Germany has repeatedly stressed that the freedom of press and expression should be recognized as a supreme value in all countries, including Ukraine, German Foreign Ministry spokesman Rainer Breul said on Wednesday commenting on the situation of head of the RIA Novosti Ukraine portal Kirill Vyshinsky.
BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th September, 2018) Germany has repeatedly stressed that the freedom of press and expression should be recognized as a supreme value in all countries, including Ukraine, German Foreign Ministry spokesman Rainer Breul said on Wednesday commenting on the situation of head of the RIA Novosti Ukraine portal Kirill Vyshinsky.
Vyshinsky's lawyer said earlier in the day that a court in Ukraine's Kherson accepted the request to provide him with urgent medical treatment due to sudden deterioration of the journalists's health. Vyshinsky was sent to hospital straight from the court chamber. The court was supposed to hold a hearing on renewal or change of pre-trial restrictions on Vyshinsky.
"I cannot say anything about this court hearing but I can once again stress that the freedom of press and expression is the highest value, and this also applies to Ukraine," Breul told a briefing.
August 24 marked 100 days since Vyshinsky was arrested in Ukraine on suspicion of treason and of allegedly supporting the self-proclaimed people's republics of Donetsk and Luhansk in Donbas.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Vyshinsky's arrest was politically motivated and demonstrated an unprecedented and unacceptable policy of Ukrainian authorities targeting journalists who were doing their jobs.
Harlem Desir, the OSCE representative on freedom of the media, has also expressed his concern over Ukraine's actions toward Vyshinsky, stressing that, under the Helsinki Final Act, the OSCE states "have committed to facilitating the conditions under which journalists from one participating State exercise their profession in another participating State."
