Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych
and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have held surprise talks on a
"strategic partnership treaty". Mr Yanukovych flew from China to Sochi in southern Russia for the meeting. He
has also cancelled a visit to Malta.
Last month he shelved a partnership deal with the EU, triggering angry
protests in Ukraine's capital Kiev.
In Sochi he discussed "preparation of a future treaty on strategic
partnership" with Russia, his press service said.
The talks covered various economic issues, the statement said, without
elaborating.
Thousands of anti-Yanukovych protesters remain outside the government
building on Kiev's Independence Square, braving bitter cold. They are furious that he made an 11th-hour U-turn in relations with the EU,
refusing to sign an association agreement that had been prepared during years of
negotiations.
Mr Putin has been urging Ukraine to join Russia's customs union with Belarus
and Kazakhstan - a union whose entry terms are far less demanding than the
EU's.
In recent months Russia has put Ukraine under economic pressure, imposing
long customs delays at the border and banning imports of Ukrainian sweets.
4 comments:
The storm, called Xaver, blew a tree on to a car in Poraj, northern Poland, killing three people inside.
The storm also caused two deaths in the UK, one in Sweden and one in Denmark.
Dozens of flights have been cancelled, hitting travellers at Berlin Tegel, Copenhagen and smaller airports.
Many rail and ferry services were also cut in Germany and Scandinavia.
There is severe disruption in southern Sweden, with all rail services cancelled in the Skane region. Planes have been grounded at Sturup airport and Gothenburg's Landvetter airport, Radio Sweden reports.
Fallen trees have blocked many roads in southern Sweden and heavy snow is adding to the chaos.
More than 1,000 people spent the night at Copenhagen airport.
In eastern England about 10,000 homes were evacuated in Norfolk and Suffolk. Several homes collapsed into the sea at Hemsby when the storm battered the clifftop.
The Thames Barrier was closed for a second day to protect London from the surge.
The storm, called Xaver, blew a tree on to a car in Poraj, northern Poland, killing three people inside.
The storm also caused two deaths in the UK, one in Sweden and one in Denmark.
Dozens of flights have been cancelled, hitting travellers at Berlin Tegel, Copenhagen and smaller airports.
Many rail and ferry services were also cut in Germany and Scandinavia.
There is severe disruption in southern Sweden, with all rail services cancelled in the Skane region. Planes have been grounded at Sturup airport and Gothenburg's Landvetter airport, Radio Sweden reports.
Fallen trees have blocked many roads in southern Sweden and heavy snow is adding to the chaos.
More than 1,000 people spent the night at Copenhagen airport.
In eastern England about 10,000 homes were evacuated in Norfolk and Suffolk. Several homes collapsed into the sea at Hemsby when the storm battered the clifftop.
The Thames Barrier was closed for a second day to protect London from the surge.
Ukraine’s opposition on Sunday hopes to draw at least one million people to a Kiev rally to protest against a government decision to reject a historic EU trade deal and seek closer ties with old master Russia.
Largest rallies seen since the Orange Revolution
The protests in Ukraine have raged for over two weeks after the government abruptly announced it was halting the work on the agreements with the European Union.
Last Sunday, hundreds of thousands took to the streets in Kiev and pro-EU western Ukraine in the largest demonstrations since the pro-democracy Orange Revolution in 2004 forced the annulment of fraud-tainted elections initially claimed by Yanukovych.
The rally in Kiev descended into unprecedented clashes with riot police in which hundreds were injured.
Boxing champion turned opposition leader Vitali Klitschko said a million should take to the streets of Kiev on Sunday.
"Our future depends on you," the pugilist said.
Yanukovych, who faces an election in 2015, has promised a thorough investigation into the use of force against the protesters but has not said whether he is ready to sit down for talks with the opposition.
In a sign of mounting pressure, he postponed a trip to Malta planned for next week.
Putin has slammed the protests, saying they looked more "like a pogrom than a revolution."
In contrast, the West has urged the Ukrainian authorities to heed the demands of the protest movement.
Protesters have seized control of Kiev's iconic Independence Square, setting up a tent city amid barricades and blockading several public buildings.
In a sign of further tensions, the authorities said Saturday they had deployed riot police outside the offices of the public broadcaster.
Interior Minister Vitali Zakharchenko, in a statement early Sunday, called on protesters to respect the law and said police were ready to cooperate.
Post a Comment