Image copyright Sergei Konkov / TASS Image caption Russia has recognized the documents of the self-proclaimed republics, but this is unlikely to make life much easier for their owners.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognizing documents issued in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk "people's republics." The Russian service of the BBC figured out what would change after this decision for the residents of Donbass.
The decree, published on the Kremlin's website on Saturday, April 18, twice emphasizes that although Russia recognizes the documents of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR, it continues to consider these territories "separate areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine." The text notes that the measures taken by Moscow are temporary and are introduced until a "political settlement" in the east of Ukraine.
Recognition of documents is necessary in accordance with the norms of international and humanitarian law and is carried out to protect "the rights and freedoms of man and citizen," said in Putin's decree.
What documents of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR did Russia recognize?
- identity documents issued by "actually operating" bodies of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR
- documents on education, qualifications
- vehicle registration certificates (STS) and their numbers
- birth certificates, name change, marriage, divorce and death certificates
How many people have documents from the self-proclaimed republics?
The issuance of passports of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic" began less than a year ago - in March 2016. According to the Migration Service of the DPR Ministry of Internal Affairs, by January 2017, 40 thousand passports had been issued; another 45 thousand applications were received. The self-proclaimed LPR issued 10,000 passports in 2015-2016, the local migration service reported.
As reported by the DPR Ministry of Internal Affairs, the following can apply for passports of the DPR and LPR:
- citizens of Ukraine who lived on the territory of the self-proclaimed republic at the time of proclamation of independence
- citizens of Russia and other countries who were (were) in service in the DPR and LPR
- persons with "special merit" to the self-proclaimed republics
Those who have not received a passport from the DPR or LPR must still register their cars, register marriages and the birth of children with the "actually functioning bodies" of the self-proclaimed republics.
What will change for passport holders of self-proclaimed republics?
Prior to the adoption of Putin's decree, DPR and LPR passport holders were in an uncertain position if they were going to leave the borders of the self-proclaimed republics.
In early February, RBC wrote that holders of passports of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR de facto can freely enter Russia, buy a train ticket, fly domestic flights, and book hotels.
“Tickets were sold, license plates were recognized, loans, mortgages, patents [for work] were not given,” Anna Sidorova, administrator of the Donbass in Moscow community. Migrants, refugees, described the previous situation for holders of passports of the self-proclaimed republics.
At the same time, other users of the community complained that "they were sent with such documents in Moscow" and, in general, they "raised more questions than answers."
According to the Russian service of the BBC, State Duma deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Sergei Shargunov, before Putin's decree, nothing prevented, when presenting the "Donbass" documents, to say: "This is a filthy letter, go home." Shargunov himself proposes to issue Russian passports to the residents of Donbass, as happened in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
What will change for the owners of cars and driving licenses of the DPR and LPR?
Drivers will be able to calmly present their car licenses of the DPR and LPR to the employees of the Russian traffic police.
A source of the BBC Russian Service in the Moscow State Traffic Safety Inspectorate said that prior to the recognition of the documents, there were “no special instructions” regarding cars with numbers from the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR.
As follows from public messages
On February 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree “On the recognition of Russian Federation documents and registration plates of vehicles issued to citizens of Ukraine and stateless persons permanently residing in the territories of certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine ”.
In addition to passports and license plates, this also applies to a number of other documents - certificates of birth and death, marriage or divorce, education and qualifications, and others.
The decree denotes a temporary order of actions until the political situation in eastern Ukraine is resolved "within the framework of the Minsk agreements," but it makes everyone on both sides of the confrontation line in Donbas ponder.
Many people needed documents
Passports of the self-proclaimed republics have been issued in Donetsk and Lugansk for exactly one year, and their appearance was dictated by objective necessity. Dozens, if not hundreds of thousands of people are involved in the structures of republican authorities, army units, police and the Ministry of State Security. And all of them have no way to the territory controlled by Ukraine. This means that they cannot change the photo on the passport, and get a new one instead of the lost one, get the license, the license plate for the car, they cannot.
In three years, a whole generation of children in the DPR and LPR reached the age of 16 and, by virtue of different reasons could not travel to Ukraine, and some, having not received a passport in time, lost the right to cross the checkpoints of entry and exit on the basis of birth certificates.
Martial law is in effect on the territory of the self-proclaimed republics: there is a curfew, and you must always have your documents with you. Therefore, many people needed documents in Donbass.
Moreover, from the very beginning of the process, both the head of the DPR and the head of the LPR stated that with these documents people will be able to cross the border with the Russian Federation and use big amount state Russian services.
