Vitali Klitschko Confirms Ukrainian Presidency Bid

Ukrainian former heavyweight boxer and opposition leader Vitali Klitschko has announced he will run for president at the elections scheduled for May 25.

He declared his bid on the first day of the election campaign, which started on Tuesday as the Ukrainian Central Election Commission posted a deadline until 4 April for registration of candidates.

"I am entirely convinced that the rules of the game in Ukraine must change and I believe this is possible", the former heavyweight boxing champion explained, cited by Der Spiegel.

Former Ukrainian PM Yulia Tymoshenko is still undecided whether to enter the presidential race, her spokesman said on Tuesday.

Another candidate for Ukraine's top office will be Mykhaylo Dobkin, Kharkiv's head of the regional state administration, as the BBC reports.

He is quoted as saying in an interview for Ukrainan Kanal 5 TV that "a total attack on the rights of the Russian-speaking population is under way, laws are being adopted that threaten all those who do not accept fascism and Nazism" and this is the reason for his presidential bid.

The far eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv is among the bastions where Yanukovych receives the staunchest support among the Russian-speaking majority.