Rada Adopted Law “On Media” Required for Accession Negotiations

In the first reading, the Verkhovna Rada voted for the new law “On Media” No. 2693-d.

233 MPs supported the bill – 179 from “Sluha Narodu,” 6 – “Batkivshchyna,” 12 – “Platform for Life and Future,” 7 – Party “For the Future,” 12 – “Dovira,” 12 – “Restoration of Ukraine” and five independent MPs voted for the bill.

“European Solidarity” and “Holos” did not vote.

On August 29, 34 MPs from five parliamentarian groups and independent MPs appealed to the Rada Chairman with a call to withdraw the draft law “On Media” from the upcoming plenary session.

In particular, “European Solidarity” MP, Volodymyr Viatrovych, noted that the humanitarian committee should once again consider the draft law and “remove all dangers of demining the cultural border with Russia.”

Viatrovych said, “someone really wants to pass the law in the first reading right now and necessarily with anti-Ukrainian norms.”

The bill “On media” is one of the EU requirements to start accession negotiations.

In an interview with “EP,” the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olрa Stefanishyna was sure this law would be adopted because, according to her, “even those MPs who are not ready to vote right now do not doubt on how necessary it is to adopt it.”