US taking revenge in Ukraine: Russia lawmaker

A senior Russian lawmaker says that US attempts to influence the situation in Ukraine are a desire to “take revenge” for Washington’s defeat in Syria.

Alexei Pushkov, head of the Russian parliament’s International Affairs Committee, made the remarks on Thursday.

Pushkov said that after experiencing defeat in Syria, the US provoked the unrest in Ukraine to show that the West is still the force that determines the course of events in global affairs.

“Ukraine has become the arena, which determines whether the West is losing the initiative or not,” the lawmaker noted.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since March 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies — especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey — are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.

Pushkov pointed out that the West’s meddling in the events in Ukraine suggests that the Eastern European country is treated as a semi-colony.

He also said the direct involvement of the EU and the US in Ukraine is a new form of political aggression.

“There is not just a blatant interference of Western countries in Ukraine, but it is what I’d call a political aggression.” he stated.

Ukraine has been hit with a wave of political unrest since late November when President Viktor Yanukovych refused to sign a trade pact with the European Union.

The refusal to sign the deal triggered major street protests by the opposition supporters, who want Ukraine to become closer to the EU and distance itself from Russia.

Clashes erupted several times between the anti-government protesters and police forces during the demonstrations. Several arrests were made in the course of the protests as well.

In an effort to calm the political unrest, Yanukovych on Wednesday invited all parties, including the opposition, to engage in dialog to resolve the crisis facing the country.

Ukrainian opposition leaders rejected Yanukovych’s offer of negotiations, calling for dismissal of his government and release of detained protesters.

Russia has criticized Western nations for interfering in Ukraine, saying protests against Kiev’s decision to back away from the EU deal were destabilizing the former Soviet state.

The Russian parliament, the State Duma, in a non-binding statement on Tuesday urged the West to “stop mounting external pressure on the politics of a country that is brotherly to us.”

The lower house of parliament also called on Ukrainian opposition forces to “stop illegal actions” over the political crisis.