KIEV (Reuters) — Ukrainian President
Viktor Yanukovich returned to his desk on Monday after four days of sick
leave, while the political opposition pressed for further concessions
from him to end more than two months of street protests against his
rule.
"He is back at work," a presidential spokesman said.
Yanukovich is seeking a way out of a confrontation with thousands of
protesters who have seized control of Kiev's city center in a
conflict which has at times flared into violent clashes between
radicals and riot police.
At least six people have been killed.
Yanukovich's first urgent task, after returning from an absence some
saw as a tactical gambit to gain time, is to name a new prime
minister to succeed Mykola Azarov, who stepped down on January 28
under pressure from the protest movement.
In other concessions, Yanukovich last week approved the repeal of
recent anti-protest laws and offered a conditional amnesty to
activists who have been detained in the unrest.
But opposition leaders, who have received huge backing from the
United States and EU governments, were pressing on Monday for
further concessions.
With parliament due to meet on Tuesday, the opposition were seeking
a broader amnesty in which all those detained would be released and
the return to the previous constitution which would mean
Yanukovich's presidential powers being diminished.
(Additional reporting by Pavel Polityuk;
editing by Alastair
Macdonald)
