Ukraine government starts to expel foreigners for opposition support

The administration of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has begun to expel foreigners from Ukraine who supported the opposition EuroMaidan movement, reported the Financial Times on Dec. 22. George Kikvadze, a Georgian national employed as a top executive at Ukraine’s Terra food conglomerate, was denied entry into Ukraine on Dec. 21. “Border guards told me there is an order from the state Security Service of Ukraine not to let me in,” he told the Financial Times by phone.

A list produced by Party of Regions MP Oleg Tsariov identifies 36 foreigners – mostly Georgian and U.S. citizens – as foreign agents who are threats to Ukraine’s national security. Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, also on the list, was denied entry into Ukraine earlier this month. Also on the list is former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.

Zenon Zawada: Such actions confirm the Ukrainian government is pursuing a path of isolation from the Western world, a highly flawed policy that will only worsen the nation’s standing politically and economically.