Ukrainian Prime Minister Resigns, Parliament Offers Concessions to Protesters

Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov resigned Tuesday, though demonstrations continued to rage in the country.

Azarov said that he would step down to encourage 'social and political compromise,' the BBC reported. President Viktor Yanukovych accepted the resignations of Azarov's cabinet as well.

Protesters have accused Azarov of mismanaging the economy and enabling corruption in the government. His resignation coincided with the Ukrainian parliament voting to annul a controversial anti-protest law that was recently instated as a means to discourage the opposition.

[READ: Reports of Ukrainian Police Shooting Protesters Spur Worldwide Outrage]

Parliament also discussed giving amnesty to more than 200 anti-government demonstrators that have been arrested since the protests began in late November. news3blog.blogspot.com reported lawmakers will continue to consider the measure Wednesday.

Though opposition members have called for Azarov and his cabinet to step down since the protests began, they say they will not stop until there is real change in not only the government, but also the country's constitution.

'We have to change not only the government, but the rules of the game as well,' opposition leader Vitali Klitschko said, according to Reuters. 'We are sure the struggle will continue.'

Though the protests began because of Yanukovych's decision to back out of a trade deal with Europe, they since have evolved into a mass demonstration against corruption and Yanukovych's regime, Reuters indicated.

[ALSO: Russia, Ukraine Strike Economic Deal in Face of Protests]

However, opposition leaders see the prime minister's resignation and other concessions passed by parliament as a step in the right direction.

'We have repealed all the laws against which the whole country rose up,' opposition leader and lawmaker Arseniy Yatsenyuk said after the anti-protest measures were repealed, according to The Associated Press.

Yanukovych previously offered Yatsenyuk the position of prime minister in an attempt to appease the opposition. However, Yatsenyuk turned down the offer.

'The present stalemate must be rapidly overcome,' European Council President Herman van Rompuy said, according to CNN. But he emphasized that the 'use of force is not the answer' to the present political strife in Ukraine.

More News: