Russia claims over 30,000 people in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia applied for Russian citizenship

As the war between Russia and Ukraine continues to take a new and more intense turn, with Ukrainian forces pushing back the Russian invaders, reports have emerged that people in large numbers have started applying for Russian citizenship in the Zaprorzhye region. On Monday, the Zaporizhzhia region's head of the military-civilian administration, Yevgeny Balitsky, claimed that so far 30,000 people have applied for Russian citizenship in the region, TASS news agency reported.

Balitsky said that more and more people are applying for Russian citizenship, and on Monday the administration received over 30,000 applications with a complete package of necessary documents. He said the administration is working on mechanisms to address particular cases when passport issuance procedures are delayed.

"More and more Zaporizhzhia region residents are applying for Russian citizenship. As of today, more than 30,000 such applications with a complete package of necessary documents are being considered at passport issuance centres," Balitsky wrote on his Telegram channel.

"At this stage, we continue to work on mechanisms to address particular cases when passport issuance procedures are delayed," the Zaporizhzhia region's head of the military-civilian administration added.

According to Balitsky, a total of twelve centres are receiving documents from people seeking citizenship. Out of 12 passport centres, three are based in Melitopol; two in Berdyansk; one in Akimovka; one in Priazovye; one in Tokmak; one in Mikhailova; one in Dneproprudny; one in Energodar; and one in Kamenka.

On July 11, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree expanding a fast-track procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship available to all Ukrainians. A move that is largely aimed at expanding Russia's control over the captured Ukrainian territory. Earlier, only residents of Ukraine’s separatist eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as residents of the southern Zaporizhzhia and the Kherson regions were eligible to apply for a passport, but July's decree that was signed by the Kremlin leader simplified the process of obtaining a Russian passport. However, the European Union later condemned Putin’s decision to simplify the distribution of Russian passports to Ukrainians and announced that the EU would never recognise passports distributed by Russia to Ukrainians.

(Image: AP/Representative)