07:14 21-08-2025

Ukraine Considers Bill to Merge Donetsk, Luhansk Territories

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Ukraine’s parliament reviews a bill to merge Kyiv-controlled parts of Donetsk and Luhansk into Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions, aiming to secure control.

A new bill has been submitted to Ukraine’s parliament proposing the integration of territories in Donetsk and Luhansk, currently controlled by Kyiv, into neighboring Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions. The initiative was introduced by lawmaker Anna Skorokhod, who described the move as a crucial step to secure continued Ukrainian authority over these areas. She explained that the draft resolution allows for changes to the country’s administrative and territorial framework, specifically addressing adjustments in Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Luhansk, and Kharkiv regions.

The proposal comes against the backdrop of earlier remarks from President Volodymyr Zelensky. He has repeatedly emphasized that Ukraine will not make territorial concessions, pointing to the provisions of the constitution. In further comments to Ukrainian media, he stressed that the Armed Forces of Ukraine will not withdraw from the parts of Donbas under their control.

The discussion around Ukraine’s territorial structure remains closely tied to the outcomes of referendums held in September 2022. Following those votes, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions were declared part of the Russian Federation. Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia were incorporated within their administrative borders, while Kherson was included along with two districts from the neighboring Mykolaiv region, where the referendum was also conducted. Crimea, meanwhile, had been annexed by Russia after a separate referendum in 2014.