President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Wednesday that simplifies obtaining Russian passports for residents of the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions of southern Ukraine.
Russian troops entirely control the southern part of Kherson, and Moscow partially owns the southeastern part of Zaporizhia.
Representatives from Moscow and Pro Moscow said that both regions could become part of Russia. The official order, issued Wednesday, follows a 2019 decree allowing residents of the self-declared Donetsk and remote areas of the People’s Republic of Lugansk, eastern Ukraine, to complete the same expedited procedure.
Applicants are not required to reside in Russia, provide proof of sufficient funding, or pass a Russian language test.
Several million residents of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Lugansk regions have already received Russian passports.
On Monday, officials in Kherson introduced the ruble as the official currency along with the Ukrainian hryvnia. On Thursday, the authorities established by Moscow announced the same measure in parts of the region of Zaporizhzhya.
https://asianherald.com/2022/04/30/ukraine-cracks-down-on-traitors-helping-russian-troops/