Ukraine unrest: Former presidents back mass protests
Ukraine's three previous post-Soviet
presidents have given their support to anti-government protesters.
Leonid Kravchuk, Leonid Kuchma and Viktor Yushchenko expressed "solidarity" with peaceful demonstrations, according to Mr Yushchenko's party website.
Tens of thousands have surrounded government buildings in Kiev.
The protesters are angry at the government's decision not to sign an association deal with the EU.
'European aspirations'
"We express solidarity with the peaceful civic actions of hundreds of thousands of young Ukrainians," the three former presidents said in a statement.
They condemned "the excessive use of force against peaceful demonstrators" and called on all sides to refrain from further violence.
They urged protest leaders and the government to engage in "open dialogue", taking into account "the European aspirations of the Ukrainian people".
Mr Yushchenko, Mr Kuchma and Mr Kravchuk (left-right)
are pictured watching a football match together in September There is concern for nine people beaten by police at the major demonstration in Kiev on 1 December. Relatives say six are in intensive care while three others are in prison medical units, and have been denied legal assistance.
Thirty-five people arrested as they attended the same protest have been detained for two months while they await trial.
Friends of those held say they were ordinary citizens rather than activists or protest organisers.
Thousands of demonstrators remain in Independence Square and outside the government buildings in Kiev.
Pro-presidential supporters also held a counter rally in the city of Donetsk.
Meanwhile Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned Nato against interfering in Ukraine.
"I hope that Ukrainian politicians will be able to resolve the situation peacefully," he said at a meeting with Nato foreign ministers in Brussels on Wednesday.
Nato had earlier condemned the use of "excessive force" against pro-European protesters.
Pressure from Russia
Mr Lavrov's comments came after Ukraine's Prime Minister Mykola Azarov called on the opposition to stop escalating political tensions.
He warned protesters that anybody found guilty of violating the constitution and laws would be punished.
Mr Azarov was speaking in a live broadcast from the first cabinet meeting since mass street protests began just over a week ago.
The government survived a no-confidence vote in parliament on Tuesday.
The protests are the largest since the pro-democracy
Orange Revolution in 2004.
They were sparked after President Viktor Yanukovych abruptly froze plans to sign the EU trade and reform deal last month, under pressure from Russia.
Viktor Yanukovych
- Born into family of a metalworker and a nurse in July 1950
- Began career as transport executive in coal-mining industry in Soviet era.
- Later served as governor of Donetsk region - country's economic powerhouse and home to more than three million people
- Appointed prime minister in November 2002
- Ousted from power by the 2004 Orange Revolution, but returned as PM in 2006-07 and won presidential election in 2010
'Deepening distrust'
Mr Yanukovych has begun a three-day official visit to
China in what is reported to be a bid to forge closer economic ties.
Another Ukrainian delegation is holding talks with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow, whose customs union Ukraine has agreed to join.
Mr Azarov said earlier this week he would be sending representatives to Brussels to renew talks on the EU deal.
Both he and Mr Yanukovych are facing calls for their resignation from the protesters.
The three former presidents said demonstrators felt a "deepening distrust" towards the government.
Mr Kravchuk, 79, became Ukraine's first president after it gained independence from the USSR in 1991. He was succeeded by Mr Kuchma, now 75, in 1994 and Mr Yushchenko came to power in 2005.
