Zelensky Uses Emergency Powers, Suspends Opposition Parties

(TheLibertyRevolution.com)- As the war in Ukraine continues into its fourth week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has taken some matters into his own hands to preserve the security and safety of the nation he runs.

On Saturday, the president released a video statement that said Ukraine would ban 11 parties with opposition views that have been accused of favoring Russia. As Zelensky said in the video:

“Given the full-scale war waged by the Russian Federation and the ties of some political structures with this state, any activity of a number of political parties during the martial law is suspended.”

Zelensky didn’t make this decision unilaterally, though. He just stamped a suggestion that was made by the country’s National Security and Defense Council.

The 11 parties that have been banned are the Volodymyr Saldo Bloc, the Socialists Party, the Socialist Party of Ukraine, the Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine, the State, the Union of Left Forces, the Left Opposition, the Opposition Bloc, Nashi, the Shariy Party, and Opposition Party-For Life.

Comprehensive measures will not be taken to ban all activities that the political parties typically engage in, according to a report in The Washington Post. That is under the instruction of the president himself.

Zelensky futher commented:

“Any activity of politicians aimed at splitting or collaborating will not succeed, but it will get a tough response.”

Media outlets that have been similarly accused of having ties to the Russian government or propagating Russian support received similar treatment from the Ukrainian president. All licenses for these media companies were revoked, and they’ll be banned from being on the airwaves in Ukraine for five years.

The three networks affected were only broadcasting a streaming service on YouTube. They are 112 Ukraine, NewsOne, and ZIK.

In a statement, a spokeswoman for Zelensky, Iulia Mendel, said:

“These media have become of the of tools of war against Ukraine, so they are blocked in order to protect national security.”

She also said that these media outlets were being funded directly by the Russian government to spread pro-Russian propaganda on their channels.

The media outlets obviously didn’t agree with the decision, saying in a joint statement after Zelensky announced the moves that it was a “reckoning with inconvenient media.”

Zelensky is working hard to try to come to an agreement with Russia to stop the fighting, which is resulting in much death and destruction in his country, among both military personnel and civilians. Over the weekend, he said if talks with Russia failed in the near future, it could lead to a “third world war.”

He sent a statement to CNN recently that read:

“Unfortunately, our dignity is not going to preserve the lives, so I think that we have to do any format, any chance, so in order to have the possibility of talking to Putin. But, if these attempts fail, that would mean a third world war.”

Zelensky has called on NATO countries to establish a “no-fly-zone” in Ukraine, but that would most likely result in that third world war that he predicted. And as such, NATO countries have been hesitant to take that action.