You're reading: Where is Viktor Yanukovych? (VIDEO, UPDATE)

Today's great guessing game is where ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych is hiding out. Border guards said they stopped his plane in Donetsk trying to leave the country on Feb. 22, but have not said anything publicly today. Member of parliament Vitali Klitschko said today that he doesn't know where Yanukovych went, nor were his whereabouts disclosed in parliament today. Amid the uncertainty, rumors have swirled, with places such as the United Arab Emirates or Russia as possible destinations abroad or, if he's still in Ukraine, somewhere in his home oblast of Donetsk, where he was the regional governor for several years. 

A videotape shot at an unknown location and released to the pro-government UBR business channel for broadcast on Feb. 22 is all that Yanukovych left the public for clues. 

Here is the video with English subtitles:

 

Ex-President Viktor Yanukovych’s videotaped message, released on Feb. 22, the same day he fled Kyiv and possibly Ukraine.

Security video of Yanukovych fleeing Mezhyhyria

Closed-circuit camera footage caught the former president hastily fleeing his lavish Mezhyhirya compound outside Kyiv either late on Feb. 21, or early in the morning on Feb. 22, but doesn’t provide clues as to where he fled. It shows large trucks in the compound carrying unknown contents, and two helicopters lifting off from the estate’s helipad.

Footage of the ex-president fleeing his Mezhyhirya estate outside Kyiv either late on Feb. 21, or early in the morning on Feb. 22.

Rybak accuses Yanukovych of lying

Meanwhile, former Verkhovna Rada speaker Volodymyr Rybak, a longtime loyalist said Yanukovych’s claim that he resigned as parliament speaker because he was assaulted is “absurd.” Rybak released a video saying he was in Donetsk, a city where he once served as mayor.

Here are the key excerpts of Rybak’s remarks in the Feb. 23 video:

“Yesterday I arrived to Donetsk to receive medical treatment.
I think it may take several days , and then I’ll go back to work as a member of Verkhovna Rada. The information about me being injured after my car being shot is false and absurd. When I realized that the current power was experiencing reformation, I decided to write a letter of resignation from the post as head of the Verkhovna Rada. I opened the way for the formation of the new power and the new government. nd at the end of my treatment, I will go back to work in the Verkhovna Rada. I will do everything to save Ukraine ‘s sovereignty , and make it the best country in Europe.”

Ex-Verkhovna Rada speaker Volodymyr Rybak addresses the public, saying that ex-President Viktor Yanukovych lied about him being hospitalized.


Yefremov accuses Yanukovych of ‘criminal orders’ to kill people, steal from nation

Party of Regions head Oleksandr Yefremov, once a staunch Yanukovych ally, came out against the former president on Feb. 22, saying that “The Party of Regions faction and members of our party, strongly condemn the criminal orders that led to human victims, an empty state treasury, huge debts, shame before the eyes of the Ukrainian people and the entire world.”

Oleksandr Yefremov reads a statement on behalf of the Party of Regions in which he states that Yanukovych was responsible for the violence and bloodshed in Ukraine.

Below is a translated transcript of Oleksandr Yefremov’s statement:

“Dear compatriots!

“We are living through one of the most difficult and tragic periods in the history of our fatherland. Ukraine turned out to be robbed and cheated. But even that is nothing compared to the grief faced by dozens of Ukrainian families that lost their loved ones, family and friends on both sides of the confrontation. Ukraine has been betrayed and its people were pushed with their foreheads against one another. 

“Yanukovych and the circle of people closest to him are responsible for that. We, the Party of Regions faction and members of our party, strongly condemn the criminal orders that led to human victims, an empty state treasury, huge debts, shame before the eyes of the Ukrainian people and the entire world.

“As a result, our country has turned out to be on the verge of disaster, threat of splitting and loss of national sovereignty. Any attempts to influence the situation, to persuade the president were not heard. The multimillion-person party turned out to be a hostage of one corrupt family. The Party of Regions faction represents the interests of more than 10 million voters and more than a million of its members. Members of the Party of Regions are normal, hard-working people, who love their fatherland, their nation. These are manufacturers, scientists, workers, doctors and teachers. 

“We have come to the parliament in order to serve Ukraine and its people. The faction of the Party of Regions states that the difference in opinions and sometimes differences in ideology are not obstacles for mutual work for the benefit of Ukraine. There are different views, but our goal is one – a united, strong and independent Ukraine. We condemn Yanukovych’s scuttle and cowardice. We condemn his betrayal, criminal orders, which framed ordinary people, soldiers and officers. But attempts of total intimidation and lynching, destabilization of the situation throughout Ukraine are not acceptable in a normal democratic society. 

“Dear party fellows, I appeal to all of you, lawmaker of the Party of Regions, deputies of local councils, to all patriots of our party, we will do everything to protect you and fence around from those mistakes and crimes that have been made at the top. The Party of Regions faction, which is comprised of more than 100 lawmakers, continues to work for the benefit of people who have trusted us and for the benefit of the whole country.”