Ukraine Burning

Check out more episodes of VICE News here: Kiev’s Euromaidan protesters began 2014 the same way they ended 2013: by rioting in the streets in an attempt to bring down their government. Key victories have already been won, with Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and his cabinet resigning. The demonstrators also forced the annulment of a new anti-protest law that was, ironically, the cause of much of their protesting. The protesters haven’t been contented by this, however, and are still out in the streets, demanding the head of President Viktor Yanukovych and the staging of fresh elections. What began as a protest against the Ukrainian government’s close ties with Russian leader Vladimir Putin has become a focus for wider discontent. However, Yanukovych seems in no mood to relinquish his power. As the social unrest spreads across the country, its first post-Soviet President, Leonid Kravchuk, has gone as far as to warn that Ukraine is on the brink of civil war. Dozens of people have lost their lives in just the last two days of violence. At the end of January, VICE flew to Kiev as rioters hurled Molotov cocktails at police and the city turned into a battlefield. Subscribe to VICE News here: Sign up for the Beta at Follow VICE News here: Facebook: Twitter: Tumblr: