Thousands of protesters poured into Independence Square in Kiev yesterday to demand that the Ukrainian government sign a landmark agreement with the EU.

It came a day after leaders stunned the nation by saying they were pulling out of the deal. Up to 3000 people gathered in the square to back a move towards the West and away from the Moscow-aligned course of president Viktor Yanukovych.

It was the day Ukraine marked the anniversary of the pro-west Orange Revolution. Similar rallies were held in other cities, with a bigger protest planned in Kiev today.