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KIEV, Ukraine (AP) When new Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk invited anti-corruption activists to his apartment in Kiev last month, the first thing he showed off was his toilet. "See for yourself," Yatsenyuk joked. "It's not gold."

It was a jab at ousted president Viktor Yanukovych, who along with his government cronies had a notorious penchant for gaudy luxury.

Yatsenyuk's interim government is seeking to carry out sweeping reforms to break from a culture of self-interest, cynicism and corruption that left the country on the verge of bankruptcy. Images of chandeliers, gilded pillars and ornate marble flooring that emerged from Yanukovych's mansion after he fled caused revulsion across Ukraine.

By contrast, Yatsenyuk flies economy, lets whistleblowers into his home and readily admits to mistakes. Those qualities have helped him grow in stature and win support for his administration even as Ukraine struggles to avoid a possible breakup.

Yatsenyuk leads a motley team of young pro-Western professionals, idealists, nationalists and heroes of the Maidan protests named after the square that was the magnet of dissent as well as veterans of rough-and-tumble Ukrainian politics. As the eclectic group assumed power in February, it knew it faced a daunting challenge: State coffers were empty, the country was deeply polarized and the protest movement was not willing to give the new government any easy breaks.

Then things got dramatically worse: Ukraine lost Crimea to Russia and the government found itself battling pro-Kremlin insurgents, while trying to avoid war with its giant neighbor to the east. "Nobody fully realized the bonus, so to speak, we would be getting in the annexation of Crimea and separatist movements," Ostap Semerak, who holds the title of Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers and is a close ally of Yatsenyuk, told The Associated Press.

The road has been paved with successes and setbacks. But during the rocky journey, Yatsenyuk, who exudes the air of a somewhat nerdy intellectual, has gained respect by proving to be steadfast in the face of quixotic tasks, ready to sacrifice personal interests for the country's good. Yatsenyuk often refers to his new job as a suicide mission and, when congratulated recently on his post, he quipped that condolences were more in order.

While eastern Ukraine is deeply suspicious of the new government, the rest of Ukraine appears to trust its new leaders: A nationwide April poll conducted by the International Republican Institute shows full or partial support for the Yatsenyuk government at 52 percent, up from 46 in March. The poll had 1,200 respondents and a margin of error of 2.8 percentage points.

The positive assessment is not shared by Russia, which casts the new government as a group of nationalist radicals that seized power during an armed coup.

As the country prepares for May 25 presidential elections to choose a new leader, all eyes are on the interim government and its ability to ensure a successful vote, even as eastern and southern regions are riven by unrest.

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Ukraine's Leader Gains Stature With Honest Image