A German lawmaker who attempted to visit Ukraine was detained by the country’s border police and sent back without explanation, according to reports from his political party on Tuesday. MP Soren Pellmann of the Left Party stated that he was deported despite an intervention by the German embassy in Kiev.
Pellmann, one of the leading members of the Left faction in the Bundestag, was on a fact-finding mission to Kiev when he was stopped at the Lviv train station and eventually ordered to leave the country. The party explained that Pellmann’s commitment to an immediate ceasefire, a peaceful solution, and a halt to arms exports might have contributed to his deportation.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday evening after he was deported, Pellmann expressed frustration about the situation: “Ukraine refused me entry. I am horrified and angry.” He added that the reasons for this are anyone’s guess but it is probably due to his commitment to an immediate ceasefire, a peaceful solution, and a halt to arms exports.
It paints a frightening picture of basic rights such as freedom of expression when a candidate for EU membership denies entry to MPs from EU countries,” Pellmann said in the video message on X. I wanted to see the situation in the country for myself. This has now been prevented.
According to the party, Pellmann was traveling with two assistants. They were taken off the train in Lviv and held for about two hours before being sent back to Poland. The Ukrainian authorities did not offer any explanation for their deportation.
Pellmann told Die Welt that the purpose of his trip was to visit Leipzig’s twin city, Kiev, and speak directly with Ukrainian citizens. He denied any connections to Russia. I have always spoken out against arms deliveries. That is my right as a member of the Bundestag,” he told the newspaper.
The Foreign Ministry in Berlin confirmed to Die Welt that it was in “direct contact” with both Pellmann and the Ukrainian authorities. The German embassy in Kiev had tried to intercede on his behalf, but apparently to no effect.