Ukraine President, Opposition Sign Deal to End Crisis

Ukraine's embattled leader signed a deal Friday with the opposition in a bid to end the ex-Soviet country's worst crisis since independence after three days of carnage left nearly 100 protesters dead.

But President Viktor Yanukovych's dramatic decision to hold early elections and form a new unity government while granting amnesty for those involved in the violence was met with skepticism or even hostility by nearly 40,000 protesters who gathered on central Kiev's main square -- many of them frustrated the leader was not stepping down.

"Elections in December are not enough -- he has to leave now," said one demonstrator, 34-year-old Oleh Bukoyenko.

Ukraine's parliament adopted a flurry of opposition-backed laws within hours of the deal's signing. They need the president's backing before entering into force.

One of the unexpected key votes was to amend a law that could see opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko freed from prison where she has been since just after the president took power in 2010.

The chamber also approved a call on the president to dismiss acting Interior Minister Vitaliy Zakharchenko -- a hate figure in the opposition who is blamed for ordering the police to open fire on unarmed protesters.

The new unity government to be formed would have the authority to reverse the inflammatory decision Yanukovych made in November to ditch a historic deal promising a path to EU membership in favor of closer ties to former master Russia.

But many protesters told Agence France Presse that the deal represented too little and did little to repair days of vicious bloodletting in which police used snipers and armored vehicles against demonstrators who fought back with bats while wearing makeshift protection.

"These steps were what we needed but I think it is now too late after all the blood that has been spilt," said 58-year-old Sergiy Yanchukov.

"It was a crime against humanity and Yanukovych should be sent to The Hague (home of the International Criminal Court)."

Kiev authorities have put the death toll from the past few days at 77.

But opposition medics said more than 60 protesters were shot dead by police on Thursday alone -- a toll that combined with the 28 victims on Tuesday put the final count at nearly 100 dead.

Life appeared to be returning to normal in much of Kiev as the city's vital metro network resumed service after being shut down to keep protesters from reaching Independence Square on Tuesday night.

However the radicalization of the opposition, furious at the live ammunition used against it, was visceral, with protesters chanting "death to the criminal" in Kiev's iconic Independence Square overnight.

The peace deal was worked out after two days of intense mediation by the foreign ministers of European powers France and Germany along with Ukraine's cultural ally Poland -- acting on behalf of EU officials who had earlier imposed travel bans on Kiev leaders responsible for the violence.

The pact was signed in the presidential palace's Blue Hall by Yanukovych and top opposition leaders who included charismatic boxer turned lawmaker Vitali Klitschko.

But Russian President Vladimir Putin's representative pointedly missed the meeting and his name card was taken off the table at the signature ceremony.

Envoy Vladimir Lukin said upon his return to Moscow that he skipped the signature ceremony "because several questions remain unanswered".

"The consultations will continue," Lukin said in comments that suggested Moscow still held out hope of somehow revising the deal.

The foreign ministry in Moscow added that Lukin's lack of signature did not mean that "Russia does not want compromise". Russia has already blasted the EU sanctions as "bullying".

The Russian stance underlined tensions between the West and Russia over Ukraine. Each side accused the other of exacerbating problems in a nation whose population is divided in pro-West and pro-Russian camps.

The U.S. government welcomed the peace deal and commended the "courageous opposition leaders" for their compromise.

The United States and the European Union urged immediate implementation of the deal.

One possible challenge to its implementation remains the fractured state of the opposition.

It has no one leader and quite disparate goals.

Klitschko is the closest to the deeply fragmented protest movement but limits to his sway over the most militant elements of the opposition has been repeatedly exposed in the course of the standoff.

"Even early elections this December do not guarantee that this crisis is over," said Penta political research institute analyst Volodymyr Fesenko.

"The big question now is whether the Maidan (Independence Square) support this solution."