A court ruled the government’s ban on Ukrainian lawmakers traveling abroad unlawful

The Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal in Kyiv has overturned a Cabinet of Ministers resolution that allowed members of parliament and officials to travel abroad on an individual basis. The decision was made in response to a lawsuit filed by Petro Poroshenko.

This was reported by MPs from the European Solidarity party, although the court’s ruling has not yet been officially published.

According to deputies from Poroshenko’s party, the court found that the government had exceeded its authority by creating a mechanism for selective bans that contradicts democratic principles.

According to MP Viktoriia Siumar, the court reminded that Ukraine is a parliamentary-presidential republic, and therefore the Cabinet has no right to restrict MPs in carrying out international activities.

“The Cabinet exceeded its powers by creating a tool to pressure members of parliament. The court emphasized that this contradicts the basic principles of democracy,” she said.

Meanwhile, the government’s representative in court argued that without the ban, MPs could “scatter from the country.”

Another MP, Iryna Herashchenko, called on the government to immediately repeal the travel resolution, which effectively allowed the authorities to selectively decide who could leave the country and who could not.

In 2023, Ukraine’s government issued a resolution prohibiting MPs, officials, and judges from leaving the country without authorization from leadership and valid reasons.

In the winter of that same year, Volodymyr Zelensky also announced that he had signed a National Security and Defense Council decision banning trips abroad for leisure by civil servants, MPs, and law enforcement officers.