In September, Russia held mock referendums in the occupied regions of Ukraine - with the result that all four territories were annexed by Russia. By issuing Russian passports, the Kremlin creates further facts.
Russia says it has issued more than 80,000 Russian passports to residents of the four Ukrainian regions declared annexed by Moscow. "Since the four regions of the Russian Federation were added, and in accordance with the law, more than 80,000 people have received passports as citizens of the Russian Federation," Russian news agencies quoted an Interior Ministry official as saying.
Since the Russian military offensive launched in February, the Kremlin has made it easier for Ukrainians to obtain Russian citizenship. Even before the offensive against Ukraine, Moscow had distributed hundreds of thousands of Russian passports in the separatist areas in the east of the country.
In September, Russia held so-called referendums in the four Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson. President Vladimir Putin then announced the annexation of the areas. The UN condemned the "attempted illegal annexation" of Ukrainian land and called on the international community "not to recognize any border changes announced by Russia".
At the beginning of October, the EU had already agreed not to recognize Russian passports from the occupied territories of Ukraine. The same should apply to travel documents issued in Georgia in the breakaway republics of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
