KIEV
Police intervention in anti-government protests in capital Kiev on Wednesday negatively affected the negotiation process, chief of the ruling Regions Party Alexander Efremov noted on Friday, expressing that incidents in Ukraine are being exacerbated by some.
"What happened the previous night was not necessary for us. We had already started the roundtable talks, representative of the square had come to negotiate and agreed on meeting again the next day. However police interference in protests on December 11 badly affected the negotiation process, and the incidents halted the dialogue," Efremov said.
On Wednesday, police intervened in protests by removing the barricades in Kiev's Liberation Square, even reaching the municipal building controlled by protesters.
After incidents subsided until the morning, police withdrew to their former positions as protesters started to reconstruct their destroyed tents and barricades.
The anti-government protests began three weeks ago when Ukrainian President Victor Yanukhovych angered many Ukrainians by refusing to sign an agreement that would strengthen cooperation with the European Union.
Approximately 45 percent of Ukrainians prefer closer ties with the EU but around 30 percent want to keep historic and strong economic ties with Russia.
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