The Hidden State Russia Is Building Inside Ukraine
Russian occupation authorities are doing everything possible to make Ukrainian lands unrecoverable.
Russia is secretly constructing a state within Ukraine, hidden from the eyes of the world. In the Russian-occupied regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, Ukrainian institutions are being replaced with Russian ones. Schools now follow Russian curriculums, official documents require Russian identities, and Russian systems manage housing and public services.
In June 2023, Vladimir Putin stated that Moscow's goal is to unify these territories into a single entity under Russian control by 2030. This plan began before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with Crimea serving as an early test ground. After annexing Crimea in 2014, Russia imposed Russian citizenship and made documentation essential for employment and services.
The occupied territories from the 2022 invasion have proven even more challenging to integrate. The Russian military and government now have authority in these areas, and Ukrainian residents are required to obtain Russian passports to access pensions, jobs, benefits, and education. The occupation has made it nearly impossible for Ukrainians to maintain their independent identity, as Russian authorities have seized their documents and property.
At least 34,000 Ukrainian properties have been confiscated since 2024, with plans to allocate them to Russian citizens. The infrastructure in occupied Ukraine has been altered to support Russian military objectives, while civilian living conditions have worsened.
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