Brussels – Foreign Minister of Ukraine Leonid Kozhara has assured members of the European Parliament that if any members of the Svoboda all-Ukrainian union violate the law, they will be prosecuted.
He also said that he regrets the cooperation of the opposition parliamentary parties Batkivschyna and UDAR with this “radical party.”
Kozhara was speaking in Brussels on Monday during a sitting of the EP Foreign Affairs Committee after MEPs said they were concerned by the cooperation of the Ukrainian opposition with Svoboda.
“I’m absolutely sure that if any Svoboda members break the law, the ruling party and political system in Ukraine will immediately take him to the court. We’re very upset that today this radical party is a part of the united opposition, and I don’t think that this fact makes the united opposition more progressive and more pro-European,” Kozhara said.
Moreover, he told those present at the sitting that sometimes Svoboda’s political slogans are very close to communist ones.
“The opposition isn’t united – they call themselves an integral unit, but reality shows that they aren’t united. They demonstrate differences of opinions on similar things,” Kozhara told the MEPs.
As reported, MEP Marek Siwiec stated during the sitting in Brussels on Monday that “for me, this party is the worst phenomenon, which presents an anti-Semitic position, and fights against gays and lesbians,” the MEP said, referring to Svoboda. He also said that doesn’t understand why opposition parliamentary factions Batkivschyna and UDAR cooperate with the Svoboda.
Earlier, a similar statement was made by MEP Kristian Vigenin, who according to reports of MEPs, could soon head the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry.
