UKRAINE: Thousands of supporters of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich rally in central Kiev, expressing their approval of the president's decision to walk away from the EU deal

Record ID: 214112

  • Title: UKRAINE: Thousands of supporters of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich rally in central Kiev, expressing their approval of the president's decision to walk away from the EU deal
  • Date: 29th November 2013
  • Summary: KIEV, UKRAINE (NOVEMBER 29, 2013) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF REGIONS PARTY SUPPORTERS WALKING TO SQUARE FOR RALLY FLAGS OF PARTY OF REGIONS AND UKRAINIAN NATIONAL FLAGS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) YANUKOVICH SUPPORTER GEORGY BONDAREV FROM DONBASS, SAYING: "We are not against the signing of an association with the European Union, but not at any price. The right moment has not come yet - there is a right time for everything." FLAGS VARIOUS OF PEOPLE AT RALLY (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) YANUKOVICH SUPPORTER, DMITRY SIDOROV FROM LUGANSK, SAYING: "We came to the demonstration today because we care about the future of our country. We think that European integration is not necessary for us at the moment, so we came to support the president." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WALKING TOWARDS STAGE VARIOUS TOPSHOTS OF RALLY
  • Embargoed: 14th December 2013 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Ukraine
  • Country: Ukraine
  • Topics: International Relations,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA5PB6OY90IARYRF8ZN64USDNHL
  • Story Text: Thousands of ruling Ukrainian Party of Regions supporters gathered in central Kiev on Friday (November 29) to show their approval of President Viktor Yanukovich's decision to walk away from an EU deal.
    Protesters waving national Ukrainian and Party of Regions flags streamed into a square less than a kilometre away from Kiev's Maidan Square where another group of protesters were camped out to protest Ukraine's about-face on EU agreements.
    "We are not against the signing of an association (agreement) with the European Union, but not at any price. The right moment has not come yet - there is a right time for everything," Yanukovich supporter Georgy Bondarev from Donbass told Reuters.
    Another Yanukovich supporter from Lugansk said he didn't think the time was right for signing an agreement with the EU.
    "We came to the demonstration today because we care about the future of our country. We think that European integration is not necessary for us at the moment, so we came to support the president," Yanukovich supporter Smitry Sidorov from Lugansk said.
    Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovich failed on Thursday (November 28) to salvage an ambitious free-trade pact with the European Union despite a warning that Ukraine was risking its future by turning its back on the deal.
    Ukraine and the 28-nation EU had aimed to sign an ambitious trade and cooperation agreement at Thursday's summit in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, which would have marked a historic westwards shift by the former Soviet republic away from Russia's orbit.
    But, under intense pressure from Moscow, Yanukovich renounced plans last week to sign the agreement in favour of closer ties with Russia, dealing a blow to the EU's efforts to build closer relations with former Soviet republics.
    Yanukovich detailed Ukraine's economic woes at the meeting with EU leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister David Cameron, citing high prices Ukraine has to pay for natural gas from Russia.
    Yanukovich proposed starting three-way talks between Russia, Ukraine and the EU and urged Brussels to help Ukraine soften the terms of a possible loan from the International Monetary Fund.
    But the EU rejected trilateral talks and said Yanukovich must give a commitment to sign the agreement that he refused to give.
    Merkel said she had no hope that the EU and Ukraine would reach agreement at the Vilnius summit, whichon Friday, but she said the door remained open to Ukraine.
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