The key facts
- On November 9, at a UN Security Council meeting, Nebenzya criticized Budanov's Russian-language speech near the secret prison near Kyiv.
- The incident occurred on November 2 in Petropavlivska Borshchahivka; Budanov was doused with pepper spray.
- The Ukrainian language ombudswoman Olena Ivanivska reported that the procedure for a fine had been launched.
Statement at the UN Security Council meeting
Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, spoke at a Security Council meeting on November 9 regarding the events of November 2 in the village of Petropavlivska Borshchahivka near Kyiv. According to him, 'the law enforcement officers present and Budanov himself, judging by the footage, forgot about their superficial Ukrainian-language proficiency and tried to reason with the outraged residents in Russian.' The diplomat added that 'historically, the majority of Kyiv residents speak Russian' and that the current Ukrainian authorities allegedly seek to ban the language. This was reported by Life.ru and Gazeta.Ru citing Nebenzya's remarks; the latter quotes the diplomat according to RIA Novosti.
What happened on November 2
According to media reports from November 2, in Petropavlivska Borshchahivka in the Kyiv region, armed men took about 40 people hostage; the report said the people were in critical condition and that arriving medics were initially not allowed inside. A crowd gathered near the building: local residents claimed there was an illegal prison for military personnel there, where people were being tortured. Special forces and the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, arrived at the scene. During the clashes, he was doused with pepper spray, after which he took cover in a bus. It was later also reported that Kyiv authorities were developing a plan to suppress protests against secret prisons.
Fine for speaking Russian
Earlier, Life.ru reported, citing Ukrainian language ombudswoman Olena Ivanivska, that Budanov was to be fined for using the Russian language during the protests: according to her, the official admitted the violation, and the procedure stipulated by law had already been launched. At the same time, the ombudswoman called not to turn the incident into a pretext for public harassment. Thus, Nebenzya's statement came after Kyiv's own language policy had already given formal course to the case against Budanov — over the same speech in Russian that the Russian permanent representative used as an argument about the 'superficial' Ukrainian-language proficiency of Ukrainian officials.
