (up) weapons, we are always ready for negotiations to guarantee them security, to guarantee their rights, including speaking the language they want," he said.

Poroshenko said he would also like to negotiate a new security treaty with Moscow. Although he strongly backs closer ties with the EU, Poroshenko also stresses the need to normalize ties with Russia.

U.S. President Barack Obama hailed the election as an "important step forward in the efforts of the Ukrainian government to unify the country".

UK Foreign Secretary William Hague called the election a "decisive signal" of Ukraine's support for reform.