The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the national security and defence council under martial law decided to suspend 11 Ukrainian political parties from any political activity, citing their ties with Russia as the country is trying to fend itself from the Russian forces.
According to reports from The Guardian, many of the suspended parties are small, but one of them, the Opposition Platform for Life, has 44 seats in the 450-seat Ukrainian parliament.
Zelensky said on Sunday that the activities of these politicians will receive a harsh response.
The Opposition Platform for Life is led by Viktor Medvedchuk, who the Ukrainian government said is a pro-Moscow oligarch and has a close relationship with the Russian president Vladimir Putin.
The Ukrainian authorities charged Medvedchuk with treason and placed the oligarch under house arrest last year.
According to a report from the Ukrainian government, Medvedchuk managed to escape three days after the invasion of the Russian military.
