Signing of treaties on accession of Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics and Zaporozhye and Kherson regions to Russia (2023)

President ofRussia Vladimir Putin: Citizens ofRussia, citizens oftheDonetsk andLugansk people’s republics, residents oftheZaporozhye andKhersonregions, deputies oftheState Duma, senators oftheRussian Federation,

Asyou know, referendums have been held intheDonetskandLugansk people’s republics andtheZaporozhye andKherson regions. Theballots have been counted andtheresults have been announced. Thepeople havemade their unequivocal choice.

Today we will sign treaties ontheaccession oftheDonetsk People’s Republic, Lugansk People’s Republic, Zaporozhye Region andKherson Region totheRussian Federation. Ihave no doubt that theFederalAssembly will support theconstitutional laws ontheaccession toRussia andtheestablishment offour new regions, our new constituent entities oftheRussian Federation, because this is thewill ofmillions ofpeople. (Applause.)

It is undoubtedly their right, aninherentright sealed inArticle 1 oftheUN Charter, which directly states theprincipleofequal rights andself-determination ofpeoples.

Irepeat, it is aninherent right ofthepeople. It is based onour historical affinity, andit is that right that ledgenerations ofour predecessors, those who built anddefended Russia forcenturies since theperiod ofAncient Rus, tovictory.

Here inNovorossiya, [Pyotr] Rumyantsev, [Alexander]Suvorov and[Fyodor] Ushakov fought their battles, andCatherine theGreat and[Grigory]Potyomkin founded new cities. Our grandfathers andgreat-grandfathers fought heretothebitter end during theGreat Patriotic War.

We will always remember theheroes oftheRussianSpring, those who refused toaccept theneo-Nazi coup d'état inUkraine in2014,all those who died fortheright tospeak their native language, topreservetheir culture, traditions andreligion, andforthevery right tolive. Weremember thesoldiers ofDonbass, themartyrs ofthe“Odessa Khatyn,” thevictims ofinhuman terrorist attacks carried out bytheKiev regime. We commemoratevolunteers andmilitiamen, civilians, children, women, senior citizens,Russians, Ukrainians, people ofvarious nationalities; popular leader ofDonetsk Alexander Zakharchenko; military commanders Arsen Pavlov andVladimirZhoga, Olga Kochura andAlexei Mozgovoy; prosecutor oftheLugansk RepublicSergei Gorenko; paratrooper Nurmagomed Gadzhimagomedov andall our soldiers andofficers who died ahero’s death during thespecial military operation. They areheroes. (Applause.) Heroes ofgreat Russia. Please join me inaminute ofsilence tohonour their memory.

(Minute ofsilence.)

Thank you.

Behind thechoice ofmillions ofresidents intheDonetsk andLugansk people's republics, intheZaporozhye andKhersonregions, is our common destiny andthousand-year history. People have passed thisspiritual connection ontotheir children andgrandchildren. Despite all thetrials they endured, they carried thelove forRussia through theyears. Thisis something no one can destroy. That is why both older generations andyoungpeople– those who were born after thetragic collapse oftheSoviet Union– havevoted forour unity, forour common future.

In1991 inBelovezhskaya Pushcha, representativesoftheparty elite ofthat time made adecision toterminate theSoviet Union, withoutasking ordinary citizens what they wanted, andpeople suddenly found themselvescut off from their homeland. This tore apart anddismembered our national communityandtriggered anational catastrophe. Just like thegovernment quietlydemarcated theborders ofSoviet republics, acting behind thescenes after the1917revolution, thelast leaders oftheSoviet Union, contrary tothedirectexpression ofthewill ofthemajority ofpeople inthereferendum of1991,destroyed our great country, andsimply made thepeople intheformer republicsface this asanaccomplished fact.

Ican admit that they didn’t evenknow what they were doing andwhat consequences their actions would have intheend. But it doesn't matter now. There is no Soviet Union anymore; we cannotreturn tothepast. Actually, Russia no longer needs it today; this isn’t ourambition. But there is nothing stronger than thedetermination ofmillions ofpeople who, bytheir culture, religion, traditions, andlanguage, considerthemselves part ofRussia, whose ancestors lived inasingle country forcenturies. There is nothing stronger than their determination toreturn totheir true historical homeland.

