海角大神

A daily roundup of global reports on security issues

Three hundred and fifty thousand Ukrainians packed Kiev's main square Sunday to protest the government's abandonment of a trade agreement with the European Union that, in many Ukrainians' eyes, was packed with promise of a different future.

The Nov. 21 decision, which pivots Ukraine's trade policy back toward Russia, came after months of pressure from Russia and prompted the biggest protests since the Orange Revolution of 2004-05. The EU agreement would have set Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, on a path toward greater European integration.

"They stole the dream," opposition politician Vitaly Klitschko, a former heavyweight boxer, called out in Independence Square Sunday, according to Reuters.聽

The demonstrations have a central demand: the resignation of President Viktor聽Yanukovych. But there is no clear leader among the opposition yet, The Wall Street Journal reports.聽

鈥淪ociety has to take the initiative,鈥� Oleh Rybachuk, a former government minister, told The Wall Street Journal. 鈥淧eople went onto the street because they wanted to live in Europe. They didn鈥檛 chant a single name of a politician, unlike in 2004. If politicians fail to lead, it will be done by well-organized students.鈥�

Demonstrations have been ongoing since the government decision, and took a violent turn this weekend as police tried to rein them in with tear gas and stun grenades, Reuters reports:

Bloomberg Businessweek puts the number seeking medical care at 165, with 109 admitted to the hospital. The Wall Street Journal reports that protests had been petering out until the police crackdown, which infuriated demonstrators and swelled their support.

Opposition leaders called for a national strike today. The number of people who join in will be an indicator of how much support they have for their calls for the government's resignation.

Protesters have entered and blocked some government buildings and put up barricades on Independence Square, BBC reports. Overnight, they pitched tents there as well. This morning, the parliamentary speaker said that there would be talks between the government and opposition today.聽

The dispute has a more prosaic dimension as well. Bloomberg Businessweek reports that Russia and the EU each buy about a quarter of Ukraine's exports, but that Russia supplies 60 percent of its gas. They have accused each other of pressuring the Ukrainian government.聽

The Wall Street Journal reports that neither party expected the disagreement to escalate like this, and that leaders "seemed taken aback by the scale of the protests, but had few obvious levers to influence the situation."

鈥淭he Russians are now spectators to what is going on,鈥� said Steven Pifer, a former US ambassador to Kiev and now an analyst at the Brookings Institution in Washington. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that鈥檒l take place between the street and Yanukovych.鈥�

Ukrainian government officials have insisted that the decision to break off negotiations with the EU has not closed the door entirely. First Deputy Prime Minister 聽Serhiy Arbuzov聽said in an interview with the website "forUm" that "Ukraine continues to move towards the European Union," and an agreement would be signed.聽

Bloomberg Businessweek writes that corruption and political upheaval have left Ukraine "far behind its neighbors," as "the economy is stagnating,聽budget and trade deficits are ballooning, and the central bank is running low on reserves."聽