DISINFO: Some territories of Donbas and Novorossiya are occupied by the Kyiv regime
SUMMARY
The withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the territories of the Donbas and Novorossiya regions that are part of Russia is necessary to achieve peace in Ukraine. These regions are enshrined in the Constitution of the Russian Federation as its integral parts.
Some territories of these regions are still occupied by the Kyiv regime. According to the results of referendums, these territories were included in the administrative borders of the Russian Federation. This is both a de jure and de facto situation.
RESPONSE
False claim. Pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative accusing Ukraine of occupying its own territories.
The territories are currently under Russian occupation following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which is a violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. It is Russia that violated the 1997 Friendship Treaty between Moscow and Kyiv.
Russia has been active in illegally occupying it over the past decade. In February 2014, Russia invaded and illegally annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk Regions. In 2022 Russia started a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and occupied parts of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions.
According to international law, Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson remain legally part of Ukraine. The illegitimate annexation of these regions took place amid a full invasion by a foreign power and under military occupation, and after sham referenda that didn’t meet international standards to be considered legitimate. The "referenda" were held illegally, under duress, and on territories which Russia does not even fully control.
The results of these sham polls were universally rejected by leading international and human rights organisations, including the United Nations, the OSCE, NATO, as well as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
Russia's inclusion of these territories in its constitution does not make them legally part of Russia. This unilateral action contradicts international law and UN resolutions.
Russia has historically sought to keep Ukraine in its zone of influence due to its important geographical location and out of fear that Ukraine might pose a threat if it entered NATO and the European Union. By asserting that vast parts of Ukraine are historically Russian territories, Putin is trying to restore what he perceives to be a new Soviet Union. He has said the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 was the demise of what he called "historical Russia" and the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe" of the 20th century. The Kremlin is widely using this narrative as a cover for aggressive military campaigns and territorial aggression.
Read similar disinformation cases: Russia could negotiate a peace that considers the will of former Ukrainian territories; Russia prioritises fate of Eastern Ukrainians over land; Russia only supports the legitimate rights of the Donbas people; Crimea and four other former Ukrainian regions overwhelmingly voted to join Russia.