Opposition lawmakers walk out of cabinet meeting

12:32, 27.02.2013 1 min read

Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov refused to allow a lawmaker from the Batkivschyna faction to address an extended government meeting on Wednesday.

Azarov said that that there were too many people wanting to speak at the meeting and that the government had to stick to procedure. This provoked an outraged response from Batkivschyna Faction Leader Arseniy Yatseniuk and other members of the faction.

"You are not in parliament, but in the government and should abide by the Cabinet's rules of procedure. I am warning you once again, I will not allow anyone to disrupt the government's meeting," the premier said.

Azarov suggested that lawmakers should post their speeches on the government's Web site and promised that he would personally examine all the proposals.

After this, Yatseniuk approached the presidium and said that the MPs were leaving the government meeting, as they had not been allowed to speak.

"You are not prepared to listen to the opposition. We're leaving the cabinet's meeting, and we are not prepared to listen to you in parliament," he said.