Zelensky's Government Is A 'Neo-Nazi Dictatorship'; Ukraine Human Rights 'Very Alarming', Russia Claims

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has expressed alarm on what it says is a "noticeably worsened" human rights situation in Ukraine, saying that the government in Kyiv under President Volodymyr Zelensky has morphed into a "neo-Nazi dictatorship."

The ministry confirmed on Wednesday that it has prepared a report discussing the human rights violations in Ukraine. The report noted that Zelensky's martial law proclamation, which was raised on Feb. 24, 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, imposes "authoritarian rule" over the country.

"The [Kyiv] regime has recently imposed an authoritarian rule over the country under the cover of martial law ... Having adopted the ideology and practices of Ukrainian nationalist radicals, the current regime has actually transformed itself into a neo-Nazi dictatorship," the report said, according to Russian state media, Tass.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry noted that ever since a new administration took office in 2014, the Ukrainian government has been actively suppressing human rights, opposition and dissent as it continues its anti-Russian campaign.

"The situation around the encouragement and protection of human rights in Ukraine has noticeably worsened in the past 18 months, and the trends we are witnessing in this area are very alarming," the ministry said.

In 2014, the pro-Russian fourth president of Ukraine, Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych, was ousted from office after a series of large-scale protests against his presidency that came to be known as the Revolution of Dignity.

He was then replaced by Petro Oleksiyovych Poroshenko after the Ukrainian Supreme Court ordered a second runoff election.

Under Poroshenko, Ukraine began cozying up with Western powers through the signing of an agreement that integrates Ukraine with the European Union.

The ministry has also called the Ukrainian government's past action to disassociate with the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, an orthodox church under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate, as reaching a "whole new level in terms of cynicism and hypocrisy."

Under Poroshenko, the new Orthodox Church of Ukraine was established to unite all other existing Ukrainian Orthodox churches through a unification council that convened in Kyiv in 2018.

The move was largely seen as the government's way of severing any form of ties with the Moscow Patriarchate.

"The powers that be in [Kyiv] need the state of war and use a wide range of repressive measures as the safest, and only, way of extending their existence," the diplomatic agency said in the report.

On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during his state visit to Brazil that Russia is interested in ending the war in Ukraine as soon as possible.

"It is clear that we are interested in the Ukrainian conflict ending as soon as possible," Lavrov said, following talks with Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira.

Lavrov and his Brazilian counterparts discussed the conditions and context that must be in place to foster long-term solutions to the conflict. He believes this must be based on the principle of multilateralism and consideration of interests in the field of security.