“African parliamentarians visited the occupied Donetsk region and made absurd statements. Ukraine reacted sharply. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expressed a strong protest over the visit of the delegation of the Pan-African Parliament to the occupied territory of the Donetsk region. A delegation from 12 African countries took part in the Russian propaganda campaign.”, — write on: unn.ua
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expresses a strong protest in connection with the visit of a delegation of the Pan-African Parliament consisting of representatives of Ethiopia, Tanzania, Malawi, Uganda, South Sudan, the Comoros Islands, Equatorial Guinea, Djibouti, Eswatini, Zambia, Somalia and Mozambique to the temporarily occupied by Russia by the Federation of the Donetsk Oblast of Ukraine,” the statement reads.
Taking part in the Russian propaganda campaign, the African parliamentarians showed gross disrespect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and disregarded the fundamental principles of international law, the agency emphasized.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasizes that the statements made during this visit about opposing colonialism, made on Ukrainian land illegally seized by Russia during the neo-colonial war of aggression against Ukraine, are completely absurd.
“The visit of the African delegation contradicts the spirit of friendship and mutual respect that characterize Ukraine’s relations with the states of the African continent, and causes serious damage to the reputation of the Pan-African Parliament, which was established in 2004 as one of the organs of the African Union, in particular with the aim of promoting peace, security and stability.
It also contradicts the Joint Statement of the Chairperson of the African Union and the Chairperson of the African Union Commission of February 24, 2022, which calls on Russia and other regional and international actors to “uncompromisingly respect international law, the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine,” the statement said.
Official Kyiv hopes that this visit and the statements made during it do not reflect the official position of the African Union and the Pan-African Parliament.
“In this regard, we demand from the leadership of the African Union and the Pan-African Parliament to strongly condemn the visit by its representatives to the territory of the Donetsk region of Ukraine temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation and to avoid any contact with representatives of the Russian occupation administration in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine in the future”, – summarized in Ministry of Foreign Affairs