Since February 2016, gradually, step by step, this is how everything began to happen. DPR passports began to be accepted by Russian border guards at the Uspenka crossing, then cars with DPR license plates were allowed to pass at the border. Since the summer, information has appeared that the passports of the self-proclaimed republics began to be accepted by the migration services in many constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
With DPR passports, graduates of Donetsk schools went and began to successfully enroll in Russian universities, especially those where budget places were allocated for them in "adjacent" territories - Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don, Kursk.
Eventually, the passports of the self-proclaimed republics began to be accepted when buying plane and train tickets.
Each such fact was enthusiastically met and covered by the local press in Donetsk and Lugansk as visible practical steps of Russia on the way to the official recognition of the DPR and LPR.
The same process was going on through the ministries of justice of the self-proclaimed republics, which, after disconnecting these territories from all Ukrainian electronic registers from January 2015, were able to build their own notaries, a registry office system, and death and birth registration registers. Death certificates from Donetsk began to be accepted on the territory of Russia in cases related to inheritance since 2015.
On the path of recognition
As of February 18, 2017, no additional steps were needed for a quiet circulation of documents and numbers of the DPR and LPR. Everyone was convinced of the effectiveness of the new documents, and in Donetsk a queue is lining up for them months ahead. Since February 2016, only about 40 thousand passports of the DPR in Donetsk have been issued (the population of the DPR, according to the local statistics department, is 2.3 million people). The problem was not even in the forms of documents, but in the small number of special printers that enter information into passports.
That is why such euphoria reigns in the official circles of Donetsk and Lugansk. The decree of the President of Russia was perceived here as a symbol, as the first step towards the entry of the self-proclaimed republics into the Russian Federation.
“All citizens of the Russian Federation, officials, police, border guards, etc. are obliged to comply with the decree of the President of Russia. That is, in fact, we are already citizens of Russia! " - a source of "Gazeta.Ru" in the Council of Ministers of the DPR has succinctly commented on today's news.
This unequivocal opinion is not dominant. Ramil Zamdykhanov, an authoritative blogger in Donetsk, who is close to the former head of the DPR Security Council, believes that pressure is more likely on Ukraine in order to force it to accept Donbass than it should be part of Russia in some form.
“I see that someone (I don’t know who) has created serious internal problems for Ukraine with the same blockade,” Ramil Zamdykhanov explained to Gazeta.Ru. - And at the same time, the LPNR and Russia began to press simultaneously. The first troll with the "Program of humanitarian aid to Donbass", and the Russian Federation is backing up with such decrees. The goal is to force one to agree to a certain “sovereign Donbass” as part of Ukraine. "
In Kiev, the decree was perceived without enthusiasm, as a sign of the impending sharp deterioration of the situation around the war zone in the east of the country. “First of all, take this as a demonstration that Russia is not going to negotiate with anyone,” a source told Gazeta.Ru and refused to go into the topic.
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, who is currently in Munich at a security conference, has already reacted to Vladimir Putin's decree.
"For me, this is yet another proof of both the" Russian occupation "and the Russian violation of international law," he said.
The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine went even further and stated that he regards this decision as a withdrawal from the Minsk process. "Such a step by the Kremlin completely negates the Minsk process and is equal to Russia's statement of withdrawal from it," the text of the message published on the NSDC website says.
The Ukrainian expert community also believes that Moscow's actions are unfriendly to the current government in Ukraine. “I think that, firstly, in a global sense, the end of detente in relations between the West and Russia, which has not yet begun,” Ukrainian political scientist Konstantin Batozky explained his vision of the situation to Gazeta.Ru. - Secondly, this is a sign that the Kremlin will move further along the Ossetian and Abkhazian scenarios. That is, further there will be recognition of the independence of these entities and the legalization of the Russian military presence in these territories. "
Interestingly, Russian sources do not rule out a similar scenario.
“Such a development of events as the subsequent possible recognition of the Donbass republics cannot be ruled out,” the director expressed his point of view. - But in this particular case it comes that Russia could not but respond to the constant violations by Ukraine of the rights of people living in Donbass, who for three years have not been able to live a normal civil and political life due to the fact that Ukraine is constantly organizing an economic and political blockade of Donbass. "
From the point of view of the interlocutor of Gazeta.Ru, the decree of the Russian president is a serious signal for Ukraine that if it does not fulfill the Minsk agreements and blocks the process of political settlement, then Russia can go further in terms of increasing the level of interaction with the ultimately, perhaps, recognizes them.
On February 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognizing the passports of the LPR and DPR on the territory of the Russian Federation. What does this decree give for the residents of the young republics and why did the Kremlin take this step?
5 questions about what the decree of Vladimir Putin on the recognition of documents issued on the territory of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics means.
