Thousands of Ukrainian protesters have besieged government buildings in Kiev calling for the removal of the government as anger over a decision to ditch a deal for closer ties with the EU spread to other parts of the country.
The entrances to the cabinet and central bank buildings were blocked, after a huge rally in the capital by hundreds of thousands on Sunday. That demonstration was mostly peaceful, until a group tried to storm president Viktor Yanukovych’s office. After hours of scuffles, police chased them away with tear gas and truncheons, injuring dozens.
It was a violent police action against protesters early on Saturday that galvanised the latest round of protests.
At least three MPs of the governing Party of Regions have quit in protest and one of them, Inna Bohoslovska, previously a vocal government supporter, called on others to leave the party.
The opposition is hoping to oust the cabinet of Prime Minister Mykola Azarov during a confidence vote in parliament today. The opposition, which now controls about 170 seats, would need 226 votes in the 450-seat Rada.
Oleksandr Yefremov, head of the Party of Regions faction in parliament, said MPs might put a no-confidence motion up for a vote. At the same time, he said there were no grounds to dismiss the government.
“Our goal is to make sure that the people on Maidan (Independence Square, where the protests are taking place) calm down,” he said.
Mr Azarov’s spokesman said the government was not planning a state of emergency.
Opposition calls for a strike were being headed by local governments in western Ukraine, where most people speak Ukrainian and lean toward the EU.
In the industrial east of the country, most people tend to speak Russian and have a closer affinity for Russia.