Ukraine's Foreign Ministry has invalidated diplomatic passports of
former Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, former Chairman of the Regions Party
faction in parliament Oleksandr Yefremov, former Deputy Prime Minister Borys
Kolesnikov and another 86 former government officials and lawmakers, according
to Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"Responding to media requests, we'd like to announce that being
guided by the rules and regulations regarding the use of the diplomatic passport
in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has invalidated
diplomatic passports of the mentioned Ukrainian citizens for the violation of
the rules by having failed to return their document to the Foreign Ministry
within the required period," the ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
"The ministry constantly works in cooperation with agencies
concerned to ensure observance of the rules regulating the use of diplomatic
passports of Ukraine. Under Ukrainian legislation, the Foreign Affairs Ministry
regularly updates the State Border Service of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Bureau
of Interpol on invalid diplomatic and official passports," the statement
said.
Clause 14 of the rules and regulations regarding the use of the
diplomatic passport in Ukraine, enacted by presidential decree No. 264/2015
dated May 12, 2015, states that bearers of diplomatic passports issued for
official trips abroad shall return such documents to the Foreign Ministry
within 10 days after a foreign trip is over, the ministry said. The violation
of the rules is the ground for invalidating a diplomatic passport.
A
list of persons who have been stripped of diplomatic passports also includes former Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov's son
Oleksiy, former MPs from the Regions Party Hanna Herman (she was the press
secretary of fugitive ex-President Viktor Yanukovych), Yuriy Ivaniuschenko (a
Ukrainian oligarch and Yanukovych's close ally), Artem Pshonka (fugitive former
Prosecutor General Viktor Pshonka's son), Mykola Rudkovsky (former transport
minister in 2006-2007), Oleh Tsariov (who was later elected "speaker of
Novorossiya parliament" of terrorist organizations Donetsk People's
Republic and Luhansk People's Republic).
On the list are also Artem Scherban (former governor of Donetsk and Sumy
regions Volodymyr Scherban's son), former MP from the Communist Party of
Ukraine Oksana Kaletnyk, former Justice Minister Oleksandr Lavrynovych, and
former Economic Development and Trade Minister Ihor Prasolov.
The list also mentions ex-Defense Minister Pavlo Lebedev (a politician
of Russian origin, member of the Regions Party, who worked as defense minister
December 2012 through February 2014 and fled Ukraine prior to official
dismissal amid the Maidan events). On the list are also Svoboda Party member
and former MP Ihor Myroshnychenko, former Agriculture Minister Ihor Shvaika,
and former Environment Minister Andriy Mokhnyk.
Not long ago, Azarov announced he had founded the so-called
Committee of Ukraine's Salvation in Moscow. The Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office later opened a criminal case
to investigate facts related to Azarov's statements.
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