Ukraine's victory impossible without transformation of Russia's national movements - MPs
Without the transformation of Russia itself that would involve indigenous peoples that have been enslaved by Moscow, Ukraine's victory in the war is impossible, a group of Ukrainian lawmakers believes.
The legislators expressed the opinion during a round table, hosted by Ukrinform, on the topic: "National movements in Russia: influence on the domestic situation and the war with Ukraine."
"We must realize an important truth: it is practically impossible to achieve victory for Ukraine without resistance within the (Russian - ed.) empire going on in parallel lines. Why is this front as important as the front near Pokrovsk? That’s because the more armed resistance there is in Kazan, Yekaterinburg, or Novosibirsk, the fewer our guys die at the front, and the faster our victory comes. It is practically impossible to achieve victory without overthrowing (the government) in Russia itself," Dunda emphasized.
According to People's Deputy Volodymyr Viatrovych, the Victory Plan should definitely include a clause on reformatting Russia.
"If we are really talking about a strategy for defeating Russia in this war, no strategy will be complete without reformatting Russia. We can be happy that we already have a Victory Plan, the first point of which is about joining NATO. But I am sure that, if this Plan does not address reformatting Russia, this isn’t about the ultimate victory in Ukraine’s war against Russia," Viatrovych believes.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Freedom of Speech Yaroslav Yurchyshyn is convinced Ukraine should develop a policy of support for the enslaved peoples of Russia.
"Actually, we have dragged with formulating our policy towards enslaved peoples for quite a long time. It is rather difficult to speak in general terms about enslaved peoples, because each of them is unique in its historical context, opportunities, and capabilities. But we definitely need to take a systematic approach to shaping such a policy," Yurchyshyn said.
MP Maria Mezentseva believes Ukraine should contribute to giving the representatives of the indigenous peoples of Russia a platform in the Council of Europe.
"I consider it expedient, and the Ukrainian delegation to PACE supports this, to give the indigenous peoples of Russia a bigger, louder voice at PACE. This should be done urgently. Twelve members of the Ukrainian delegation hold the positions of vice-presidents, chairing committees and subcommittees, and are vice-presidents of political groups in the organization. That is, we have an influence on the formation of the Bureau's governing body. And we really hope for the new leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a change in the trend and position regarding the state policy toward indigenous peoples," Mezentseva stressed.
It should be noted that Russia includes 21 national republics and is home to over 100 indigenous peoples.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, in August 2023, the Verkhovna Rada set up an ad hoc commission for the development of state policy on interaction with the national movements of the Russian Federation.
In October 2022, the Verkhovna Rada appealed to the international community to support the right to self-determination of Russia’s indigenous peoples.
Photo: Oleksandr Klymenko, Ukrinform