Ukraine's acting Prime Minister Yury Yekhanurov said Friday he will work hard to improve Ukraine-Russia ties, especially bilateral relations within the framework of the Common Economic Space (CES) program.

President Viktor Yushchenko stressed the importance of Ukraine-Russia relations in his meeting with leaders of parties in the parliament on Friday, and asked the government to enhance relations with Russia, said Yekhanurov.

The government will make every effort to forge serious relations between the two countries, and the building of such relations will be one of the basic policies of the new government, he added.

Yushenko on Thursday fired the government led by Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, accusing it of lacking "team spirit." Yekhanurov was named acting prime minister and was assigned to form a new cabinet.

The 58-year-old Yekhanurov now serves as governor of the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region. He was also a former economics minister and headed a parliamentary committee on industrial issues.

Source: Xinhua