According to British estimates, Russia is pushing ahead with the “Russification” of the occupied territories in Ukraine. The Ministry of Defense in London said on Monday, citing intelligence information, that the population was being forced to accept Russian passports.
“Residents in the Kherson region have been warned that those who have not accepted a Russian passport by June 1, 2023 will be ‘deported’ and their belongings confiscated,” it said. The bureaucratic integration should help to present the invasion as a success, especially in view of the Russian presidential election in 2024.
Russia had declared the partially occupied Ukrainian regions of Zaporizhia, Cherson, Donetsk and Luhansk to be annexed following mock referendums.
Since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the British Ministry of Defense has published daily updates on the course of the war, based on intelligence information. With this, the British government wants to both counteract Russian representations and keep allies in line. Moscow accuses London of a targeted disinformation campaign.
