The White House previously threatened sanctions on Ukraine if the violence continues. Biden pushes Ukraine solution

WASHINGTON — Vice President Joe Biden says there’s no time to lose in bringing about a peaceful resolution to a standoff between Ukraine’s government and protesters.

Biden called Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych on Monday. It’s the second time Biden has spoken to Yanukovych in less than a week.


The White House said Biden offered U.S. support for negotiations to end the standoff. The call comes as Yanukovych is agreeing to scrap harsh anti-protest laws that set off clashes.

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Biden warned Yanukovych against harsh security measures like declaring a state of emergency that he said would further inflame the situation. He called for Ukraine to pull back riot police and to respond to the Ukrainian people’s grievances.

The White House has previously threatened sanctions on Ukraine if the use of violence continues.

Earlier Monday, Ukraine’s beleaguered president agreed to scrap harsh anti-protest laws that set off a wave of clashes between protesters and police over the past week, a potentially substantial concession to the opposition that stopped short of meeting all of its demands.

In a possibly major sticking point, a proposed amnesty for arrested protesters would not be offered unless demonstrators stopped occupying buildings and ended their round-the-clock protests and tent camp on Kiev’s central Independence Square, according to a statement by Justice Minister Elena Lukash on the presidential website.

Protest leaders say scores of people have gone missing, presumably arrested.Three protesters died in the clashes last week, two of whom were shot by hunting rifles, which police insist they do not use.