Ukrainians Receiving Russian Passports Face Threat of Losing Citizenship

The residents of territories in Donbas that are outside of Kyiv's control may be deprived of Ukrainian citizenship for obtaining Russian passports. This was stated by the Deputy Minister for the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine, Yurii Grymchak.

According to local media reports, the official specified that the Constitution of Ukraine grants citizens the right to hold only one country's passport.

He further noted that by granting Russian citizenship, Moscow will have grounds to claim that it is protecting its citizens in eastern Ukraine in the future. Additionally, the leaders of the so-called republics, upon acquiring Russian citizenship, will be able to evade criminal prosecution in Ukraine.