Highlights:
- The incident took place at the 61st Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Community, more than 14 months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
- The video shows the Russian representative snatching a Ukrainian flag from Oleksandr Marikovskyi, a Ukrainian MP, who then pursued and punched him repeatedly.
- The incident occurred a day after Russia accused Ukraine of attempting to assassinate President Vladimir Putin with a drone, which Ukraine has denied.
A viral video that surfaced this morning showed a Russian representative snatching a Ukrainian flag from a lawmaker of the country, leading to a physical altercation during an international conference held in the Turkish capital Ankara. The incident occurred during the 61st Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Community on Thursday, more than 14 months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and resulted in a dramatic one-on-one fight.
? In Ankara ??, during the events of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Community, the representative of Russia ?? tore the flag of Ukraine ?? from the hands of a ?? Member of Parliament.
— Jason Jay Smart (@officejjsmart) May 4, 2023
The ?? MP then punched the Russian in the face. pic.twitter.com/zUM8oK4IyN
Oleksandr Marikovskyi, a Ukrainian, was seen holding his country’s flag when the unnamed Russian representative arrived, ripped it, and then started walking away, the video indicated.
He was pursued by the MP, who punched him repeatedly. He was stopped by other officials, but not before he snatched the flag back.
He shared a video of the incident on Facebook and added in Ukrainian, “Paws away from our flag.”
There were other people there who were recording what was going on.
The escalation in conflicts comes a day after Russia accused Ukraine of attempting to assassinate President Vladimir Putin by attacking the Kremlin with a drone, a charge that Ukraine has refuted.
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Russia and Ukraine are both members of the Black Sea Economic Community, which was established more than 30 years ago. It aspires to “work towards peace, stability, and prosperity in the Black Sea region.”
