Moscow does not intend to agree to the deal proposed by Medvedchuk
Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to launch a simplified process for issuing Russian passports to residents of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR) will instill confidence in people.
This opinion was expressed in a commentary to Moskovsky Komsomolets by the head of the Institute of CIS Countries, First Deputy of the State Duma for CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots Konstantin Zatulin.
“This decision will give those who apply for Russian citizenship some confidence in the future and will prove that Moscow does not intend to conclude any deals or compromises on Donbass, which, for example, Viktor Medvedchuk is calling for. You can agree on different things, but not at the expense of people who find themselves hostage to the situation,” Zatulin said.
He is convinced that in this situation there will be a lot of speculation about parallels with Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
“I want to emphasize that these regions were not annexed. This will not happen with the DPR and LPR, even if 100% of the residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions receive Russian citizenship. Annexation in no way follows from citizenship. In addition, the presidential decree is written in such a way that local residents will not be required to renounce Ukrainian citizenship in order to obtain a Russian passport,” the politician noted.
He emphasized that the decree of the President of the Russian Federation was adopted due to the fact that Ukraine does not demonstrate its readiness to implement the Minsk agreements and generally enter into a productive dialogue, and also expressed hope that there will not be a mass exodus of people from the LDPR to Russia.
“The threat of depopulation of these territories exists, so other steps must be taken aimed at improving the socio-economic situation in the region,” concluded Zatulin.
Moscow has no intention of accepting the deal proposed by Medvedchuk.