The US embassy in Kiev expressed the US support for the Ukrainian authorities ’decision to impose sanctions against three Ukrainian channels, allegedly funded by Russia.
This came in a statement by the embassy published on its Facebook page, commenting on the approval of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky on the Security and National Defense Council resolution imposing five-year sanctions against Ukraine, NewsOne and ZIK TV channels, and its owner, Taras Kozak, deputy parliament from the Al Qaeda party. The opposition – for life, “as the aforementioned channels’ positions are in favor of one of the leaders of this opposition party, Victor Medvedchuk.
The embassy said in its statement that the United States “supports the efforts aimed at countering Russia’s evil influence, which Ukraine made yesterday to preserve its sovereignty and territorial integrity, based on Ukrainian legislation.”
The Ukrainian presidential spokeswoman, Yulia Mendel, considered that the restrictions imposed on the three channels, including the freezing of their properties, the cancellation or freezing of licenses granted, and the ban on the use of the frequency spectrum of Ukrainian broadcasters, “are not related to restrictions on freedom of expression.”
Mendel said that the sanctions against the three channels were imposed after these channels were “proven” to have received funding from Russia.
For his part, Zelensky said that the imposition of sanctions was a “difficult decision” for him, adding that the Ukrainian authorities “support freedom of expression and not propaganda funded by an aggressor country.”
The opposition “Al Qaeda – for Life” party announced its intention to initiate procedures to dismiss Zelensky, describing what happened as “a manifestation of dictatorship” in the country.
The Kremlin condemned the sanctions imposed by the Ukrainian authorities, noting that imposing restrictions on the media is inconsistent with international laws.
The Kremlin denied that the TV channels were funded by Russia, adding that what happened “should attract the attention of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and other international organizations.”
Source: Novosti
