Russia claims it has issued 1.5 million Russian passports to residents of occupied territories of Ukraine

The Russian government has claimed that it has issued nearly 1.5 million Russian passports to residents of the occupied territories of Ukraine in the past eight months.

Source: TASS, Krym.Realii (Crimea.Reality), a Radio Liberty project covering Crimea

Details: Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced that nearly 1.5 million residents of what Russia calls its "new regions" [but are in fact occupied territories of Ukraine – ed.] have obtained Russian passports since October 2022.

According to the Russian government, the documents have been issued in the Russian-occupied parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts of Ukraine after their annexation.

During a "strategic session dedicated to the development of new territories", Mishustin said that the work to restore civilian settlements on the occupied territories was "continuing apace".

He promised to support a range of sectors of the economy on the occupied territories and stressed the great promise of agriculture in those regions.

Background: The Ukrainian government does not recognise these documents, though the Russian Federation is putting pressure on residents of these occupied territories to force them to obtain Russian passports.

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