European Union: Prime Minister Mykola Azarov

Prime Minister Mykola Azarov: The two developments were significant concessions to the anti-government protesters who have fought sporadically with police for the last 10 days after two months of peaceful around-the-clock demonstrations. The protests erupted after President Viktor Yanukovych decided to turn toward Russia for a bailout loan instead of signing a deal with the European Union, but have since morphed into a general plea for more human rights, less corruption and more democracy in this nation of 45 million. , according to CBC. The departure of Prime Minister Mykola Azarov removes one of the officials most disliked by the opposition forces whose protests have turned parts of Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, into a barricaded maze. In back-to-back moves aimed at defusing Ukraine's political crisis, the prime minister resigned Tuesday and parliament repealed anti-protest laws that had set off violent clashes between protesters and police. In Ottawa Tuesday, Immigration Minister Chris Alexander and Foreign Minister John Baird announced that Canada is placing restrictions on entry to Canada for key Ukrainian officials "effective immediately," in response to the violence in Kyiv. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.