Power and opposition in Ukraine test their limits as protests spread | EurActiv

Power and opposition in Ukraine test their limits as protests spread | EurActiv:

Police clashed with protesters in central Kiev yesterday (26 January) and the fate of Ukraine's government remained uncertain after embattled President Viktor Yanukovich offered important posts to opposition leaders, including the role of prime minister to Arseny Yatsenyuk, the leader of the Batkivschchyna party of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.

Vitaly Klitschko, a former international boxing champion, was offered the job of deputy prime minister responsible for humanitarian issues, the presidential website said. Klitschko confirmed it on Twitter, adding he would give his reply later.

The two-month standoff has sparked the worst violence in Ukraine since it won independence in 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union. At least six people have been killed, according to the prosecutor's office and medical staff, and the crisis has deepened tensions between Russia and the West.

The presidency linked its offer to the opposition as a way to rein in violent protesters. Though the protest movement is largely peaceful, a hard core of radicals has been fighting pitched battles with police away from Independence Square.

  

Yatsenyuk speaks to the protestors, with Klitschko alonside him