Removing Ukrainian military from state governance is unacceptable - MP Synyutka

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

Oleh Synyutka commented on the draft law registered in the Verkhovna Rada on restrictions for military personnel to participate in elections to regional and central authorities.

"As for the draft law on civilian control over the army, it is correct and complies with EU standards. But there is a fly in the ointment. Today we have amendments that actually break this unity and, worst of all, threaten the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The point is that the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, is being deprived of the authority to directly appoint his deputies in the military chain of command and wants to transfer this authority to some other agency. And this is a great danger, because the army and the troops are based on discipline first and foremost," the MP emphasized.

Oleh Synyutka noted that today General Zaluzhnyi as a military officer has great trust not only among society, but his authority in the army is very, very high.

"And the second part of the amendment has a more political flavor, namely, to prohibit the military from expressing their position and running for office. I think this is a direct consequence of the sociological survey that showed that 96% of Ukrainians trust the Armed Forces, that is, the Ukrainian military. And this trust is higher than the trust in the current government. Therefore, someone in power decided that this way they could prevent the military, who are currently defending the country, from participating in future elections and representing them in the government. I am convinced that these steps break our unity. Such amendments are unacceptable. And we, as European Solidarity, are not only categorically opposed to them, but we managed to organize other MPs to prevent these amendments from being supported in the relevant committee. It is unacceptable to disrespect the Ukrainian military. It is unacceptable to remove the Ukrainian military, who are defending our country, from governance. It is unacceptable to break down the army's command and control vertical," emphasized Synyutka.

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