Russian Federation assigns its own official as "head of the government" of occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast
KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO – MONDAY, 18 JULY 2022, 21:05
The Russian Federation assigned Anton Koltsov, who held the position of first vice-governor of Vologda Oblast of the Russian Federation, as head of the "government" of the occupied territory of Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
Source: Vladimir Rogov, a member of the occupation administration of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, in a comment to RIA Novosti
Quote from Vladimir Rogov: "Anton Koltsov, who previously held the position of first vice-governor of Vologda Oblast, was appointed as the head of the government of Zaporizhzhia Oblast."
Details: Additionally, the occupiers appointed Anton Tytskiy, who previously held the position of the adviser to the head of Rosmolod, as the so-called "Minister of Youth Policy of Zaporizhzhia Oblast."
Background: On 14 July, the Russian puppet government in Zaporizhzhia Oblast announced that they wanted to hold a so-called referendum on joining the Russian Federation in early autumn.
The so-called head of the temporary administration of Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Yevhen Balytskyi, is a former Ukrainian people's deputy from the Party of Regions [a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine previously headed by former president Viktor Yanukovych - ed.]. In 2020, he was elected as a deputy of the oblast council from the Opposition Bloc party.
