The Russian embassy in Ukraine is waiting for Ukraine to explain its reason for obstructing the broadcast of the Russian film entitled «War 08.08.08. The Art of Betrayal,» which is about the recent military conflict in South Ossetia (Georgia), in Kyiv.

The press service of the embassy announced this in a statement.

Russia strongly denies the accusations that Ukraine made on the Internet regarding the content of the film.

«We are waiting for the Ukrainian side to provide justifiable explanations of the reason for such an unprecedented prevention of the broadcast of the abovementioned film because the prevention violates the principles of strategic partnership and good-neighborliness that are stipulated in Ukrainian-Russian bilateral agreements and accords,» the statement said.

The embassy expressed surprise at the tone of the Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry’s statement about Russia’s Ambassador to Ukraine Viktor Chernomyrdin’s participantion in the presentation of the film.

«The crude and insulting tone of the Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry’s November 13 statement regarding the participation of Chernomyrdin and employees of the Russian embassy ... in the scheduled presentation of the documentary film is also surprising,» the statement said.

The embassy believes that Ukraine’s actions clearly violated the generally accepted norms of freedom of information.

As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry has said that the organization of the broadcast of the film in Kyiv by the Russian embassy was unacceptable and incompatible with the embassy’s status as a diplomatic mission.

On November 12, Parliamentary Deputy Valerii Konovaliuk of the Party of the Regions, who is the chairman of the interim parliamentary commission that is investigating the legality of Ukrainian arms sales to Georgia, accused the Security Service of Ukraine of blocking the Russian film «War 08.08.08. The Art of Betrayal,» which is about the military conflict in South Ossetia.