EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton has said she is concerned about the recent events in Ukraine and encouraged the Ukrainian authorities to refrain from using force to resolve the crisis.
Ashton said this in a statement released in Brussels on the eve of her two-day visit to Ukraine, which begins on Tuesday.
“On the eve of my visit to Kyiv, I follow with concern the reports
that police forces forcibly entered the office of the biggest opposition
party, Batkivschyna. This comes on the afternoon of the same day that
President [Viktor] Yanukovych proposed the establishment of a national
roundtable, bringing together the leaders of all political forces and
the three former presidents of Ukraine,” reads the statement.
In this regard, Ashton said that “these latest events seriously risk to derail the process.”
“I call on the Ukrainian authorities to exercise utmost restraint and
refrain from any further use of force, in order to give space for a
negotiated solution out of the current political stalemate,” she said.
As reported, the Batkivschyna Party announced that police together with Berkut officers were attacking their Kyiv office.
