Vitali Klitschko, the leader of the Ukrainian opposition party UDAR, calls on U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns at a meeting in the U.S. to impose international sanctions on particular Ukrainian officials responsible for selective justice, political reprisals and human rights abuses in Ukraine.
“It’s they, and not Ukraine in general or its people, who should be the target of sanctions,” UDAR quoted Klitschko as saying on Thursday.
The incumbent Ukrainian authorities disregard democratic values and the people’s living standards, rights and freedoms, he said.
“President [Viktor] Yanukovych poses a threat of changing the country’s foreign policy vector and is leading the country toward international isolation. Therefore, it is time for Yanukovych and his team to be held personally accountable for consequences of such actions,” Klitschko said.
While in Washington, Klitschko also discussed the situation in Ukraine with Senator John McCain and Freedom House Director David Kramer.
