The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, signed a decree on territories historically inhabited by Ukrainians in the Russian Federation.
“Today we must take steps not only to strengthen the unity of Ukraine and our people but also to act for the unity of rights and freedoms, the truth about Ukrainians, the truth about us and the truth about our history,” the head of state said in his greetings on the occasion of the 105-th anniversary of the Day of the Assembly of Ukraine.
He emphasized that it was for this purpose that he signed the decree “On the territories of the Russian Federation historically inhabited by Ukrainians.” “This is the return of the truth about the historical past for the sake of Ukraine’s future,” the president added.
Decree No. 17/2024 dated January 22 states that for centuries, Russia has systematically carried out and continues to carry out actions aimed at destroying national identity, oppressing Ukrainians, and violating their rights and freedoms, in particular on the lands historically inhabited by their ancestors in the Kuban, Starodubshchyna, Northern and Eastern Slobozhanshchyna within the boundaries of modern Krasnodar Territory, Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Rostov Oblasts of the Russian Federation.
Zelenskyy instructed the Cabinet of Ministers to develop a plan of measures to preserve the national identity of Ukrainians in the Russian Federation, in particular in historically populated territories, and submit it for consideration by the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine.
Among the tasks of the government is the study of facts about crimes against Ukrainians in Russia, the policy of Russification, repression and deportation, as well as countering disinformation and propaganda of the Russian Federation. Cooperation with international experts and mass media to debunk myths about Ukraine is also planned.
The government is also obliged to prepare materials about the history of Ukrainians in the lands historically inhabited by their ancestors in the Russian Federation and to include them in educational programs and textbooks.
Read also:
- The Ukrainian diaspora in Australia is asking the government to hand over decommissioned Taipan helicopters to Ukraine
- Ukraine and Great Britain signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of security