Ukraine's parliament elects as its new speaker an ally of Yulia Tymoshenko, the jailed former prime minister and opposition leader, according to dpa. An overwhelming majority of lawmakers voted for Alexander Turtshinov to replace Volodymyr Rybak who has stepped down. Turtshinov and Tymoshenko co-founded the opposition Fatherland party. The election of a new speaker for the 447-member Verkhovna Rada is seen as a first step in the formation of a new government.
