President Yushchenko’s dramatic dismissal yesterday of the entire Ukrainian Government is a drastic step which many of his compatriots believe he should have taken months ago. Almost from the start of the Orange Revolution, the tensions between the pock-marked President and Yuliya Tymoshenko, the ambitious firebrand Prime Minister, have threatened to derail the reforms promised to the thousands of protesters in Kiev last November.

The President’s hand was forced, however, by the sudden resignation at the weekend of his chief of staff, amid accusations of wholesale corruption within the Government. This was followed by the departure of Petro Poroshenko, the main figure accused and head of the Defence Council, appointed to balance the Prime Minister but who had been running a virtual parallel administration. By yesterday the blazing rows, infighting, and mounting public dismay had made normal government impossible. Mr Yushchenko acted before chaos and cynicism engulfed his revolution.

He acted correctly. Many of last year’s hopes for an end to corruption in Ukraine — regularly rated by outsiders to be among the worst on any international index — have been dashed by evidence of continued malfeasance, dubious business dealings, nepotism and favouritism. In addition, slowing economic growth, rising inflation and lack of consistency on key policy issues have tarnished the Government’s image further. What has confused voters is that most of the disagreements appear to stem not from ideological differences — there is little to distinguish Mr Yushchenko’s views on Europe, energy policy and relations with Moscow from those of Mrs Tymoshenko — but from personal antipathies and thwarted ambition.

She is by far the more charismatic. It was she who rallied the crowds behind the revolution and articulated the rhe-toric. But after her bloc of supporters joined Mr Yushchenko’s Our Ukraine party, she was reluctant to play second fiddle. She used the office of prime minister to expand her influence and powers, often ignoring or contradicting the policies of the President. In other ways, also, she made an unsuit-able prime minister. Having made a fortune as head of Ukraine ’s gas industry in the 1990s, she was widely seen as less than impartial on energy policies. Her deep antipathy to Russia, where she is still on a wanted list on charges of attempted bribery of Russian defence officials, complicated Mr Yushchenko’s attempt to mend fences with Moscow; on Monday President Putin expressed sarcastic scorn for Ukraine’s Government to Western journalists.

Mr Yushchenko has now invited a technocrat from eastern Ukraine to head a new government. At least the two should work together more compatibly. They will need to do much to recoup their position before parliamentary elections in March, where an embittered Mrs Tymoshenko is likely to present a robust challenge. Voters will be impressed only by a ceasefire in the squabbling, clear economic direction and an end to corrosive corruption.