The Ukrainian authorities will either respond to their people's expectations, or the country will plunge into chaos, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland said.

The eyes of the entire world are on Ukraine today, Nuland said at a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Ministerial Council in Kyiv on Thursday.

The Ukrainian leaders will now either meet the interests of their people or will disappoint them, in which case Ukraine may encounter chaos and violence, she said.