Slovenian embassy in Ukraine removes flag due to similarity with Russian one

The Slovenian embassy in the Ukrainian capital Kiev, which reopened on Monday, has removed the Slovenian flag which was hanging in front of the embassy, because of its similarity with the Russian flag, a Slovenian representative in Ukraine said on Wednesday, reported Xinhua.

Slovenian and Russian flags both carry the same colors in the same order: white, blue and red, with the Slovenian flag carrying the country's coat of arms which consists of stylised symbols of stars, mountains, sea and rivers.

"We raised the Slovenian and the European flags with pride when we returned to Kiev," Bostjan Lesjak, Slovenian charge d'affaires in Kiev, told TV Slovenia.

"But in the morning, representatives of the (Ukrainian) national guard, followed by representatives of the police, visited me and very politely asked me if we could temporary remove the Slovenian flag because it is too similar to the Russian one," he said.

Slovenia reopened its embassy in Kiev on Monday, about a month after the country evacuated all its diplomats from Ukraine on Feb. 26 following the start of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Slovenian ambassador to Ukraine Tomaz Mencin continues to work from the Polish city of Rzeszow which lies close to the Ukrainian border, the Slovenian Foreign Ministry said earlier this week.