Jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko on Friday urged street protests after the Ukrainian government scrapped plans to sign a key trade deal with the European Union.
Her call was expected to boost the number of protesters already on the streets of the politically volatile country, a day following Kiev's abrupt move to drop plans to sign an Association Agreement with the EU.
Nearly 3000 people marched through the fiercely pro-Western city of Lviv close to the border with the bloc on Friday, chanting "Revolution" as drivers honked their horns in support.
In a letter read out by her lawyer, Tymoshenko warned her nemesis, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych against making the "mistake of your life" and urged Ukrainians to take to the streets.
Signing the EU deal "is your only chance to survive as a politician", she said.
Kiev unexpectedly announced on Thursday that it was halting preparations to sign the deal at a summit in Vilnius next week, an accord which would have marked a historic break from Russia.
Amid Western accusations that Ukraine had bowed to Kremlin pressure, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday denied pushing Ukraine to back out of the deal.
The Kremlin, which wants Ukraine to join a Russia-led Customs Union, had threatened trade retaliation if Ukraine signed the deal.
Kiev announced its pullout from the deal after politicians failed to pass legislation that would have allowed Tymoshenko to travel to Germany for medical treatment, a key condition set by EU leaders for the agreement.
Prime Minister Mykola Azarov insisted before parliament on Friday that the decision was purely economic and did not change Ukraine's strategy of EU integration.
"The decision was hard, but the only possible one in this economic situation," Azarov said to cries of "shame" from opposition MPs.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague called the move a "missed opportunity", while EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said it was a "disappointment" for both the EU and the people of Ukraine.
The Association Agreement, which is seen as a first step to eventual EU membership, came with a major free trade deal that would have made Ukraine's membership of the Customs Union impossible.
EU officials have warned that failing to sign the agreement will close a window that may not open again for several years, with the EU Commission set to be renewed in 2014 and Ukraine facing presidential elections in 2015.
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