Foreight long years, people inDonbass were subjected togenocide, shelling andblockades; inKherson andZaporozhye, acriminal policy was pursued tocultivate hatred forRussia, foreverything Russian. Now too, during thereferendums, theKiev regime threatenedschoolteachers, women who worked inelection commissions with reprisals anddeath. Kiev threatened millions ofpeople who came toexpress their will withrepression. But thepeople ofDonbass, Zaporozhye andKherson weren’t broken,andthey had their say.

Iwant theKiev authorities andtheir true handlers intheWest tohear me now, andIwant everyone torememberthis: thepeople living inLugansk andDonetsk, inKhersonandZaporozhye have become our citizens, forever. (Applause.)

We call ontheKiev regime toimmediately cease fire andall hostilities; toend thewar it unleashed back in2014 andreturn tothenegotiating table. We are ready forthis, aswe havesaid more than once. But thechoice ofthepeople inDonetsk, Lugansk,Zaporozhye andKherson will not be discussed. Thedecision has been made, andRussia will not betray it. (Applause.) Kiev’scurrent authorities should respect this free expression ofthepeople’s will;there is no other way. This is theonly way topeace.

We will defend our land with all theforces andresources we have, andwe will do everything we can toensure thesafety ofour people. This is thegreat liberating mission ofour nation.

We will definitely rebuild thedestroyed cities andtowns, theresidential buildings, schools, hospitals,theatres andmuseums. We will restore anddevelop industrial enterprises,factories, infrastructure, aswell asthesocial security, pension, healthcareandeducation systems.

We will certainly work toimprovethelevel ofsecurity. Together we will make sure that citizens inthenewregions can feel thesupport ofall thepeople ofRussia, oftheentire nation,all therepublics, territories andregions ofour vast Motherland. (Applause.)

Friends, colleagues,

Today Iwould like toaddress our soldiers andofficers who are taking part inthespecial military operation, thefighters ofDonbass andNovorossiya, those who went tomilitary recruitment offices afterreceiving acall-up paper under theexecutive order onpartial mobilisation,andthose who did this voluntarily, answering thecall oftheir hearts. Iwouldlike toaddress their parents, wives andchildren, totell them what our peopleare fighting for, what kind ofenemy we are up against, andwho is pushing theworld into new wars andcrises andderiving blood-stained benefits from thistragedy.

Our compatriots, our brothers andsisters inUkraine who are part ofour united people have seen with their own eyes whattheruling class oftheso-called West have prepared forhumanity asawhole.They have dropped their masks andshown what they are really made of.

When theSoviet Union collapsed, theWestdecided that theworld andall ofus would permanently accede toits dictates.In1991, theWest thought that Russia would never rise after such shocks andwould fall topieces onits own. This almost happened. We remember thehorrible1990s, hungry, cold andhopeless. But Russia remained standing, came alive,grew stronger andoccupied its rightful place intheworld.

Meanwhile, theWest continued andcontinueslooking foranother chance tostrike ablow atus, toweaken andbreak upRussia, which they have always dreamed about, todivide our state andset ourpeoples against each other, andtocondemn them topoverty andextinction. Theycannot rest easy knowing that there is such agreat country with this hugeterritory intheworld, with its natural wealth, resources andpeople whocannot andwill not do someone else’s bidding.

TheWest is ready tocross every line topreserve theneo-colonial system which allows it tolive off theworld, toplunder it thanks tothedomination ofthedollar andtechnology, tocollect anactual tribute from humanity, toextract its primary source ofunearnedprosperity, therent paid tothehegemon. Thepreservation ofthis annuity istheir main, real andabsolutely self-serving motivation. This is why totalde-sovereignisation is intheir interest. This explains their aggressiontowards independent states, traditional values andauthentic cultures, theirattempts toundermine international andintegration processes, new globalcurrencies andtechnological development centres they cannot control. It iscritically important forthem toforce all countries tosurrender theirsovereignty totheUnited States.

