U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell on Monday hailed the rerun of Ukraine's presidential election, calling it a "historic moment for democracy in Ukraine" and urging citizens to accept the result. "The Ukrainian people can truly be proud of this achievement," Powell told reporters. "We congratulate Ukrainians for the courage they displayed in standing up for their democratic rights. We call on Ukrainians now to set their divisions behind them and to refrain from violence, separatism or provocations." West-leaning opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko looked certain to become Ukraine's next president after Sunday's rerun of the Nov. 21 poll that was won by Moscow-backed Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich. But Yanukovich said he would challenge the result. Powell cited the assessment of international observers who said Sunday's poll looked much fairer than the previous one quashed by Ukraine's Supreme Court because of fraud. And he dismissed fears the result would widen the rift between the United States and Russia, which openly supported Yanukovich. --More 2333 Local Time 2033 GMT