1. Why did the Kremlin take such a step?
The Decree of the President of Russia on the recognition of the documents of the DPR and LPR exhaustively states why this was done: "In order to protect the rights and freedoms of man and citizen, guided by the universally recognized principles and norms of international humanitarian law ..."
During those 3 years, while Ukraine is leading with the independent Donbass civil war and keeps its inhabitants practically in a blockade, millions of people in these territories could not really change their surnames, or register a marriage, divorce, or the birth of a child. Documents about this were given out in the local registry offices, but they were simply not recognized by anyone and anywhere, except in the DPR and LPR themselves. Those who reached the age of majority did not understand what kind of passport they should receive, and those who graduated from school or university - what to do with a certificate that is not recognized anywhere. It's not to go to Ukraine for a Ukrainian passport and a certificate, you don't have to come back.
Well, you can't hang so many people between heaven and earth, denying them such an elementary civil law.
2. What kind of documents are recognized?
Firstly, these are passports issued by the DPR and LPR, and other identity cards, birth certificates, marriage certificates or divorce, name change, and death certificates.
Secondly, certificates of education and professional qualifications.
Thirdly, certificates of registration of vehicles, registration plates of vehicles.
Due to the recognition of LDNR documents, including passports and car license plates, panic arose in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The reason was the statement of the Vice-Speaker Irina Gerashchenko that Russia could appropriate property in the uncontrolled Ukrainian territories.
3. Are there many people with such documents?
It is known that more than 40 thousand DPR passports have already been issued in Donetsk alone. By the way, outwardly they are similar to the Russian ones - the cover is also red, but darker. And the double-headed eagle on it - not with the coat of arms of St. George the Victorious, but the Archangel Michael. But the LPR passport looks more like a Soviet one. Because on the dark red cover there is a coat of arms of ears of corn entwined with a ribbon. Only in the center of the coat of arms is not the globe (as it was on the coat of arms of the USSR), but a five-pointed star.
Surely now there will be many more DPR and LPR passport holders. Indeed, in the territories of these republics today, from 2 to 3 million people live (more precisely, it is impossible to say because of a large number refugees who either return to Donbass or leave again with each escalation of shelling from Ukraine). It is one thing to have a passport that is valid only in Donbass, and quite another when it is recognized in 1/6 of the planet - from Donetsk - to the Pacific Ocean itself.
By the way, last year the Russian actor Ivan Okhlobystin solemnly received the DPR passport, and the famous American boxer Jeff Monson received the LPR passport.
4. What does this give the inhabitants of the LPR?
Most importantly, they will be able to move freely with their passports in Russia. Check into hotels, buy plane and train tickets, get a job with them.
A very important line of the Decree - with the documents of the DPR and LPR, it will be possible to cross the border with Russia without any visas!
It's the same with car license plates. Cars registered in Donbass are also allowed to drive in Russia.
Well, with the Donetsk and Luhansk certificates, it will be possible to enter Russian universities or present them to the employer as a certificate of education.
5. Does this change the status of the republics themselves?
Formally, nothing changes. This is not yet the recognition of the DPR and LPR. The decree does not even mention the names of these republics. They are designated as “the territories of separate areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine”. That is, it is impossible to put forward any political and legal claims from international structures against Russia in this regard. You will not undermine.
But at the civil law, at the household level, this is a huge shift. This is moral support and recognition for the people of Donbass, who are tired of living as if they do not seem to exist officially.
Moreover, the decree was issued in the midst of another blockade, this time a trade blockade, arranged by Ukraine on Donbass. And at that moment when Kiev has already made it clear that it is not going to fulfill the Minsk agreements, having unleashed a new round of the war.
Recognition of the documents of the Donbass republics can also be called a soft coercion of Kiev to peace - Ukraine was made to understand that if it continues to treat its citizens in the southeast of the country formally as a pig, then they have a place to go. And this is a clear hint to the West - do not start seriously, in fact, demanding peace from Kiev with Donbass, the next step may be the recognition of the DPR and LPR themselves.
In Russia, documents from the self-proclaimed republics of Donbass. RBC understood the reaction of the parties and possible consequences this solution.
Legalization of passports
On Saturday, February 18, the Kremlin's website published a decree of President Vladimir Putin on the temporary recognition in Russia of documents issued to Ukrainian citizens and stateless persons in certain areas in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. This rule will remain in effect until the conflict in these regions of Ukraine is resolved.
Now in Russia not only the documents of such citizens are recognized, but also the registration plates of vehicles, the decree says. These measures are explained by the "protection of human and civil rights and freedoms", when taking them, the head of state was guided by "the principles and norms of international humanitarian law."
