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Yanukovych did not order police to shoot at people

Authorities started providing police with weapons when protesters started shooting

© EPA/YEVGENY MALOLETKA

ROSTOV-ON-DON, February 28. /ITAR-TASS/. Ukraine's Viktor Yanukovych stated that he didn't give any orders to police to shoot at people.

“I did not give any orders to police to shoot. Police were unarmed...And when people started shooting, only then authorities started providing police with weapons. According to law police have right for self-defence, moreover, when attacks are massive,” Yanukovich told a news conference in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don on Friday.

He also noted that he did not regret that talks were conducted particularly with ultra-nationalistic Right Sector during dramatic events on central Kiev’s Independence Square. “We have been in official talks with representatives of official opposition, in other talks with Maidan representatives, there were many such talks seeking to avert bloodshed,” he noted. “There was nothing bad in this. But it is a great pity that the situation was not settled in this way,” Yanukovich said.

“You know my position, but I want to repeat that I cannot accept other ways of settling problems, except for peaceful ways. No power costs a drop of blood shed there,” he added.

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