He doesn't need to. Yanukovych can retire to a country home in east Ukraine or Russia, and they simply need elections free from US and EU interference, and who

He doesn't need to. Yanukovych can retire to a country home in east Ukraine or Russia, and they simply need elections free from US and EU interference, and whoever the new Party of Regions candidate is will win. UDAR, Fatherland, and Svoboda will split the pro-EU vote (as they did in the most recent elections), and the Party of Regions will wind up winning again. Given free elections, Putin doesn't even need to rig anything, the PoR actually is the dominant political party in Ukraine (which is why the opposition overthrew them - they knew they couldn't win). Yanukovych came to power when the opposition controlled things, if anyone doesn't remember...