The first paragraph of the decree contains a list of documents legalized in Russia: identity cards, educational diplomas, documents of birth and confirmation of professional qualifications, papers on the conclusion and dissolution of marriage, death certificates. All these documents can be issued "by the relevant authorities actually operating in the territories of the indicated regions", that is, in fact, by the structures of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics.
In addition, according to the text of the decree, citizens of Ukraine and stateless persons can enter and leave Russia with these documents without applying for visas.
The Russian government has been instructed to take the necessary measures to implement this decree. The measures are in effect "temporarily, for the period until a political settlement of the situation in certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine on the basis of the Minsk agreements."
In early February, an investigation by RBC about the tacit recognition of the passports of the DPR and LPR in Russia was published. After that, the press secretary of the head of state, Dmitry Peskov, emphasized that this is "not about the official recognition of passports," but "about individual decisions that could be made by municipal, local authorities, as well as various companies, based solely on humanitarian considerations."
"Normandy format"
Putin's decree was issued on the day of the Normandy format talks in Munich at the level of the foreign ministers of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany. The first meeting of the Normandy Four foreign ministers since November last year lasted for about an hour. The ministers supported the agreement of the contact group on Ukraine to start an armistice from February 20, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
The Russian and Ukrainian ministers expressed their commitment to a plan aimed at reducing tensions in eastern Ukraine and agreed to continue political negotiations, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said after the meeting. According to him, the political process will not move forward without a truce and the withdrawal of heavy weapons. The ministers agreed to hold a meeting in a few weeks.
Before the meeting, Lavrov spoke at the Munich conference, where he said that the restoration of Kiev's control over the border with Russia is possible only after the implementation of the Minsk agreements. Earlier in Kiev, it was stated that control over the border (part of it is controlled by the militias) should be transferred to the Ukrainian border service before elections are held in "certain areas of Donbass".
Sudden decision
The State Duma called Putin's decision "important evidence of Russia's support for the DPR and LPR." As stated by a member of the parliamentary committee on international affairs Sergey Zheleznyak(the United Russia faction), this should become “a serious confirmation for a reasonable part of the Ukrainian and international community of the futility of attempts to use force to resolve the conflict in Donbass” (quote from the party's website).
According to a RBC source close to Russian diplomatic circles, "this decision is just a legal form for what was already." “There is no talk of further steps to recognize the DPR and LPR,” he stressed.
“In fact [in Russia], everyone turned a blind eye to the documents and license plates [of the DPR and LPR],” the former chief of staff of the DPR Ministry of Defense confirmed to RBC Eldar Khasanov.
The issue of recognizing the documents of the DPR and LPR was not discussed at any negotiations, emphasized a RBC source close to diplomatic circles. In his opinion, the decision was made in the Kremlin, without any consultations.
Lavrov also confirmed that the issue of recognizing the documents was not raised at the meeting of the "Normandy Four". “No, the question was not raised. I do not think that anyone sees in this any change in position (Russia towards the republics of Donbass - editor's note), ”the Foreign Minister quoted TASS as saying.
This is a logical step by the Russian president in the context of Ukraine's continuation of the "policy of genocide towards the residents of the DPR and LPR," a political scientist told RBC Alexey Chesnakov, close to aide to the Russian President Vladislav Surkov. According to him, the constant shelling of the DPR and LPR by the Ukrainian army, the economic and humanitarian blockade of the republics, Kiev's de facto refusal to comply with the political points of the Minsk agreements and the “aggressive rhetoric” of Ukrainian officials towards the residents of Donetsk and Lugansk have led to today's decree by Putin.
“If the Ukrainian side does not stop pursuing the previous irresponsible policy and does not implement the Minsk agreements, Russia will take further steps towards the DPR and LPR. Not excluding their recognition, ”predicts Chesnakov.
The heads of the LPR and DPR are promptly recognized for the recognition of passports. “Today one more step has brought the republic closer to the world recognition of our sovereignty,” says the leader of the LPR Igor Plotnitsky. “If the Motherland loudly and boldly supports our struggle, then our struggle is just. This means that our sacrifices are not in vain, ”the head of the DPR Alexander Zakharchenko told RIA Novosti.
"Shocking effect"
Russia's decision is a violation of international law, said Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. “For me, this is yet another proof of both the Russian occupation and the Russian violation of international law,” the Ukrainian president said following talks with US Vice President Mike Pence in Munich.
The Russian decree refutes Peskov's statement of February 3 that Russia does not officially recognize the passports of the DPR and LPR, Interfax-Ukraine reported, citing Irina Friz, Rada deputy and former press secretary of the Ukrainian president. "This step is evidence that social tension in the occupied territories is growing along with dissatisfaction with Russian policy, and the Kremlin is throwing a bone to calm down the population of the occupied territories," the people's deputy said.
