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Russian senator says national rift one of Ukraine’s key hardships

An MP says the nation’s rift, the demographic crisis and the deteriorating economy are all key woes plaguing modern Ukraine

© Stepan Petrenko/TASS

MOSCOW, August 24. /TASS/. Russian Federation Council legislator Konstantin Kosachev has said the nation’s rift, the demographic crisis and the deteriorating economy are all key woes plaguing modern Ukraine.

"Today marks the 25 anniversary of Ukraine’s independence. I see three woes that have beleaguered the modern history of this neighboring (more in theory) and fraternal country," Kosachev, who heads the upper house’s foreign affairs committee, stated in a Wednesday comment on his Facebook page.

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"Different versions of history, current national interests and most importantly, attempts to force them on others (coercion by the west against the east) have created and continue to create difficult social and political barriers, triggering a highly intensive armed conflict in the southeast," Kosachev explained.

A massive military parade marking the 25th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence was held in Kiev on Wednesday. More than 200 pieces of military equipment and 4,000 servicemen took part in the event. President Pyotr Poroshenko who addressed the parade participants called the country’s new army the most powerful and patriotic one on the continent.

An opinion poll revealed on Monday that only 38% of Ukrainian citizens believe their country is indeed independent, while almost half believe it is not. The survey was conducted by the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation jointly with the Kiev International Institute of Sociology. Ukraine’s citizens note that the most unsuccessful reforms were in the areas of the freedom of speech, European integration, advancing democracy, ensuring individual rights and human freedoms, defense, foreign policy and also conducting fair and free elections. Nearly half of Ukrainians (49%) believe that their country will be able to overcome the current problems, while just 17% said this would happen in the coming years.

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Ukraine crisis Foreign policy

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