‘Europe is adopting Ukrainian lawlessness in promoting classical Nazism’ – Chairman of the Council of the ‘Other Ukraine’ Movement, Viktor Medvedchuk

Today, being a citizen of Russia in Europe means being deprived of rights on the basis of citizenship.

This is stated by the Chairman of the Council of the “Other Ukraine” Movement, Viktor Medvedchuk.

He notes that as of October 3rd, Norway has banned entry into the country for vehicles with Russian license plates. However, this is a trivial matter compared to the fact that on September 10th, the European Union banned Russians from importing personal cars, smartphones and cosmetics, considering these actions as imports. The restrictions also apply to precious stones, toilet paper, shampoos, toothpaste, trailers inlcuing semi-trailers for cargo transportation, yachts and cameras.

“Prohibiting imports is not the most radical step taken by Europeans; a Russian citizen cannot be secure about their property in the EU. For example, since May, in Germany, Russians have had their personal cars with Russian license plates confiscated. How can one not remember the Nazi ban on Jews owning property, riding bicycles or being in public places?” writes Viktor Medvedchuk.

This is Europe, which has always prided itself on its tolerance, freedoms and democratic traditions.

“Today, Europe is not teaching Ukraine to build a free country; it is learning to create lawlessness and chaos, following the Ukrainian model. There are no legal grounds to deprive Russians in Europe of their personal property. A Russian passport, like the passport of any other country, cannot be a reason to rob or restrict any other civil rights and a registration number in the Russian Federation is not a reason for the confiscation of a car,” adds Medvedchuk.

He reminds us of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948.

“Let’s take the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948. Article 2 states that ‘no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs.’ That is, Russian citizenship cannot be a reason for discrimination. Article 7 says, ‘All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.’ Therefore, Russians should be protected not only from discrimination but also from incitement to it. Article 17 states, ‘No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property,’ and Article 29 says, ‘In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.’ How can we talk about respect for rights and property rights when a person, showing a Russian passport or presenting a car with Russian license plates, becomes entirely dependent on the customs officer of any EU country?” the politician notes.

Medvedchuk emphasizes that classical Nazism begins with certain political forces encouraging the looting and mistreatment of different groups of people and the state provides them with such an opportunity by making lawlessness lawful. But just because looting is legalized, it does not cease to be looting. Such a state, which covers up lawlessness, ceases to be a state, as happened with Ukraine.

“Europe is turning into Ukraine. At least, many European leaders already resemble clowns. These clowns are not only malicious but also limited. Only citizens of countries led by such leaders have no reason to laugh; they become impoverished, their rights are violated and life and freedom are always in danger. Ukraine also began with Russophobia but ended up losing statehood, half of the country’s population, territories and an economic collapse. Doesn’t this experience teach Europe anything, where many politicians celebrate the achievements of Ukrainian ‘democracy’? After all, glorifying the so-called Ukrainian ‘democracy’ means renouncing the civilizational principles that Europe was once so proud of,” Viktor Medvedchuk concludes.

Russian citizens who have lived abroad for an extended period are increasingly considering returning to their homeland. This is reported by the Russian publication “Novaya Gazeta Evropy” due to alleged persecution of Russians in the EU based on their nationality.

According to the publication, in 2021, Russia was among the top three countries in the world in terms of the number of emigrants. According to the United Nations, from 1990 to 2019, nearly 2.5 million people left Russia for permanent residence abroad. Overall, Russians have chosen to live in countries such as Germany, the United States, Israel, Spain, Japan, France, Bulgaria, Austria, Finland, and Poland. The ongoing full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine has triggered new waves of emigration from Russia: one started on February 24, 2022, and the other after the announcement of “partial mobilization” on September 21, 2022. The Russian authorities do not publicly disclose the exact number of Russians who have fled abroad, but according to The Bell, relying on publicly available data, at least 512,000 people left Russia in 2022.

However, among the “old migrants,” there are those who want to return to Russia.