Since 2019, some 720,000 residents of areas in eastern Ukraine controlled by Russia-backed rebels have received Russian passports in a fast-track procedure widely seen as an attempt to underscore Russia’s influence in the region.
On Tuesday, Russian lawmakers appealed to President Vladimir Putin to recognize the independence of the two self-proclaimed republics, eliciting even more outrage in Kyiv, with both the Foreign Ministry and parliament releasing statements condemning the move.
Putin signed a decree simplifying the procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship for residents of Donetsk and Luhansk in April 2019 – the day after Volodymyr Zelenskyy's presidential victory was officially proclaimed. Donetsk residents who have applied say having Russian citizenship gives them a sense of protection from a powerful neighboring state.
The deal, widely known as the Minsk agreements, put a stop to large-scale hostilities but failed to bring about a political settlement of the conflict. It envisioned Donetsk and Luhansk as part of Ukraine, but with broad autonomy from Kyiv, which has said that implementing the agreements would hurt Ukraine. The Kremlin, on the other hand, has insisted the Minsk deal is the only way to settle the conflict and has repeatedly accused Ukraine of sabotaging its implementation.
Donetsk and Luhansk residents with Russian passports were allowed to vote in last year's Russian parliamentary elections and in the 2020 plebiscite on constitutional reform that permits Putin to run for two additional terms. They were bussed into the neighboring Rostov region in Russia to cast their ballots.
President Joe Biden laid out the U.S. plan for sanctions and support to Ukraine and neighboring countries if Russia decides to invade Ukraine. He also urged Russia to solve the issues through diplomacy.
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