Scuffle breaks out after Russian delegate grabs Ukrainian flag from Verkhovna Rada deputy at summit in Ankara

In Ankara, a scuffle broke out between members of the Russian and Ukrainian delegations during the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC).

The Ukrainian journalist Denis Gorokhovsky posted a video of the incident, which shows a Russian delegate grabbing the Ukrainian flag out of the hands of Verkhovna Rada deputy Oleksandr Marikovsky, causing a scuffle between the two delegates.

Russian news agency TASS also reported on the incident, citing a source from the Russian delegation. The source said the Ukrainian delegate “attacked” the secretary of the Russian delegation, Valery Stavitsky, in the hotel corridor where the summit was taking place. TASS did not mention that the Russian diplomat snatched the Ukrainian flag out of the Rada deputy’s hands.

The Telegram channel Baza wrote that the Ukrainian deputy was holding the Ukrainian flag and “shouting pro-Ukrainian slogans” as he came up behind State Duma deputy Olga Timofeeva while she was being interviewed for a Russian news program.