Ex-president warns Ukraine 'on brink of civil war'

BBC News online -- 29 January 2014

Steve Rosenberg visits Kiev's "protest town", which is equipped with food stalls, a church tent, and a makeshift hospital

Ukraine's first post-independence president has warned the country is on the "brink of civil war".

Leonid Kravchuk, president from 1991 to 1994, urged parliament to "act with the greatest responsibility" as it debates an amnesty for detained protesters.

President Viktor Yanukovych wants any amnesty to be conditional on protesters leaving official buildings and dismantling barricades.

The EU's foreign policy chief said all parties must hold "real dialogue".

Analysis

David Stern BBC News, Kiev

Former Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk's dramatic warning that the country stood on the "brink of civil war" and is gripped by "revolution" did not reveal any secrets.
But it was a timely reminder of what could lie at the end of Ukraine's bitter political standoff if a peaceful resolution isn't found soon.
Many might dispute that the divisions in Ukraine's society are as clear cut as east-west, or Russian-speaking and Ukrainian-speaking, and, to be sure, much of this is mitigated by other aspects such as differences in outlook between the young and old.
Nevertheless, it is undeniable that the country is dangerously divided into, roughly speaking, two mutually antagonistic, and very often mutually-uncomprehending, political camps.
But the immediate risk is not civil war. Many observers question whether the people in the east are ready to risk their lives for President Viktor Yanukovych's government. But widespread violence is very real - and this in turn could balloon eventually into a conflict that embraces more and more of Ukrainian society.

Catherine Ashton, who is holding talks in Kiev with the president and opposition leaders, said she was shocked by the unrest, and that there was "no question that the importance of finding a quick and peaceful way forward is on everyone's minds".

"The solution has to be found that's going to help move the country forward, and it needs to be a political process that is engaged in quickly and properly by everyone.
"The responsibility is inevitably going to fall on government to do that as quickly as possible," she said.

The protests began in November after Mr Yanukovych reversed a decision to sign a long-awaited trade deal with the EU, instead favouring stronger ties with Russia.

At least five people have been killed and a number of government buildings across the country have been occupied. Hundreds of people remain on the streets of the capital, Kiev.

A policeman was shot dead in Kiev on Wednesday, said officials. It was not immediately clear whether the shooting was related to the protests.

Ukraine's parliament is debating an amnesty for the scores of protesters detained since demonstrations began, in the hope of calming the unrest.

Mr Kravchuk told them: "All the world acknowledges and Ukraine acknowledges that the state is on the brink of civil war.

Leonid Kravchuk received a standing ovation for his speech

 

"It is a revolution. It is a dramatic situation in which we must act with the greatest responsibility," he said in an emotional address that earned him a standing ovation.

"We need to ease the confrontation between the sides and agree a plan to solve the conflict. We need to work on this plan step by step to ease the confrontation."

Interim PM Serhiy Arbuzov

• 37 years old and staunchly loyal to Mr Yanukovych
• Began career as a bank manager in Donetsk
• Head of Ukraine's central bank between 2010 and 2012
• Joined cabinet in December 2012 and was deputy PM until Mykola Azarov's resignation
• Known in the media as "the family banker" because of close ties to the Yanukovych family

MPs are expected to vote on the bill later on Wednesday.

Earlier, speaker Volodymyr Rybak said there were "several unresolved issues" but that discussions would continue.

The amnesty bill requires protesters to leave their main protest camp in central Independence Square [Maidan], but opposition leader Arseniy Yatsenyuk said this was "unacceptable for us".

A number of activists who had been occupying an agriculture ministry building abandoned the property on Wednesday, after apparent pressure from moderate protesters.

The protesters won significant concessions on Tuesday as MPs voted overwhelmingly to repeal a controversial two-week old anti-protest law, which had banned the wearing of helmets by protesters and the blockading of public buildings.

The law had fuelled major protests around the country and deadly clashes with the police.

The BBC's Oleg Boldyrev says is evidence of infighting between different protest groups

Protesters have been camped out in freezing conditions in the capital since November

Several government buildings have been occupied in recent days - here a group leaves the agriculture ministry

President Yanukovych wants any amnesty to be conditional on barricades being taken down

    

But the protesters say they will not go home until the president resigns and calls elections

 

Mr Yanukovych also accepted the resignation of his Prime Minister Mykola Azarov. He has been replaced on an interim basis by his deputy, Serhiy Arbuzov.

The cabinet resigned with him, but can remain in post for 60 days until a new government is formed.
Foreign 'interference'
 
Both US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have underlined their support for the demonstrators.

Mrs Merkel told Germany's parliament the demonstrators were "fighting for the same values that also guide us, the European Union, and that is why they need to be listened to".

Ukraine unrest - key dates

21 Nov 2013: Ukraine announces it will not sign a deal aimed at strengthening ties with the EU
30 Nov: Riot police detain dozens of anti-government protesters in a violent crackdown in Kiev
17 Dec: Russia agrees to buy $15bn of Ukrainian government bonds and slash the price of gas it sells to the country
16 Jan 2014: Parliament passes law restricting the right to protest
22 Jan: Two protesters die from bullet wounds during clashes with police in Kiev; protests spread across many cities
25 Jan: President Yanukovych offers senior jobs to the opposition, including that of prime minister, but these are rejected
28 Jan: Parliament votes to annul protest law and President Yanukovych accepts resignation of PM and cabinet 

Mr Obama, in his State of the Union address, said that "all people have the right to express themselves freely and peacefully, and have a say in their country's future".

The White House said Vice-President Joe Biden had spoken by telephone to President Yanukovych and praised the "progress made".

Russia's President Vladimir Putin has criticised what he called foreign "interference", saying Ukrainians were "capable of solving this on their own".

Protests have spread in recent days across Ukraine - even to President Yanukovych's powerbase in the east - and official buildings in several cities have been occupied.

Mr Yanukovych was democratically elected in 2010 and appeared to be steering the former Soviet state towards EU integration until he rejected the planned EU trade deal just days before it was due to be signed last November.

His decision to favour instead a $15bn (£9bn) bailout from Russia to bolster the ailing public finances angered many EU supporters in Ukraine.