Russia to abolish border zones with occupied Ukrainian territories

Moscow will begin removing border zones between Russia and occupied areas of Ukraine, according to internal FSB documents obtained by independent Russian media outlet Agentstvo and published on Aug. 13.

Border zones in Rostov and Voronezh oblasts along Russia's boundary with occupied parts of Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts will be eliminated due to the "completion of the annexation" of the so-called Luhansk People's Republic and Donetsk People's Republic, the documents state.

The border zones between occupied Crimea and the occupied parts of Kherson Oblast will also be eliminated for the same stated reason. In Crimea, Russia will retain a border regime "within the Black Sea islands belonging to the Russian Federation," according to the documents.

Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014 and declared the annexation of the partially occupied Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts in 2022, treating sovereign Ukrainian territory as part of Russia.

It is not clear whether the elimination of the border zones will mean the removal of checkpoints connecting territory Russia claims to have annexed, or whether this will be merely an administrative change.

Since Russia first occupied Ukrainian territory in 2014, Russian-occupied areas have gained a reputation for gangsterism and lawlessness.

Russian authorities kept border controls in place in an attempt to stop smuggling of guns, drugs, and other illicit cargo back into Russian territory.

The border move is the latest in a long line by the Kremlin to Russify Ukrainian territory.

Russian President Vladimir Putin in March signed a decree that indefinitely extends the ease of obtaining Russian citizenship in the occupied territories, a move that experts say is a sign that Russia is consolidating its occupation by pursuing mass passportization.

The March 4 decree removed the deadline for residents of occupied Ukrainian territories to obtain Russian citizenship through a simplified process established by a 2022 Russian law, effectively making the policy permanent.

"The goal of the new decree is to passportize as many people as possible, pressuring them," Nataliia Yurlova, lawyer for the NGO Donbas SOS, told the Kyiv Independent.

"In general, Russia has been issuing passports to Ukrainians in occupation for quite a long time, and each time new requirements are imposed on our citizens."

Also in March, Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Russia to end what it described as "illegal property seizures" in occupied Ukraine, along with pressure on residents to obtain Russian citizenship, nationality-based discrimination, and restrictions on Ukrainians' travel to Russian-occupied territories.

Putin signed a law in December 2025 enabling the seizure of Ukrainian-owned housing in occupied territories by allowing occupation authorities to declare it "ownerless."

According to the HRW report, displaced Ukrainians face major obstacles to reclaiming their property, including the need for a Russian passport and the dangers of traveling through Russia, as it is nearly impossible to return to the occupied territories from Ukrainian-controlled areas.