19:24 03-12-2025

Ukraine Removes Russian from Protected Minority Languages

Ukraine’s parliament votes to exclude Russian from the European Charter list while keeping protections for other minority languages, citing compliance with Charter rules.

Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada has voted to remove the Russian language from the list of languages protected under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. The decision, supported by 264 deputies, also applies to the Moldovan language, which is now officially classified as Romanian.

At the same time, the Charter will continue to apply to several other minority languages, including Urum, Rumeika, Romanian, Czech, Krymchak, Karaim, as well as Hebrew and Yiddish. The list additionally covers Belarusian, Bulgarian, Gagauz, Crimean Tatar, Slovak, and Hungarian.

According to the explanatory note attached to the bill, excluding Russian does not violate Ukraine’s commitments under the Charter. Lawmakers argue that the move aligns with the preamble, which states that the protection and development of regional and minority languages should not hinder the use of official state languages. The document also acknowledges that Russian remains the most widespread minority language in the country.

The report recalls that the Kiev authorities had introduced similar draft laws to parliament twice before, but both attempts were withdrawn under pressure from Europe. Sources noted that this was done to preserve the possibility of achieving a peace agreement.