Latest facts catch-up:

Feb. 21, President Yanukovych signed a peace deal with major opposition leaders to end the 3-month- standoff in Ukraine;

Feb. 22, Ukraine Parliament held a special convention where senior leaders of the Ukraine Parliament resigned and opposition leaders took power. The agreement signed on the previous day was rendered null as the legislature voted to oust President Yanukovych and to hold an early election on May 25; On the same day, former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenco was released from prison;

Feb. 23, speaker of the Ukraine Parliament was named interim president of the country.

In this article we present you some comments from Chinese experts on this undeniably dramatic turn of events.

"The Orange Revolution magnified the rift between east and west Ukraine, and among different fronts of political powers in the country, which Ukrainian politicians and the public have failed to heal over the past decade," said He Wei, director of the Ukraine Studies Department of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"The opposition leaders don't have a candidate of sufficient prestige on their list of names, so their only option is Tymoshenco. But problems faced by the current administration will still be there for the next President, and if her tainted legacy from the 1990s is raised by the opposition, the situation in Ukraine could once again deteriorate," commented Shen Dingli, director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University.

"If Tymoshenko gets elected, she will have to maintain a balance both within her country and between Ukraine's relationships with Russia and the West, an extremely challenging feat. Right now, the problem of Ukraine seems to have no solution," said Li Xing, director of Beijing Normal University's Asian and European Studies.

On the question whether he thinks Ukraine will join the European Union, Shen said: "The insufficient power of the EU has been shaking the resolve of Ukraine to join it, but eventually Ukraine will become an EU member. However, as a poor country, Ukraine will not be treated equally and will suffer discrimination in the EU."

Li believes that Ukraine will gain more pragmatic benefits by leaning towards Russia. According to him, Russia attaches great importance to Ukraine economically, especially in terms of energy. Ukraine may play second fiddle among the CIS, but will have to compete for significance with another 30 or more countries if it joins the EU. Remote from other EU members, it is likely that Ukraine will get unequal treatment once in the Union.

"In the long run, it might be in the interests of Ukraine to join the EU, but it's a bit like choosing between the ideal and the reality. Unfortunately, I think the Ukrainians have a penchant for going for the extreme." Li said.

The article is edited and translated from 《乌克兰从“平衡木”上跌落》, source: People's Daily Overseas Edition, author: Yang Ziyan.