EU calls for end of cycle of violence in Ukraine

EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, Stefan Fule, visited Ukraine on behalf of President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso and EU High Representative Catherine Ashton on Friday and Saturday and held talks with President Viktor Yanukovych and opposition leaders. "In my talks I conveyed the deep concerns of the EU about the latest developments and underlined the need to end the cycle of violence, to fight against impunity of perpetrators of human rights violations and to continue an inclusive national dialogue to find a way out of the crisis that threatens to further destabilise the country," he said in a statement today. Fulle said he discussed a series of steps that could lead to confidence building and to a political process aimed at ending this crisis. Anti-government demonstrations in Kiev broke out in November after Yanukovych rejected a trade agreement with the EU and instead decided to foster closer economic and trade links with Russia. The crisis took a turn for the worse when two protesters died during clashes with police in Kiev's Independence Square this week. Meanwhile, Ukrainian Minister Vitaliy Zakharchenko was quoted saying by media reports Saturday that negotiations between the government and the opposition had failed.