The Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) party faction in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has announced it is now in the opposition to the authorities, its leader Yulia Tymoshenko said.
“Our team has announced that the Batkivshchyna party is now in the opposition to the policy of destroying Ukraine, to the policy of continuing the era of poverty,” Tymoshenko said at a briefing in Kyiv on Nov. 13.
“Batkivshchyna opposes the sales of land and the privatization of the strategic facilities and remains loyal to the people,” she said.
According to Tymoshenko, her team made the decision to support Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and not to join the opposition since his very first day in the office, and “helped [him] as best [it] could with [its] advice and votes.”
“This lasted until today, until the agricultural land sales bill, which contradicts the national interests of Ukraine, was passed on the first reading,” she said.
“Today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky crossed all the red lines. Today, the bill on the sales of agricultural lands was passed on his instruction,” Tymoshenko said.
The Verkhovna Rada passed the bill on agricultural lands trade on the first reading earlier on Nov. 13.
A total of 240 parliamentarians, in particular, 227 members of the Servant of the People faction and 13 non-affiliated deputies, voted for it.
