Today’s speech of Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk at the parliament was interrupted by a scuffle between members of the parliament.
It started when MP Oleh Barna from Petro Poroshenko Bloc (he has been collecting signatures for no confidence vote to the government) came to the speaker’s stand, presented a bunch of red roses with a black ribbon to the prime minister and then grasped Yatsenyuk and took him away from the stand. At the very moment, he was approached by members of the People’s Front faction and started punching him. Simultaneously, members of the Poroshenko Bloc joined the scuffle to protect Barna. It took several minutes, after that all participants presented apologies and the session continued.
“Volodya,” said Yatsenyuk addressing the Supreme Rada Speaker Volodymyr Groysman, “I am not upset; there are many idiots, you know, but I am asking you to cease receiving questions to the government now.”
The prime minister’s speech was on the agenda as part of “An Hour of Questions to the Government”, during which he reported on the government activities this year. While reporting, he said he was not clinging to his post. “I will accept any decision of the Ukrainian parliament,” he said when answering question of a Poroshenko Bloc MP whether he would resign voluntarily. At the same time, Yatsenyuk noted that he “took the responsibility for unpopular reforms in the country consciously.”