Ukrainian MP Brawls with Donbas Veteran

Ilya Kiva, a lawmaker from Ukraine’s Opposition Platform - For Life party, was caught having a fight with a veteran of the war in the Donbas.

The video of Kiva's fight with Mykhailo Maiman, a veteran of the war against Russia-led separatists in eastern Ukraine, appeared online on January 22.

Maiman confirmed to Hromadske that it is him in the video. He said that Kiva started shouting: “Hey you, come over here.” The brief fight erupted after this phrase.

Maiman also said that he shares "unpleasant" history with Kiva from the times when he fought in the Donbas.

“He (Kiva -ed.) distributed drugs, and I got in his way,” Maiman told Hromadske.

As the veteran said, after their Donbas encounters, Maiman started getting threats from Kiva. Among other things, Kiva allegedly mentioned his "connections" in the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The official statement provided by Kyiv's department of the national police reads that “an MP appealed to the police reporting sustained bodily injuries.”

Maiman stressed that he is not hiding from the police. He went to the hospital because of a nose injury allegedly received after Kiva’s “attack”.

Maiman also added that the deputy sat near “criminal representatives” from Dnipro in the restaurant where the fight took place.
Kiva confirmed to Hromadske his appearance in the video, adding that he has a history of altercations with Maiman. According to him, it was Maiman who started the fight and it was the soldier who sat next to a criminal representative. He also accused Maiman of “drug dealership.”

/Translated by Sasha Lytvyn