Chance to establish peace in Ukraine in 2015 missed by Kyiv's fault - Naryshkin
MOSCOW. Dec 23 (Interfax) - The incumbent Ukrainian authorities have missed a chance to establish peace in the country already this year, State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin said.
"Should the Kyiv authorities engage in dialogue with Donetsk and Luhansk, should they begin real constitutional reform, this year already could have brought peace to Ukraine," Naryshkin said on Wednesday, summing up the results of the State Duma autumn session.
"Unfortunately, this did not happen," the parliament speaker said.
It was difficult not to notice that the conflict between the political oligarchic groupings in Ukraine was taking increasingly uglier forms and not only at the Verkhovna Rada session hall, but also at the meetings chaired by the president of the country, the State Duma speaker said.
"In less than two years our neighboring country, a state with a 40-million-strong population, a state of European culture and continental legal traditions, turned into a legal absurdity," Naryshkin said.
Since Russia joined the Council of Europe 20 years ago, we should more actively use pan-European institutions and legal instruments to draw attention to ensuring human rights on the continent and the growing marginalization of all Kyiv authorities, Naryshkin said.
The parliament speaker recalled that the State Duma has been monitoring Ukrainian legislation and that its materials would be submitted to European structures. Meanwhile, he voiced hope that they can perceive the facts; "at least they should know them and soundly assess them, assisting the Ukrainian people to return to the path of the supremacy of law."
