Global InformationRussian occupation of Zaporizhzhia Oblast information
Zaporozhye Oblast
Запорожская область | |
|---|---|
Military occupation and annexation | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Zaporizhzhia Oblast: Russian-occupied territory | |
| Occupied country | Ukraine |
| Occupying power | Russia |
| Russian-installed occupation administration | Zaporozhye military–civilian administration (2022) |
| Disputed oblast of Russia | Zaporozhye Oblast (2022–present) |
| Southern Ukraine campaign | 24 February 2022 |
| Annexation by Russia | 30 September 2022 |
| Administrative centre | Melitopol[1] |
| Largest settlement | Melitopol[1] |
| Government | |
| • Head of Administration | Yevgeny Balitsky (United Russia)[2] |
| • Deputy Head of Administration | Mikhail Gritsai[3] |
| • Head of military–civilian administration government | Anton Koltsov |
| Website | zo |
The Russian occupation of Zaporizhzhia Oblast (Russian: Запорожская область, romanized: Zaporozhskaya oblast') is an ongoing military occupation of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Oblast by Russian forces that began on 24 February 2022 during the Russian invasion of Ukraine as part of the southern Ukraine campaign. It was administrated under a Russian-controlled military-civilian administration until 30 September 2022, when it was illegally annexed to become an unrecognized federal subject of Russia.
On 26 February, the city of Berdiansk fell under Russian control, followed by Russian victory at Melitopol on 1 March. Russian forces besieged the city of Enerhodar, home of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, then captured it on 4 March. They did not take the oblast's capital city of Zaporizhzhia, however, which remained under Ukrainian government control.
In May, the Russian government began offering Russian passports to the region's inhabitants.[4] In July, it issued a decree that extended Russian 2022 war censorship laws to the oblast, and included deportation to Russia as a penalty.[5] In September, occupation forces held largely disputed referendums in the occupied areas of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson Oblast to join the Russian Federation.[6][7] On 27 September, Russian officials claimed that Zaporizhzhia Oblast's referendum passed with 93.11% of voters in favour of joining the Russian Federation.[8][9] Russia signed an accession treaty with the Russian administration of the region on 30 September 2022.[10] Russia annexed Zaporizhzhia Oblast on 30 September 2022, including parts of the oblast that it did not control at the time.[10] The United Nations General Assembly demanded that Russia "immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw, and passed a resolution calling on countries not to recognise what it described as an "attempted illegal annexation".[11]
Melitopol serves as the Russian seat of administration because the Russians do not control Zaporizhzhia. In March 2023, Melitopol became the official capital of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast after the acting head, Yevgeny Balitsky, signed a decree on moving the de jure capital to Melitopol until Zaporizhzhia is captured.[12]
- ^ a b "Russian proxies plan vote in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region on joining Russia". Reuters. 8 June 2022.
- ^ "Глава Запорожской ВГА Балицкий вступил в "Единую Россию"". RIA Novosti. 26 September 2022. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
- ^ "У самопровозглашенного мэра Бердянска появились новые заместители: что про них известно?!". zabor.zp.ua (in Russian). 30 April 2022. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
- ^ Chernov, Mstyslav (27 July 2022). "Putin expands fast-track Russian citizenship to all Ukraine". ABC. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ Psaropoulos, John (21 June 2022). "Russia resumes eastern Ukraine offensive and expands war aims". Al Jazeera Media Network.
- ^ Karlovskyi, Denys (16 July 2022). "Russia plans to hold referendums in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts on 11 September Ukrainian intelligence". Yahoo News. Ukrayinska Pravda. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
- ^ "Ukraine's occupied Zaporizhzhia eyes Russia 'referendum' in autumn". Firstpost. Agence France-Presse. 16 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "Pro-Moscow officials say 1 occupied area of Ukraine has voted to join Russia". PBS NewsHour. 27 September 2022. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
- ^ "Жители Запорожской области голосовали за воссоединение с Россией - Администрация Запорожской области". zapgov.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Ukraine war latest: Putin declares four areas of Ukraine as Russian". BBC. 30 September 2022.
- ^ "Ukraine: UN General Assembly demands Russia reverse course on 'attempted illegal annexation'". UN News. 12 October 2022.
- ^ "Мелитополь стал столицей Запорожской области". RIA Novosti. 3 March 2023. Retrieved 23 September 2023.