File photo of Petro Poroshenko
Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko said the Friday signing of an association accord with the EU marked a "historic day" that offered his ex-Soviet country a fresh start after years of political instability.
The accord, which will seal closer political and economic ties with the European Union, offered "an absolutely new perspective for my country ... it is a historic day, the most important day since independence" from Moscow in 1991, Poroshenko said as he arrived for the signing ceremony in Brussels.