Only restrictions for Russian minority are due to war - Stefanishyna

This was stated by Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna, a Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“I want to draw attention to the fact that there are no restrictions for persons who consider themselves representatives of the Russian national minority, that is, they have the same rights under the law. There are restrictions on language and certain security considerations. This is obvious in a time of war when the main aggressor is not just the Russian Federation, but the Russian Federation, which carries out its aggression through a package of propaganda narratives of the “Russian peace,” so these are definitely justified restrictions,” she said.

Stefanishyna noted that Ukraine has adopted a lot of amendments to the legislation regulating national minority issues, including the status of the Russian national minority.

“There have been a lot of changes to the legislation governing national minority issues, including the status of the Russian national minority. Not the Russian-speaking population, but the Russian national minority. It should be a structure that complies with the law. There were also conclusions of the Venice Commission. The complex of all these decisions and assessments, the measures taken by Ukraine, allowed the Venice Commission to say that we have fulfilled all the necessary criteria for starting negotiations in this area,” she emphasized.

As reported, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said in June that Ukraine's legal framework for national minorities now meets international standards.