Vladimir Putin fast-tracks Russian citizenship for all Ukrainians and does the unthinkable

• Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday to fast-track Russian citizenship for all Ukrainians.
• Previously, only residents of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and the southern regions of Zaporizhia and Kherson were eligible for the expedited process.
• More than 720,000 residents, about 18% of the population, have received Russian passports.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday extending the fast-tracked process for Russian citizenship to all Ukrainians, according to Aristegui Noticias and the AP. Until recently, only residents of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine, as well as residents of the southern regions of Zaporizhia and Kherson, much of which is under Russian control, were eligible for the simplified process.

Between 2019, when the process was first introduced for residents of Donetsk and Luhansk, and this year, more than 720,000 residents of rebel-held areas in the two regions — about 18% of the population — have received passports. Earlier, Russian missiles hit Ukraine’s second-largest city on Monday, killing three people and injuring dozens, including children, according to a regional governor, who described the strikes as «absolute terrorism.»

WHERE ARE THE ATTACKS INTENSIFYING?

Kharkiv region governor Oleh Syneihubov said on Telegram that Russian forces had hit civilian targets with three missile strikes in the northeastern city. One of the missiles destroyed a school, another a residential building and the third landed near a warehouse, he said.

«They were all (dropped) exclusively on civilian targets, this is absolute terrorism!» Syneihubov said. Among those hospitalized for the attacks were children between the ages of 4 and 16, the governor added. The strikes came just two days after a Russian rocket attack hit apartment buildings in eastern Ukraine, killing at least 19 people. Eight people were rescued, according to emergency workers, this on the news that Vladimir Putin is fast-tracking Russian citizenship for Ukrainians.

WHAT CAUSED THE ATTACK?

The attack on Saturday afternoon destroyed three buildings in a residential neighborhood in the town of Chasiv Yar, which is populated mostly by people who work in nearby factories. Russian attacks in the east have also continued, with the Luhansk governor saying Monday that shells have hit settlements on the administrative border with the Donetsk region.

Russian forces launched five missiles and four large rounds of artillery fire in the area, Governor Serhyi Haidai said. The Luhansk and Donetsk provinces form the industrial heartland in eastern Ukraine, known as the Donbas. Russian-backed separatist rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces in the region since 2014. Filed Under: Putin Russian citizenship Ukrainians

IS THE END OF THE WAR NEAR?

Russia this month captured the last major Ukrainian resistance stronghold in Luhansk, the city of Lysychansk. Following the seizure of Lysychansk, some analysts predicted that Moscow’s troops would likely take time to rearm and regroup, but Ukrainian authorities said the attacks had not stopped.

The British Army said Russian troops were not getting the rest they needed. Videos shared online suggested that at least one tank brigade in the conflict was «physically and mentally exhausted» because they had been in active combat since the start of the war in February, Britain’s Ministry of Defense said on Twitter. Filed Under: Putin Russian citizenship Ukrainians

WHAT PROBLEMS ARISE?

«The lack of scheduled breaks from intense combat conditions is probably one of the most damaging of the many personnel problems that the (Russian Defense Ministry) is having trouble correcting among deployed troops,» said the British report on the war between countries.

Also on Monday, Russia’s main gas pipeline to Germany began a scheduled 10-day shutdown for maintenance work, amid fears in Europe that Moscow may not resume flow when routine work is completed, so they don’t know what will happen. Filed Under: Putin Russian citizenship Ukrainians