Ukraine leader warns of far-right threat

Ukraine’s interim President Oleksandr Turchynov has warned against the threat of a surging far-right group in the country, a day after an attack on the parliament building.

Turchynov made the remark on Friday, while addressing lawmakers at the opening of a parliament session, in which he said the ultra-nationalist Right Sector is trying to “destabilize” the country.

The statements came a day after hundreds of members of the Right Sector demonstrated outside the parliament building, demanding the resignation of Interior Minister Arsen Avakov.

The crowd tried to storm the building by smashing windows in protest against Avakov for the killing of their leader, Oleksandr Muzychko, who was shot dead in a police raid in the western city of Rivne on March 24.

Muzychko was known for his radicalism, attacks on local officials in Kiev and refusing to give up arms after the new western-backed authorities came to power in Ukraine.

Ukraine crisis began last November, after Ukraine’s then president, Viktor Yanukovych, refrained from signing a deal with the EU in favor of closer ties with neighboring Russia.

The refusal triggered months of unrest and the Right Sector had a prominent role in the Kiev protests, including in clashes with police.

Russia had previously warned of the rise of extremism in Ukraine amid the anti-government protests.

The unrest led to the ouster of Yanukovych on February 23. He then travelled to Russia, where he was given sanctuary.

Tensions between the Western powers and Moscow heightened after Crimea declared independence from Ukraine and formally applied to become part of the Russian Federation following a referendum on March 16, in which nearly 97 percent of Crimeans voted for union with Russia.