The same was stated by the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Alexander Turchinov... Vladimir Putin "legally recognized the quasi-state terrorist groups", which, "like a fig leaf", covered up "the occupation of a part of Donbass by Russia," Turchinov's press service quoted him as saying.
The information produced a "shocking effect" in Kiev, a source close to one of the leaders of the Verkhovna Rada factions told RBC. “This is definitely not a step towards peace,” he said, adding that this could lead to a serious aggravation of the situation.
Putin's decree - "de facto recognition of the two separatist republics", says Ukrainian political scientist Vladimir Fesenko... As the political scientist noted in a commentary to RBC, "this is unlikely to lead to a military exacerbation, but it certainly makes the implementation of the political part of the Minsk agreements virtually impossible." The expert stressed that Ukraine will never recognize this decree of Putin, which will further complicate the already virtually stalled Minsk talks.
Risks of sanctions
The DPR and LPR did not receive recognition from the UN member states. Ukraine, however, recognized these entities as "terrorist". According to US presidential decree No. 13,660 of March 6, 2014, sanctions and freezing of assets of private and legal entities threaten those responsible for "undermining democratic processes and institutions in Ukraine, as well as for threatening its peace, security, sovereignty and territorial integrity."
As previously stated to RBC, a lawyer at the Washington-based law firm Bryan Cave LLP Cliff Burns specializing in sanctions issues, the recognition of the DPR and LPR passports can be considered undermining the sovereignty of Ukraine and serve as the basis for sanctions against Russian officials and airlines that accept these documents. Although under the new US President Donald Trump, it is more likely that no new sanctions will be introduced against Russia, Burns specified.
"The European Union will view this decision of Putin as a step towards the escalation of the conflict, but the Russian side has a lot of opportunities and time to prove that it was needed and was made for humanitarian reasons," the scientific director of the German-Russian Forum told RBC Alexander Rahr... According to him, the humanitarian aspect of this decision can prevent the introduction of new sanctions against Russia.
It is precisely humanitarian considerations that explain the goals of the decree on the president's website. And with the same considerations, RBC's investigation on the informal recognition of passports was previously commented on by a source in the executive branch.
Any unilateral solution to the conflict can lead to escalation even in the case of rational arguments in favor of such a decision, the head of the foreign policy department of the Center for Strategic Research said in a comment for RBC. Sergey Utkin... There is a risk of not only aggravation in the conflict zone, but also, for example, Ukraine's introduction of a visa regime with Russia, the expert warns.
“Much will depend on how the parties read the document: it says that the measure is temporary and contains an indication of adherence to the Minsk agreements,” Utkin believes.
The Kremlin's decree may be a response to Washington about the need to return Crimea to Ukraine, the political scientist suggested Nikolay Mironov... In his opinion, Russia shows that it is ready to integrate with the DPR and LPR up to the recognition of the republics. “At the same time, we are ready to negotiate, so the Kremlin, through the mouth of Peskov, rebuked [the head of the DPR Alexander] Zakharchenko, who made harsh statements [about its readiness to“ reach Kiev. ”] Moscow still“ believes ”in Trump, but is ready for more tough steps are the essence of the decree, ”the political scientist argues.
Expert of the Moscow Law Academy Paul Kalinichenko clarifies that the recognition by Russia of passports of the DPR and LPR is associated with the elimination of statelessness, which means that it should not entail sanctions. “To remember the analogies, you need to think hard, because basically Russia issues its passports to citizens of Abkhazia and South Ossetia,” Kalinichenko said.
Based on the experience of Abkhazia and South Ossetia
On April 16, 2008, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the government to regulate relations with Abkhazia and South Ossetia. One of the measures taken was the recognition of documents that were issued to individuals by the de facto authorities of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The list also includes passports issued by the authorities of the then not yet recognized republics to their citizens.
The decision, as in the case of the passports of the DPR and LPR, was explained by considerations of a humanitarian nature. “During the years of protracted conflicts, the inhabitants of these unrecognized republics found themselves in a dire situation. They were actually deprived of the opportunity to realize the universal rights to a dignified life and sustainable development, ”the Foreign Ministry said.
“The recognition of passports, in essence, should and mean the recognition of our republic by Russia. We will not rush things, but we hoped for such a consistent, progressive movement towards this goal, ”commented on the decision of Russia on April 16, 2008, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Abkhazia Sergei Shamba.
Russia recognized the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in August 2008 after the military conflict in South Ossetia.
Featuring Sergey Vitko.
