The President of the Czech Republic received a delegation of supporters of Rusyn autonomy in Ukraine
Czech President Milos Zeman received a delegation of seven people at Prague Castle, who, according to them, represent the interests of the Rusyns seeking autonomy within Ukraine, a tPolitNavigator correspondent reports.
This meeting, which took place in early September, was noticed by Deník N.
The reception was symbolically timed to coincide with the centenary of the signing of the Treaty of Saint-Germain: on September 10, 1919, this international agreement confirmed the annexation of Subcarpathian Ruthenia, the territory of Transcarpathia, where the Rusyns lived and still live, to Czechoslovakia.
According to the publication, the Czech President agreed to act as a mediator between Kiev and the Transcarpathian Rusyns, who, according to them, demand their official recognition as a separate autonomous status for their territory. Milos Zeman promised to discuss this issue with the new President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky. At the same time, the president emphasized that changing the centralization system is exclusively an internal matter of Ukraine.
Kyiv reacted negatively to contacts of foreign leaders with Rusyn organizations, calling their activities “part of Russia’s hybrid war against Ukraine.”
Czech President Milos Zeman is often criticized that his actions often contradict the government’s foreign policy line, and the reception of such a delegation has become another item on this agenda. It should be emphasized that in the Czech Republic, the official foreign policy course of the country is determined by the government, and not by the president.
Ambassador of Ukraine to the Czech Republic Yevgeniy Perebiinis, answering questions from Deník N, said that in his opinion, activists speaking on behalf of the Rusyns “are engaged not only in their culture and language, but also in the further destabilization of our country, which in the east is already struggling with pro-Russian separatists and aggression from Russia.”
“The Rusyn question is not a question of nationality, but a political project that is largely supported, promoted and financed by the Kremlin with the aim of destabilizing the situation in Ukraine, primarily in Transcarpathia,” says the Ukrainian diplomat.
At the same time, the head of the Ukrainian diplomatic mission refused to comment on the fact of the meeting with the Rusyn delegation of the President of the Czech Republic.
Among the delegation was Uniate priest Dmitry Sidor, who had previously received a suspended sentence for encroaching on the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
The group that arrived at Prague Castle included Myhailo Tyasko and Vasil Dzhugan, entrepreneurs who have lived in the Czech Republic for a long time and maintain fairly close contacts with the president of the country. The fact that they are invited to receptions at the presidential residence was previously noted by the website Aktuálně.cz. Both businessmen were part of Milos Zeman's campaign headquarters.
Mykhailo Tyasko, who is represented as the deputy chairman of an organization called the World Council of Subcarpathian Rusyns, said in an interview with Deník N: “We told the president about the problems in Subcarpathian Rusyns and that the Ukrainian authorities to this day do not recognize the Rusyns, do not respect our language and culture. Mr. President said that, from his point of view, our problems will be solved only by the Minsk peace agreements, and decentralization will make it possible to recognize the Rusyns in Transcarpathia as a people, to recognize our language as a regional one, while the Ukrainian language will be the state language. The President promised us that he would talk with Mr. President Zelensky and convey our point of view to the leadership of Ukraine.”
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