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Poroshenko rushes to defend Ukraine's Security Service for Babechenko’s ‘resurrection’

Thus, the International Federation of Journalists called Ukraine’s actions "a circus"

Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko and Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko Mykola Lazarenko/Presidential Press Service Pool Photo via AP

Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko and Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko

© Mykola Lazarenko/Presidential Press Service Pool Photo via AP

KIEV, May 31. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko threw his support behind the country’s Security Service (SBU) in the wake of the world’s uproar over the faked murder of Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko staged by Ukraine’s special services.

Trying to justify the SBU’s actions, the Ukrainian president claimed during his speech in the Ivano-Frankovsk region that it was Moscow rather than the Ukrainian special services that was to blame for that.

Read also

International Federation of Journalists slams Babchenko stunt as 'complete circus'

"They say that we are not acting in the right way," Poroshenko said, calling SBU officers heroes.

"You need to blame Russia, not Ukrainians, for that. Ukrainians are doing everything possible to keep together and defend themselves. I can assure you that it will continue to be so," the Ukrainian president said.

After the SBU announced on Wednesday that Babchenko’s murder had been staged to expose Russian special services, Poroshenko personally met with the SBU chief, the prosecutor general and Babchenko, giving the highest marks to the operation carried out by the security services. However, the Ukrainian authorities’ actions caused uproar in the world.

Thus, the International Federation of Journalists called Ukraine’s actions "a circus."

The Reporters Without Borders international non-governmental organization condemned "the distressing simulation" of Babchenko’s murder.

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Desir said he deplored the Ukrainian authorities’ decision "to spread false information."

The Belgian Foreign Ministry qualified the faked murder as an attempt to fight deceit with the help of lies and stressed that Ukraine’s actions contradicted the principles of the spread of information accepted in Europe.

Read also

Ukraine’s SBU trots out explanation for refusing to name ‘mastermind’ of Babchenko plot

On Tuesday evening, Kiev police claimed that Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko was the victim of a fatal attack, in which he was allegedly gunned down. However, on Wednesday Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) convened a press conference revealing that they had foiled an attempt on the life of the Russian journalist by pulling off a sting operation where Babchenko’s death was faked.

SBU Chief Vasily Gritsak stated at the news briefing that Babchenko was unharmed, after which the then presumed ‘dead’ Russian reporter strolled out in front of reporters.

Gritsak accused Russia’s special services of engineering the attempted murder and said that the mastermind of the crime had been detained on Wednesday. The SBU chief did not give the detainee’s last name, only saying that it started with the letter G.

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