ST. PETERSBURG, July 18. /TASS/. Ukraine’s plan to grant second citizenship to all ethnic Ukrainians is the country’s internal affair, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. Similarly, in his words, the Russian president’s decision to extend a fast-track citizenship offer to all residents of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Lugansk regions is Russia’s internal affair.

According to Peskov, the Ukrainian president’s instruction to develop a mechanism to grant second citizenship to all ethnic Ukrainians from friendly countries is "Ukraine’s internal affair." "And the decisions that the President [Vladimir Putin] formalized in his decree are Russia’s domestic affair," Peskov noted.

"You know, there was a large number or requests from these regions [the Donetsk and Lugansk regions] of Ukraine, as well as from residents of the self-proclaimed republics, this matter was raised during [Vladimir Putin’s] recent question and answer session, it was long overdue. This is why President Putin’s decision is quite well-reasoned and understandable," Peskov emphasized.

He declined to specify how many people could seize the opportunity to obtain Ukrainian passports. "I can’t say, I don’t think there are any estimates. One can make predictions until he is blue in the face but those assumptions will be of relative importance," the Russian presidential spokesman said.

Peskov pointed out that "Russia doesn’t recognize dual citizenship." "Even if Russian nationals obtain a second citizenship, they will still be treated as Russians, maintaining all of their rights and responsibilities," he stressed.

Citizenship matter

On April 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree, which eases Russian citizenship rules for residents of certain regions of southeastern Ukraine. "Individuals permanently residing in certain areas of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Lugansk regions have the right to apply for Russian citizenship under a fast-track procedure," the decree reads. According to the document, the decision was made "in order to protect human rights and freedoms" based on generally accepted international laws.

On July 17, Putin signed another decree, extending the fast-track citizenship offer to all residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has handed down instructions to develop a mechanism to grant second citizenship to all ethnic Ukrainians from friendly countries and ease citizenship rules for people whose rights and freedoms are violated in their home countries.

Ukraine doesn’t recognize dual citizenship so those obtaining foreign passports give grounds for revoking their Ukrainian nationality. However, members of ethnic minorities in Ukraine have been willingly obtaining foreign passports in recent years. In particular, a large number of Ukrainians have already received Russian citizenship.