EU welcomes agreement between Ukrainian government and opposition

The European Union on Friday welcomed the agreement reached between the government and the opposition in Ukraine earlier today. "The agreement is a necessary compromise in order to launch an indispensable political dialogue that offers the only democratic and peaceful way out of the crisis that has already caused too much suffering and bloodshed on all sides," said the President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, in a statement on Friday. "It is now the responsibility of all parties to be courageous and turn words into deeds for the sake of Ukraine's future," he added. Van Rompuy noted that this agreement was facilitated by the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany, Poland and the Special Representative of the President of Russia and based on the efforts during the last two months by EU High Representative Catherine Ashton and EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule.