Ukraine at crossroads as talks of a split increase

LVIV, Ukraine - Protesters control public buildings, hold mock trials for government officials and create their own governing councils, speaking of 'autonomy' in this western city.

It's a scene increasingly playing out in other parts of the country, as party officials in the east and south talk of secession, holding an emergency meeting Saturday to consider what to do next even as the country's security service warns against a split.

As the nation spirals out of control, people on both sides are calling for a break up - a move once considered unthinkable in spite of the deep divisions that exist in this former Soviet country.

It's clear that Ukraine - a nation of 46 million in which half the country looks toward the West and the other toward Russia - is at a crossroads, analysts say.

'They are all Ukrainian, whether they speak Ukrainian or Russian,' said Ben Tonra, associate professor of international relations at University College Dublin in Ireland. 'The challenge that the Ukrainian nation has is coming to an agreement on where the future of Ukraine rests - and as there are different opinions now leading to the point of civil violence, this is the context in which Ukraine has to make the decision.'

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The Party of Regions held an emergency meeting Saturday with more than 2,000 deputies of all levels from the eastern and southern regions in the eastern city of Kharkiv, the unofficial capital of the Russian-speaking heartland where Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fled Saturday - just before lawmakers voted to remove him - as protesters took over key sections of the capital Kiev.

This region is largely made up of Russian-speakers loyal to their larger neighbor, and is the base of the president's Party of Regions.

Here, offices of the ultra-right wing Freedom Party as well as buildings used by opposition leader Viktor Klitschko's Udar party were attacked in the cities of Kharkiv, Dnepropetrovsk and Krivoy Rog over the past week.

As officials here have denounced protesters and demanded a crackdown against them, some have mulled independence.

Crimea, a pro-Moscow, autonomous republic within Ukraine, may secede if the country descends into chaos, the head of the Crimean parliament, Vladimir Konstantinov, told lawmakers earlier this week, according to Russian media. He added that he believes 'the country is heading toward a split.'

In the west, protesters have taken over in the cities of Jhmelnytskyi, Ivano-Frankivsk, Uzhhorod and Ternopi. In Lviv and other cities, they have replaced councils with their own - lawmakers in Lviv ousted their Yanukovych-appointed governor earlier this week, and set up an autonomous government.

On the roads and highways of the region, the opposition mans checkpoints and has lit candles for the victims of this week's violence after as many as 100 were killed Thursday alone.

People in this region are declaring allegiance to the Kiev protesters, who called opposition leaders 'traitors' Friday for agreeing to a deal that didn't include Yanukovych's resignation.

On Saturday, Lviv residents expressed defiance as they mourned Bogdan Solchunuk, a 29-year-old history professor and tour guide from the western city, who was killed in the violence that exploded in Kiev on Thursday.

Outside a centuries-old Greek Orthodox Church in the city's old town, people sang, prayed and cried as they recalled his life and how he went to the capital to help protesters.

'He was our future - we have lost so many bright people,' said Christina Keruystska, who joined the 2,000 gathered to show her allegiance. 'His death gives us an obligation to live better.'

Many expressed a grim determination to continue the fight for freedom as Yanukovych refuses to resign.

'It's our duty,' said Oles Olesyuk, a friend of Bogdan's. 'When it's time, we will go there,' he added, referring to Independence Square in Kiev.

In spite of the chaos and uncertainty, some say a nationwide split is unlikely.

'I think that is a venting of frustration,' said Vitaly Chernetsky, president of the American Association for Ukrainian Studies in Cambridge, Mass, of the talk of a split.

'In 1994, when Ukrainian government unilaterally agreed in a negotiation between the West and Russia to give up its share of the Soviet nuclear arsenal, both the United States and Russia signed on as guarantors of Ukraine's safety and territorial integrity,' he added. 'This is a really serious thing, and the breach of that treaty would put the whole world on notice. So I think that the decision makers in all countries would well advised to recall the treaty and its consequences.'

Lawmakers in a special session of parliament Saturday warned against the separatist mood in Ukraine, saying it was time to save the country.

'All of you who think you can save your stolen money through a split, you are wrong,' said lawmaker Vyacheslav Kerilenko. 'We are united, there is no split. And anyone promoting that will end up in jail.'

Meanwhile, in the church in Lviv, many lined up to put bills in the donation box for the families of those who were injured or killed in the violence earlier this week.

Jabeen Bhatti reported from Berlin. Contributing: Luigi Serenelli from Berlin. USA NOW First Bitcoin ATMs unveiled in U.S. | USA NOW

'People need to take responsibility now,' said Rev. Stepan Sus, the dean of the church, speaking to the crowd. 'A new president or prime minister will not solve our problems.'