The actions of the Ukrainian authorities aimed at the return of the occupied territories are chaotic. This was stated at the conference “Prospects for the development of state policy on the occupied territories of Ukraine” by the head of Kyiv city organization of UKROP, Chairman of the Board of “Maidan of Foreign Affairs” Fund Bohdan Yaremenko.
“We do not see consistency, orderliness and strategy. That is, the state can perform some of the current functions, but it does not understand why it is doing it. This is one of the evidence of a general paralysis of power and a good reason to change it,” he said.
According to the UKROP member, Ukraine should develop and adopt at the legislative level a plan for de-occupation of the Crimea and certain districts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The authorities talk a lot about what to do with the occupied territories after restoring sovereignty. However, nobody explains exactly how Ukraine will return these regions.
In addition, the state should not lose contact with the Ukrainian citizens remaining under occupation. This is especially important in the context of the total pursuit of patriotically-minded Ukrainians.
In the opinion of Bohdan Yaremenko, Ukraine needs to use any legal instruments both inside the country and abroad to protect the rights of the residents of the occupied territories.
At the same time, the UKROP member stressed inadmissibility of creating boundaries between Ukraine and its occupied territories. Citizens of Ukraine should freely transport their families and things from the uncontrolled regions. Accordingly, the boundaries should go along the frontline with a minimal presence of customs officers and border guards.
“There is a lot of work inside Ukraine, in the occupied territories and in the international arena. Civil society every year asks the authorities to start work in this direction,” said Bohdan Yaremenko.
He noted that during the four years of the war in Ukraine, the only mandatory document for the occupied Crimea has been drawn up: “This is the decision of the parliamentary hearings on reintegration of the Crimea, which is executed by 0%, which means that it is not implemented at all. The authorities even refuse to report on the implementation of the paragraphs of this document.”
