Ukrainska Pravda reports systematic pressure from the Office of the President of Ukraine

We would like to draw the attention of our colleagues, partners, and international organisations to the ongoing and systematic pressure the Office of the President of Ukraine exerts on the editorial team and certain journalists of Ukrainska Pravda. We would like to reiterate that Ukrainska Pravda's values since its foundation in 2000 have been editorial independence, unbiased reporting and the ability to freely tell the truth. However, we currently see a threat to the sustainable work of the editorial team due to the following actions:

- blocking officials from communicating with Ukrainska Pravda journalists and participating in events;

- pressure on businesses to stop advertising cooperation with Ukrainska Pravda; - openly emotionally-charged communication between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Ukrainska Pravda journalist Roman Kravets, which we all witnessed live. These and other non-public signals indicate attempts to influence our editorial policy.

This is especially outrageous to realise at a time of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, when our joint struggle for both survival and democratic values is essential. We emphasise once again that Ukrainska Pravda's goal is to report the truth and serve the interests of Ukrainian society. The free choice of topics and personalities in reporting is an inherent function and right of any independent news agency.

We officially declare that every attempt by specific officials from the Office of the President of Ukraine to put pressure on Ukrainska Pravda journalists will be publicly reported and will have consequences at the international level. Each such attempt only strengthens our motivation to expose corruption and mismanagement in the highest ranks of power. We call on everyone who values freedom of speech and the independence of Ukrainian journalism to join us in defending these values.

Ukrainska Pravda