Ukraine's president says he has reached a deal with the opposition to end the crisis, after all-night talks mediated by EU foreign ministers.

Ukraine's president says he has reached a deal with the opposition to end the crisis, after all-night talks mediated by EU foreign ministers.





Viktor Yanukovych's statement said the deal would be signed later, but the opposition has not confirmed the claim.

Protesters and police are still locked in a stand-off in Kiev, a day after dozens were killed in violent clashes.

On Thursday, EU foreign ministers said sanctions would be imposed on some Ukrainian officials over the violence.

The US has warned Kiev that it would follow suit.

The protests first erupted in late November when President Yanukovych rejected a landmark association and trade deal with the EU in favour of closer ties with Russia.

Thursday was the bloodiest day since the unrest began.

Police opened fire after protesters tried to push them away from the makeshift camps they have been occupying in central Kiev.


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Amateur footage appears to show police hostages - wearing blue uniforms with black collars - being kept in a line by men in plain clothes in Kiev

The health ministry said 77 people had been killed since Tuesday, and another 577 were injured.

But activists suggested the death toll was likely to be much higher.
Early election mooted

On Thursday, the foreign ministers of France, Poland and Germany conducted several hours of discussions with Mr Yanukovych on a "road-map towards a political solution" before going on to talks with opposition leaders.

They returned for another meeting with Mr Yanukovych in the evening and the talks continued through the night.

Thousands of protesters on the Maidan remained on high alert overnight, amid fears of new police attacks

A video still released earlier shows a riot policeman standing next to a sniper firing in Kiev

Dozens of activists were injured, some seriously

Early on Friday, the presidency said "parties agreed on the initialling of an agreement to resolve the crisis", but gave no further details.
Continue reading the main story
Key dates
21 Nov 2013: Ukraine suspends trade deal with the EU, triggering protests
30 Nov: Riot police injure dozens in crackdown
17 Dec: Russia agrees investment deal with Kiev
19 Jan 2014: Several die in clashes between demonstrators and police
18 Feb: Civilians and police officers killed in clashes
20 Feb: A truce breaks down and dozens die in the worst day of violence since protests began
Why is Ukraine in crisis?

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk had earlier said Mr Yanukovych had been willing to hold an early election, which is one of the protesters' main demands.

The opposition has not said anything to confirm the government's claim of a deal.

Earlier in the crisis, opposition leaders refused to agree anything with the government until they gained the approval of protesters.

Analysts say that after Thursday's killings, the split between protesters and the government is becoming impossible to bridge.

Video footage showed protesters walking directly towards the police, even as they fired handguns and rifles.

Police also shot protesters who went to help wounded colleagues.

Some of the protesters were armed with hunting rifles, and some threw petrol bombs.

There were also reports that dozens of police had been taken hostage.

But most of the protesters were unarmed, and tried to protect themselves from the bullets with homemade shields.


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Activist Kateryna Overchenko explains how the Mikhailivsky monastery in Kiev is now a makeshift hospital

MPs assembled for a session of parliament on Thursday afternoon voted to condemn the violence.

They also called for the use of weapons against protesters to be banned, and for troops and police deployed against them to be withdrawn.

The session was attended by 239 out of 450 MPs, most of them from opposition parties.

A presidential statement blamed the opposition for the violence, and dismissed calls for a truce as "nothing but a way of playing for time to mobilise and arm militants".

Are you in Ukraine? Have you seen or taken part in any of the protests? Email your stories to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with the subject heading 'Ukraine'.