Putin's new decree: As the Russian Federation tries to make Ukrainians take Russian passports - an expert

On April 27, Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a decree in which citizens of Ukraine in the occupied territories that did not take Russian passports are recognized as "foreigners". More precisely, "foreign citizens" are considered Ukrainians who resided in Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions or lived earlier and left for Russia. Also "foreigners" are those Ukrainians who want to keep their own citizenship.

According to the Director for Advocacy of the Zmina Human Rights Center Alona Lunova, Moscow thus pursues a specific goal - to increase the rate of certification in the occupied territories. "It is a consistent line of state policy of the Russian Federation for imposing citizenship of the Russian Federation and forced certification of citizens of Ukraine who are in temporarily occupied territories or left for Russia," - comments the human rights activist.

The expert is convinced that Moscow goes to such steps, because the rate of certification is not as high as the Russians expected. However, it is impossible to confirm or refute this information.

The only sources of information on the issues of certification in the conquered territories are Russian state bodies or occupation authorities, but their statistics will be significantly overestimated, emphasizes Lununov [for example, in March this year the so -called "governor" of Kherson region Vladimir Saldo argued that Russian passport 90 thousand people in the region].

The decree signed by the leader of the aggressor country is written very confusing, so it is difficult to understand all the nuances of the published document. According to the human rights activist, this can be done intentionally. Yes, it is unclear from the text of the decree at what time Ukrainians should obtain Russian citizenship. Most media outlets indicate that the final date when people should decide on the receipt of the Russian passport is July 1, 2024.

However, Lunova, referring to the document, emphasizes that this date applies only to really foreign citizens who lived in these regions at the time of occupation of the territories on the basis of Ukraine issued. Instead, the decree states that the forced expulsion of Ukrainian citizens that are equated with foreigners is prohibited. That is, massively deport Ukrainians without Russian passports, most likely, Moscow will not, it suggests a human rights activist.

However, the Kremlin can make such single "stocks" with a hint of their zoom to intimidate people. "It seems that the main purpose of this decree is to create an atmosphere of fear and to help Ukrainians be afraid that they will actually be able to get out of their land if they do not receive Russian passports," - said the focus interlocutor.

Moscow has no purpose to completely get rid of local residents in the occupied territories, the human rights activist believes, so the variant of deportation is not considered. It is known that in the territory of the aggressor country and now many citizens of Ukraine who have left themselves through hostilities or which were deported. And Russia will not hurry to let them go home, even if people have a desire.

The Russian Federation already has the experience of Crimea and knows how to influence Ukrainians who do not want to obtain Russian citizenship. The next step in Moscow, according to the expert, will be restriction of access to the realization of basic rights of people without Russian passports.

For example, it will be almost impossible to obtain some medical services of the Russian Federation [in the Kherson region and now they are given health insurance only to Ukrainians with Russian passports, the sources of focus say]. "The occupiers have already done so much to make the Ukrainians take the" Ausweiss ". But still there are people who even in such a situation give up Russian passports. I think that this decree is directed," Lunova summarizes .