Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said on Tuesday the international legal framework of Ukrainian-Russian bilateral relations should be improved.
The statement came several hours after the country's opposition, headed by former president Viktor Yuschenko and former premier Yulia Tymoshenko, staged a rally protesting Yanukovych's "betrayal" of Ukraine.
Pro-Russian Yanukovych has already signed several important agreements with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, including one to prolong the lease on a Russian Navy base in the Ukrainian Crimea and regulate the disputed gas deal.
Yanukovych said almost every article in the treaty of Friendship, Partnership and Cooperation between Ukraine and Russia provides for the preparation and signing of new agreements, particularly in the development of joint economic projects, industrial cooperation and humanitarian policy.
"For a long time, this potential has gone unused by the two countries. We have to admit this. But a breakthrough in bilateral relations has now been achieved," Ukrainian news agency UNIAN quoted Yanukovych as saying.
The signing of a range of bilateral agreements is planned for Medvedev's visit to Ukraine on May 17-18.
KIEV, May 11 (RIA Novosti)
