The EU says it is putting on hold work on a key trade agreement with Ukraine, saying the government's arguments have "no grounds in reality". Protesters have taken to the streets in support of the agreement, which was rejected by the government.
Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered on Kiev's Independence Square, protesting against President Viktor Yanukovich and his plans for closer ties with Russia.
The protesters are furious that the government decided to ditch a landmark pact with the European Union in favour of closer economic cooperation with Moscow, Ukraine's Soviet-era overlord.
A group of protesters managed to topple a statue of Lenin in the centre of the city.
The 3,5 metre high statue of the 1917 Bolshevik revolution leader had stood there since 1946. Opposition leaders denied any link to its removal.
The demonstrators have erected blockades to defend the central Independence Square - now transformed into a tent village, sustained by donations of food and clothing - from any police attempt to retake it.
After last weekend's violent clashes between riot police and protesters, the atmosphere was calmer.
Near the presidential office, facing heavily-shielded riot police, protesters took turns playing a piano with EU sign on it.
There is an urgent need for de-escalation in Ukraine as President Yanukovich tries to calm a country bitterly divided over years of history.
Ukraine's political and economic landscape is stuck between old Soviet masters in Russia and the democratising ideals offered by the EU.