Opinion: Russian news agency employee may be swapped for Ukraine journo arrested in Moscow


RIA Novosti-Ukraine has a hand in the hybrid war against Ukraine, particularly in news attacks which have been well-paid by Russia, Yury Lutsenko, Prosecutor General of Ukraine, claims.

As reported earlier, Kirill Vyshinsky, Chief of RIA Novosti-Ukraine, was detained in Kyiv on Tuesday morning. The agency’s office was searched.

According to the Ukrainian side, some actions by news agency employees fall under the treason article of the country’s Criminal Code. In turn, Russia expressed outrage and promised to protect the interests of its mass media in Ukraine.

RIA Novosti-Ukraine was established in the 2000s as part of the self-named Russian news agency. Later it merged into the Russia Today media group. In 2014, Kirill Vyshinsky was awarded the Russian medal “For Services to the Fatherland for ‘the unbiased coverage of events in Crimea’.

“There are reports that [Ukraine] Wyszynski may propose Russia to swap the arrested Kirill Vyshinsky for Roman Sushchenko, a Ukrainian correspondent, who is now on trial in Russia. He is suspected of spying,” political analyst Alyaksandr Tsynkevich told Belsat TV.

In his opinion, there might be further provocations against the Ukrainian journalists and citizens .

However, the expert does not expect the Kremlin to go to the length of military escalation.

Belsat.eu

TWITTER