Ukraine

Ukrainian lawmakers pass law on oligarchs after assassination attempt

cde.news desk 23 September 2021, 14:30 · 1 min read

A general view of the Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. Ukraine provided new restrictive measures adopted for the prevention of the spread of COVID-19 in some Ukrainian cities from 00:00 on 05 April to 16 April 2021. The public transport in Kiev, including the subway, operates only for employees of critical infrastructure enterprises and they use special passes. The quarantine curbs may be eased before the due date depending on the hospitalization rate, the number of occupied beds with oxygen, and if the city is excluded from the red zone as Kiev's officials told. EPA-EFE/SERGEY DOLZHENKO

Ukraine’s parliament passed a law on Thursday to order “oligarchs” to register and stay out of politics, a day after an attempt to kill a top aide to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, which officials said could have been a response to the reform.

The law, which passed at the first reading in July, is meant to define what an oligarch is and says those who fall under the criteria are forbidden from financing political parties or taking part in privatisations.

It had to be voted on twice and must now be approved by the president to come into force. Thursday’s vote was carried with 279 votes in the 450-seat parliament.

Zelenskiy’s team has suggested anger at the law could be behind an attempt to assassinate Serhiy Shefir, a top aide and close friend of the president. Shefir’s car was sprayed with gunfire on Wednesday by unidentified individuals as he travelled between two villages outside the capital.

Shefir was unharmed though his driver was wounded. Police are interviewing possible witnesses who were mushroom picking nearby and searching for the weapon, Ukraine’s interior ministry spokesman Artem Shevchenko said on Thursday.

Photo: A general view of the Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. EPA-EFE/SERGEY DOLZHENKO