BRUSSELS, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- The NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and also leaders from Croatia and Latvia, among others, have called on an end of violence in Ukraine on Wednesday.

　　"Ukraine's ties with NATO will be seriously damaged" on escalation of violence in Ukraine, said Rasmussen in his statement.

　　On Tuesday and in the early hours of Wednesday, at least 26 people died in street clashes between the police and protesters in Kiev. The confrontation also left hundreds of protesters and police officers injured.

　　The unrest marked the latest wave of clashes between demonstrators and police in the almost three-month-long political standoff, which began last November as demonstrations calling for the country's European integration.