RIA Novosti Ukraine Portal Head Says His Arrest Part Of Kiev's Pre-Election Campaign

RIA Novosti Ukraine portal head Kirill Vyshinsky suggested on Thursday that his arrest by the Ukrainian authorities was a part of their campaign to gain the support of voters ahead of the 2019 presidential and parliamentary elections in the country.

KIEV (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 06th September, 2018) RIA Novosti Ukraine portal head Kirill Vyshinsky suggested on Thursday that his arrest by the Ukrainian authorities was a part of their campaign to gain the support of voters ahead of the 2019 presidential and parliamentary elections in the country.

Earlier in the day, a Ukrainian court ruled to prolong Vyshinsky's detention by another 60 days. The journalist's lawyer said the defense team would appeal this decision.

"The answer is clear. The elections will soon take place and there is nothing [good] to show the voter. The authorities do not propose any other method of settlement of the Donbas conflict apart from the war. The utility rates are sky-high, the hryvnia rate is falling, Ukrainians are leaving for the European Union and Russia to work," Vyshinsky told the Ukrainian Strana.ua news outlet when asked about the possible reasons behind his arrest.

The journalist continued by suggesting that the Ukrainian authorities tried to present their attempts to free or exchange Ukrainian citizens detained in Russia as their achievements.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in May that Kiev was looking into all options for the liberation of Ukrainian national Oleg Sentsov, who was jailed in Russia, possibly including swapping him for Vyshinsky.

The Ukrainian presidential election is scheduled for March 2019, while the parliamentary vote is set to take place in November.

August 24 marked 100 days since Vyshinsky was arrested in Ukraine on charges of treason, and supporting the self-proclaimed people's republics of Donetsk and Luhansk in Ukraine's embattled Donbas region.

The detention of Vyshinsky has prompted widespread criticism by journalists rights groups which said that such moves were unacceptable in a democratic society.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Vyshinsky's arrest was politically motivated, adding that the incident demonstrated an unprecedented and unacceptable policy of Ukrainian authorities targeting journalists who were just doing their jobs.