Russia was critical of the decision taken by the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine to impose sanctions against the head of the political council of the Opposition Platform - For Life (Opposition Platform - For Life) party Viktor Medvedchuk and several other citizens of Russia and Ukraine.
So, the deputy head of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev called this decision of the Kiev authorities "illegal absurdity."
“The recent closure of several opposition channels was not enough for them.
And now another political pirouette - the imposition of sanctions against the leader of the Opposition Platform - For Life party Viktor Medvedchuk and his wife Oksana Marchenko, ”TASS quotes Medvedev.
The deputy head of the Security Council expressed the opinion that by such actions the Ukrainian authorities are trying to divert attention from their own failures.
However, such steps will not stop the fall in the ratings of Volodymyr Zelensky and ultimately undermine the credibility of official Kiev, which “put the political inquisition above the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens,” Medvedev is sure.
He also recalled that Medvedchuk remains one of the few Ukrainian politicians who has consistently advocated the restoration of relations between Moscow and Kiev.
“Kiev made a breakthrough in the development of democracy - it introduced restrictions against its own citizens.
Without any investigation and trial.
This has not been done since the period when the so-called troikas of the NKVD, without unnecessary formalities such as trials, decided the fate of people, sending them to camps or sentencing them to death, ”the politician said.
“It’s incomprehensible to my mind that this is possible today, in the 21st century, especially in a country that is desperately eager to join the European Union ... eyes on the floor, as if nothing happened in the country, which they used to cover in everything, "Medvedev added.
Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin is concerned about the NSDC decision to impose sanctions against Medvedchuk and other Ukrainian citizens.
According to him, this step shows a "reactionary tendency" that is gaining strength in Ukraine, which manifests itself in both the political and social spheres.
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He also called it incorrect to draw parallels between the policies of Moscow and Kiev, since in Russia there are no such situations with the persecution of the opposition, in particular, no one closes the media.
“You see that extremely opposition-minded media continue to work in the Russian Federation and no one closes them overnight, so it’s silly to draw any parallels here,” Peskov added.
"No one in Russia suddenly takes away all property, does not impose sanctions against their own citizens just because they have certain nuances or differences with the government, with the president in solving the most pressing problems of society."
In turn, the head of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, Konstantin Kosachev, in an interview with TASS, stressed that the actions of the Ukrainian authorities should be the subject of consideration in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and PACE, since we are talking about the introduction of sanctions against members of the Verkhovna Rada.
"This is an extrajudicial reprisal by the authorities over political opponents, nothing more," the senator said, calling the NSDC sanctions against their own citizens an unprecedented and illegal phenomenon.
Meeting of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine
© president.gov.ua
As a reminder, following the NSDC meeting on February 19, sanctions were imposed on five Russians and three citizens of Ukraine, including Medvedchuk and Marchenko, as well as against 19 legal entities.
According to NSDC Secretary Alexei Danilov, restrictive measures are imposed on their property and assets, criminal proceedings have been opened under the article on financing terrorism.
Commenting on the decision, the secretary of the National Security Council on the air of the "Freedom of Speech Savik Shuster" program said that the NSDC intends to continue the policy of applying restrictions to the Verkhovna Rada deputies: “Believe me, in the near future, at the next NSDC meetings you will see even more and more interesting ".
Viktor Medvedchuk himself, speaking about the sanctions imposed against him and his wife, said that in this way the Ukrainian authorities "showed their true colors."
According to him, after the illegitimate closure of three opposition channels, official Kiev "seeks to crack down on the opposition legally elected by the Ukrainian people."
“What the authorities are doing today can only be called a triumph of lawlessness, anarchy and lawlessness,” the parliamentarian stressed.
The HLE co-chairman added that he will not leave the country and intends to continue the fight against his political opponents: “As long as they are in power, as long as the law and common sense are forgotten, as long as basic human rights are violated, not a single citizen of Ukraine can feel safe.
That is why the authorities strive to deal with me, our party, and independent TV channels at any cost, realizing that I am with those millions of our citizens who are against this bankrupt government.
And every day there will be more and more of us ”.