US vice president urges compromise in Ukraine

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych called US Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday, following a parliamentary vote that will see the repeal of anti-protest laws in the Eastern European country.A White House statement said Biden "welcomed the progress made today and urged President Yanukovych to sign the parliament's repeal of several of the January 16 laws without delay." Biden also "strongly encouraged" Yanukovych to reach a compromise with the opposition, and find "a peaceful solution" that includes "an amnesty law and a new government that can bring political unity, win the confidence of the Ukrainian people, and take Ukraine in the direction of Europe by strengthening democratic institutions and making the reforms necessary to achieve economic prosperity." Anti-government protesters, many of which have been in Kiev's main square since November, have said they will not back down until Yanukovych resigns.