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A chaotic video of a scuffle purportedly breaking out in the Ukrainian Parliament is being widely shared on social media. Allegedly, this video was recent and in it, lawmakers could be seen punching each other and throwing eggs at the speaker.
While sharing the video on social media, some people alleged that the Ukrainian Parliament was wasting financial aid provided by the United States to the war-hit country through such sessions. “Ukrainian Parliament.
That money is sure working. Protecting democracy one cheque at a time lol,” wrote a Facebook user while sharing the video. The archived versions of similar posts can be seen here and here.
India Today found that the video in question is over a decade old. A fight erupted between lawmakers over a deal to extend Russia’s lease for a key naval base in Ukraine’s Crimea.
OUR PROBE
With the help of a keyword search we found similar videos and images used in media reports from 2010. According to a report by The Telegraph published on April 27, 2010, the video was from Ukraine’s Parliament in Kiev.
Reportedly, parliamentarians were asked to vote on a controversial law allowing Russia to continue to use a Ukrainian port until 2042. As scuffles broke out, nationalist leaders unfurled the Ukrainian flag and began pelting then-Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn with eggs.
According to NBC News, thousands of opposition demonstrators gathered outside the Parliament building as deputies from the newly elected pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovich’s coalition approved a 25-year extension to the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s base in Crimea.
Smoke bombs filled the parliamentary chamber, and speaker Litvyn sought shelter under his umbrella as eggs were hurled at him.
Ukrainian nationalists, with former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and former President Viktor Yushchenko in the lead, reportedly considered the base extension a betrayal of Ukraine’s national interests.
They aimed to eliminate it when the existing lease expired in 2017. Nevertheless, as reported by The Guardian, the Parliament ratified the lease extension with 236 votes, surpassing the minimum requirement by ten votes.
Yanukovich struck a deal on April 21, 2010, with Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev, agreeing to the navy base’s continuation in exchange for a 30 per cent reduction in the price of Russian gas supplied to Ukraine.
It is hence clear that the video in question is over 13 years old and doesn’t have anything to do with the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, which began in February 2022.
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