Former mayor of Kyiv Leonid Chernovetsky, who called for recognition of the borders of the DPR and LPR and supported Russia in the attack on Ukraine, was informed of suspicion.
This was reported by the Office of the Ukrainian Prosecutor General.
“... the former mayor of Kyiv was notified of suspicion regarding public calls and distribution of materials calling for changes in the boundaries of the territory and the state border of Ukraine (Part 1 of Article 110 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine),” the Office of the Prosecutor General said in a statement.
According to the investigation, the next day after the start of Russia’s attack against Ukraine, the ex-mayor of the capital posted a publication on his own page on the social network Facebook about the possibility and even the need to recognize the borders of the DPR and LPR in order for Russia to stop conducting military operations. Chernovetsky also stated that “Russia is not our enemy.”
“For centuries, first to St. Petersburg, and then to Moscow, the most talented people from all over the former USSR, a huge country that will never exist again, moved. In Moscow and St. Petersburg, Shevchenko was taught and brought into the public eye, taught him many of the subtleties of creativity. That's why he became great, because he was raised to the top by the St. Petersburg intelligentsia.
Bulgakov, Yevtushenko [most likely, meaning the poet Vitaly Korotich], and all our famous singers and actors left for Moscow. People came from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and other countries. In Moscow, the vast majority of people have a very good attitude towards Ukraine. Everything else is a lie...
Well, what's the point of fighting? We just need to negotiate. What is the point of introducing bans on entry and exit to Russia and making Russia an enemy? Russia is not an enemy of Ukraine, and Ukraine is not an enemy of Russia,” Chernovetsky said then.”
However, this video was later deleted from the ex-politician’s YouTube channel.
According to the findings of a forensic linguistic examination, this publication contains public calls to change the boundaries of the territory and state border of Ukraine.
Chernovetsky himself said that this was “some kind of complete misunderstanding.” The former Kiev mayor wrote about this on his Facebook.
“I sincerely love and support a United, Integral, Independent and European Ukraine. I consider the death of Ukrainians a tragedy, and the war against Ukraine a crime!”
He also added that he did not receive any subpoenas and learned about the suspicion from the media.
The pre-trial investigation into this fact is carried out by the Main Investigation Department of the Security Service of Ukraine.
Let us recall that Chernovetsky, known in Kyiv by the nickname “Lenya-Cosmos” because of his extravagant behavior in public, at the end of his tenure moved to Georgia, where he lives with his family. His wife is a citizen of this country.