VIENNA, October 29 (RIA Novosti) – Moscow believes that the issue of the revival of fascism in Ukraine should be discussed in the United Nations, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told reporters Wednesday.
“Of course, what is going on in Ukraine in regard to the revival of fascism seriously bothers us. In this context, we believe that these issues should be reviewed in the UN. As far as we are concerned, we constantly center our attention on this during our speeches, trying to show the international community the danger in these trends that have now appeared in Ukraine,” Gatilov said.
Since the beginning of the armed conflict in the country, Ukraine has witnessed the growth of Nazi ideology and the spread of fascism.
The fire in the Trade Union House in Odessa, where 48 people perished following clashes between pro-federalization activists and fans of Odessa and Kharkiv football teams is just one example of the rise of fascist ideology having tragic consequences in Ukraine. After the bloodshed, various fascist symbols appeared on the walls of the burned out building.
Various Western media sources and historians have openly called the Right Sector and the Azov battalion, which have been involved in fighting against the pro-federalization supporters, as neo-Nazi brigades. Both groups did not hide the Fascist symbols printed on their uniforms.
Earlier in October, hundreds of people took to the streets in Kharkiv and Kiev in support of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and in commemoration of the servicemen who died in the fight against the militia in the southeast of the country over the past several months. The UPA operated mainly in western Ukraine, fighting against Soviet forces in the Second World War. After the war, the army continued to struggle against the Soviet regime.
Glorification of the UPA and its leaders, Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevych, has been sharply criticized by many war veterans and politicians, who have accused Bandera of collaborating with the Nazis. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that these people were marching under the neo-Nazi and even Nazi slogans with the connivance of the Kiev authorities, and stated that promotion of criminal ideology was absolutely unacceptable.
