MFA: No Russian law or decree can change legal status of Ukrainian territories

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) intends to eliminate border zones in specific areas of Rostov and Voronezh regions that border temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories, according to the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This move is not about discontinuing border control, but rather an attempt to erase the border between the aggressor state and the Ukrainian territories it occupies, stated the Foreign Ministry.

The ministry stressed that no Russian law, decree, or departmental order can alter the legal status of Ukrainian territories. The Foreign Ministry clarified that occupation does not confer sovereignty and that a forced annexation does not grant territorial rights. The ministry pointed out that the drafts of the relevant Russian departmental orders claim the alleged incorporation of temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories into Russia.

The ministry reiterated that administrative decisions by the Russian agency do not change the internationally recognized legal status of Ukrainian territories. The FSB can relocate checkpoints, alter its documents, and redraw maps to its heart's content. However, this does not transform the occupied Ukrainian land into Russian territory, and Ukraine's internationally recognized state border will not shift even an inch, emphasized the Foreign Ministry.

The ministry interpreted the FSB's decision as another component of the policy aimed at administratively annexing the temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories and presenting their purported integration into the Russian Federation.