Klychko calls on U.S. to impose sanctions on Ukrainian govt officials, not on people

Vitaliy Klychko, world boxing champion and leader of the Ukrainian opposition party UDAR, called on U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns to impose international sanctions on particular Ukrainian officials responsible for selective justice, political reprisals and human rights abuses in Ukraine.

"It's they, and not Ukraine in general or its people, who should be the target of sanctions," Klychko said at their meeting in Washington on Thursday. The incumbent Ukrainian authorities disregard democratic values and the people's living standards, rights and freedoms, he said. "President [Viktor] Yanukovych poses a threat of changing the country's foreign policy vector and is leading the country toward international isolation. Therefore, it is time for Yanukovych and his team to be held personally accountable for consequences of such actions," Klychko said. While in Washington, Klychko also discussed the situation in Ukraine with Senator John McCain and Freedom House Director David Kramer.