Ukraine police battle protesters, teargas used

About 1,000 protesters clashed with equal numbers of riot police in central Kiev on Wednesday, a day after the former Soviet republic's parliament passed a contentious bill upgrading the official status of the Russian language.
   
Police fired teargas as they tried to push the protesters away from a building where President Viktor Yanukovich had planned to hold a news briefing.
  
Yanukovich called off the briefing, where he was expected to speak about Ukraine's hosting of the Euro 2012 soccer championship, at the last minute, according to Interfax news agency.
  
Instead, he called an urgent meeting with parliament speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn, who tendered his resignation on Wednesday morning, and leaders of major factions.

Ukraine may have to hold an early parliamentary election if the crisis in the chamber, triggered by the passing of a contentious language law, persists, President Viktor Yanukovich said on Wednesday.
   
Yanukovich met the heads of several parliament factions on Wednesday to discuss what he called a crisis in the legislature after its speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn offered to resign.
   
"Yanukovich did not rule out that, if (deputies) fail to stabilise parliament's work, it will be necessary to move on to the early parliamentary election procedure," his office said in a statement.
   
On Tuesday, the chamber rushed through a bill boosting the official status of the Russian language, prompting outrage among the opposition and scuffles both in parliament and on the streets of capital Kiev.
   
A regular parliamentary election is scheduled for October.

REUTERS