Ukraine president to offer concessions to opposition

Update: Ukrainian news agencies are reporting Friday that President Viktor Yanukovych has offered concessions to the opposition. The Associated Press reported that Yanukovych pledged to shake up his cabinet, grant amnesty to jailed protesters and alter the anti-demonstration legislation during an emergency parliamentary meeting next Tuesday.

BREAKING: Ukrainian news agencies say the president has promised a government reshuffle, amnesty.

— The Associated Press (@AP) January 24, 2014

Original post follows:

Opposition leader Vitali @Klitschko in Kyiv during carnage. #Ukraine #euromaidan pic.twitter.com/Df7rTlxPAQ

— NATOSource (@NATOSource) January 23, 2014

Opposition leaders were optimistic for resolution and encouraged protesters to stand down Thursday night. But on Friday morning, protesters took control of government buildings in Kiev.

Protesters in Ukraine took control of government buildings Friday morning as tensions mounted between the opposition and President Viktor Yanukovych.

The Associated Press reported that protesters in the capital city of Kiev occupied the Ministry of Agriculture Policy, in part to escape the sub-zero temperatures, while other protesters in western regions took control of governors’ offices.

Opposition leaders had urged protesters to resist using violence Thursday night, following a meeting with President Yanukovych. After the meeting, a spokeswoman for the opposition announced that an end to the violence between protesters and police was in sight.

On Wednesday, opposition leaders issued an ultimatum to Yanukovych, promising more intense opposition if the president did not resign, call for new elections and rescind the anti-demonstration law by Thursday night.

Although the opposition spokeswoman did not provide details of the meeting in her Facebook post, opposition leader Vitali Klitschko, who also attended the meeting, told protesters in the capital city of Kiev to stand down and protest peacefully.

Klitschko was met with some resistance from his fellow protesters. The AP reported that the opposition leader “was booed and some [protesters] cried ‘Shame!’ The demonstrators again set aflame barricades of tires that had been quenched when opposition leaders offered the deadline.”

Before meeting with opposition leaders, Yanukovych spoke with Vice President Joe Biden over the phone. According to a White House statement, “While emphasizing that violence by any side is not acceptable, the Vice President underscored that only the government of Ukraine can ensure a peaceful end to the crisis and further bloodshed would have consequences for Ukraine’s relationship with the United States.”

Those consequences would likely include sanctions. On Thursday afternoon, the White House announced it was considering sanctions against Ukraine should the violence continue.
H/T Bridget Bowman

This post was updated to reflect breaking developments as of 11:15 a.m. EST.