On 5 December, Western diplomats urged Ukrainian authorities to respect the demands of thousands of pro-EU opposition demonstrators, protesting the government’s decision to freeze ties with the EU and turn to Moscow instead, news agencies reported.
Several thousand activists kept up the demonstrations at a central square in the capital Kiev and besieged government meetings as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s ministerial council began its meeting on the other side of the river. The meeting had been scheduled long before the protests that have been dominating the country, AP reported.
In Kiev, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird met with both his Ukrainian counterpart and opposition leaders.
“I think they're deeply concerned about the shadow that Russia is casting over this country, the economic and political power that they’re seeking to exercise,” Baird said of the opposition leaders.
US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland challenged Ukrainian authorities to meet the protests constructively. “This is Ukraine’s moment to meet the aspirations of its people or disappoint them,” she told the OSCE meeting. “Democratic norms and the rule of law must be upheld.”
Britain's Minister for Europe David Liddington called on authorities to respect the right of citizens to “peacefully assemble”. “The eyes of the world are on Ukraine today,” he said.
For its part, Russia called for stability and order in Ukraine on 4 December. Speaking to a visiting Ukrainian delegation in Moscow, Russia’s Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev told Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Yuriy Boyko that Moscow was monitoring the events. “We're watching what's happening in your country. It’s an internal affair of Ukraine, though it’s really important to have stability and order there,” RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.
Ukraine’s Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said the protests “are a completely normal development in a country where democracy is developing”. “We will do everything we can to ensure this is a peaceful protest,” Azarov said.
Azarov has also warned several pro-EU western cities in Ukraine which have gone on a strike that the central government in Kyiv might cut off funding to them.
Massive demonstrations rocked Ukraine, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets on 1 December to protest against President Viktor Yanukovych’s decision last month to suspend a trade pact with the EU. Many Ukrainians say the agreement would have opened borders to trade and set the stage for modernisation and inclusion.
On 3 December, NATO foreign ministers condemned the use of excessive force against demonstrators in Ukraine and urged the government and opposition to open a dialogue. “We condemn the use of excessive force against peaceful demonstrators in Ukraine. We call on all parties to refrain from provocations and violence,” NATO foreign ministers said in a statement during a meeting in Brussels. “We urge Ukraine...to fully abide by its international commitments and to uphold the freedom of expression and assembly. We urge the government and the opposition to engage in dialogue and launch a reform process,” they added.
NATO foreign ministers agreed that “a sovereign, independent and stable Ukraine, firmly committed to democracy and the rule of law, is key to Euro-Atlantic security”. “NATO remains committed to supporting the reform process in Ukraine,” the statement concluded.