Turbulence in the east has triggered violence in Ukraine’s parliament which has passed a law envisaging long jail terms for acts against the country’s territorial integrity. <br /><br /> But as Kyiv moved to assert its authority, communist leader Petro Symonenko told the chamber that demonstrators’ demands should be listened to.<br /><br /> “You are today doing everything to intimidate people. You arrest people, start fighting people who have a different point of view,” he said.<br /><br /> He also accused nationalists of setting a precedent by seizing public buildings when they had protested against the rule of now ousted President Viktor Yanukovych.<br /><br /> Two members from the Svoboda far-right party took exception to the charges and seized Symonenko at the rostrum. Supporters rallied to his defence and a brawl broke out with deputies from other parties joining in and trading punches.<br /><br /> It comes as a war of words continues between Moscow and the West.<br /><br /> NATO warned Moscow on Tuesday of “grave consequences” to its relationship with the West if it intervened further in Ukraine.<br /><br /> But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov dismissed <br />US accusations that Moscow was destabilising Ukraine, saying the situation could improve only if the interests of Russian speakers were taken into account.
