Ukrainian parliament speaker and presidential candidate Volodymyr Lytvyn has said that "Ukraine is a bilingual country historically," so all regional communities can individually choose the language of their communication.
He said this at a meeting with residents of Armiansk and Krasnohvardiyske in Crimea, his press service reported on Thursday.
"Of course, most people from southern and eastern Ukraine prefer Russian while speaking in court, passing tests, or reading leaflets on medicines. So it’s necessary to respect the choice of people, in particular, their desire to speak their native languages," Lytvyn said.
He also stressed the need to bar politicians from "speculating on the language issue."
"When they stay in power, they forget about their promises and conduct Ukrainization. After returning to opposition, politicians again start talking about the status of the Russian language," Lytvyn said.
