Skip to content

News Feed

4:23 PM
President Volodymyr Zelensky took part in a commemorating ceremony at Babyn Yar, where Nazi Germany committed a massacre of the Kyiv's Jewish population, Ukraine's Federation of Jewish Communities reported on Sept. 29.
Ukraine Daily
News from
Ukraine in your
inbox
9:47 AM
The U.S. House of Representatives approved a $300 million tranche for Ukraine late on Sept. 28 after Republicans removed it from the defense spending bill, Politico reported.
2:15 AM
Ukraine has been elected to serve on the Board of Governors for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), according to the UN nuclear watchdog's statement posted on Sept. 28.
1:46 AM
Russian forces shelled seven communities in Ukraine's border Sumy Oblast on Sept. 28, firing over 180 rounds from various types of weapons, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration reported on Telegram.
MORE NEWS

watch us on facebook

Edit post

Minister urges Ukrainians in occupied territories to refuse Russian passports contrary to Ombudsman's advice

by The Kyiv Independent news desk May 1, 2023 7:38 PM 2 min read
People arrive to receive Russian passports at a center in Russian-occupied Kherson on July 21, 2022. (Getty Images)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories Iryna Vereshchuk called on Ukrainians who remain in Russian-occupied territories not to take Russian passports, which contradicts a recent statement by Ukraine's Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.

"My recommendations to Ukrainians in the temporarily occupied territories remain the same: do not take Russian passports, do not cooperate with the occupiers, leave if possible, wait for the Armed Forces," the minister wrote on May 1.

On April 27, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin signed a decree allowing the deportation of Ukrainians in occupied territories who refuse to take Russian citizenship. Those Ukrainians who choose to retain their Ukrainian citizenship can be deported after July 1, 2024.

Lubinets has advised Ukrainians who currently live in Russian-occupied regions to "make a decision to survive" and take Russian passports or leave such territories "in any possible way."

General Staff: Russia forces doctors in Berdiansk to register for military service
Russian forces in occupied Bediansk in Zaporizhzhia Oblast are forcing local doctors who have received Russian passports to register for military service, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported on April 24.

In her May 1 statement, Vereshchuk said that by implementing the decree, Moscow wants Ukrainians "to either become Russians or leave the temporarily occupied territories."

"If they want to deport Ukrainians who do not want to take Russian passports from the occupied territories, there's no problem. Because the Russians themselves do not let Ukrainians leave for Ukrainian-controlled territory, violating international law and contrary to basic humanitarian considerations."

Vereshchuk added that she had appealed to the Russian side and the International Committee of the Red Cross with a demand to open humanitarian corridors so that Ukrainians from the Russian-occupied lands could leave for the government-controlled territory.

The Ukrainian military's National Resistance Center reported on April 7 that Moscow-installed proxies in the occupied territories of southern Ukraine had increasingly forced civilians to obtain Russian passports, using threats and physical violence against those who refused to do so.

On July 13, European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said the EU wouldn't recognize Russian passports issued to Ukrainian citizens in occupied territories. Russia has distributed around a million Russian passports on Ukrainian territory since 2019.

UK Defense Ministry: Russia using its passports as ‘Russification’ tool in occupied Ukrainian territories
Moscow-installed proxies in occupied Ukrainian territories are “almost certainly” forcing the local population to take Russian passports, the U.K. Defense Ministry reported on April 24.
Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Freedom can be costly. Both Ukraine and its journalists are paying a high price for their independence. Support independent journalism in its darkest hour. Support us for as little as $1, and it only takes a minute.
visa masterCard americanExpress

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe

Please, enter correct email address

Subscribe

* indicates required
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.