Incertain countries, theruling elites voluntarilyagree todo this, voluntarily agree tobecome vassals; others are bribed orintimidated.Andif this does not work, they destroy entire states, leaving behindhumanitarian disasters, devastation, ruins, millions ofwrecked andmangled humanlives, terrorist enclaves, social disaster zones, protectorates, colonies andsemi-colonies.They don't care. All they care about is their own benefit.

Iwant tounderscore again that their insatiabilityanddetermination topreserve their unfettered dominance are thereal causes ofthehybrid war that thecollective West is waging against Russia. They do not wantus tobe free; they want us tobe acolony. They do not want equal cooperation;they want toloot. They do not want tosee us afree society, but amass ofsoulless slaves.

They see our thought andour philosophy asadirectthreat. That is why they target our philosophers forassassination. Our cultureandart present adanger tothem, so they are trying toban them. Ourdevelopment andprosperity are also athreat tothem because competition isgrowing. They do not want orneed Russia, but we do. (Applause.)

Iwould like toremind you that inthepast, ambitionsofworld domination have repeatedly shattered against thecourage andresilience ofour people. Russia will always be Russia. We will continue todefendour values andour Motherland.

TheWest is counting onimpunity, onbeing abletoget away with anything. Asamatter offact, this was actually thecaseuntil recently. Strategic security agreements have been trashed; agreementsreached atthehighest political level have been declared tall tales; firmpromises not toexpand NATO totheeast gave way todirty deception assoon asour former leaders bought into them; missile defence, intermediate-range andshorter-range missile treaties have been unilaterally dismantled underfar-fetched pretexts.

Andall we hear is, theWest is insisting onarules-basedorder. Where did that come from anyway? Who has ever seen these rules? Whoagreed orapproved them? Listen, this is just alot ofnonsense, utter deceit,double standards, oreven triple standards! They must think we’re stupid.

Russia is agreat thousand-year-old power, awholecivilisation, andit is not going tolive bysuch makeshift, false rules. (Applause.)

It was theso-called West that trampled ontheprinciple oftheinviolability ofborders, andnow it is deciding, atits own discretion,who has theright toself-determination andwho does not, who is unworthy ofit. It is unclear what their decisions are based onorwho gave them theright todecide inthefirst place. They just assumed it.

That is why thechoice ofthepeopleinCrimea, Sevastopol, Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporozhye andKherson makes them sofuriously angry. TheWest does not have any moral right toweigh in, oreven utteraword about freedom ofdemocracy. It does not andit never did.

Western elites not only denynational sovereignty andinternational law. Their hegemony has pronounced featuresoftotalitarianism, despotism andapartheid. They brazenly divide theworldinto their vassals– theso-called civilised countries– andall therest, who,according tothedesigns oftoday's Western racists, should be added tothelist ofbarbarians andsavages. False labels like “rogue country” or“authoritarianregime” are already available, andare used tostigmatise entire nations andstates, which is nothing new. There is nothing new inthis: deep down, theWestern elites have remained thesame colonisers. They discriminate anddividepeoples into thetop tier andtherest.

We have never agreed toandwillnever agree tosuch political nationalism andracism. What else, if not racism,is theRussophobia being spread around theworld? What, if not racism, is theWest’sdogmatic conviction that its civilisation andneoliberal culture is anindisputable model fortheentire world tofollow? “You’re either with us oragainstus.” It even sounds strange.

Western elites are even shifting repentancefortheir own historical crimes oneveryone else, demanding that thecitizensoftheir countries andother peoples confess tothings they have nothing todowith atall, forexample, theperiod ofcolonial conquests.

It is worth reminding theWest thatit began its colonial policy back intheMiddle Ages, followed bytheworldwideslave trade, thegenocide ofIndian tribes inAmerica, theplunder ofIndia andAfrica, thewars ofEngland andFrance against China, asaresult ofwhich itwas forced toopen its ports totheopium trade. What they did was get entirenations hooked ondrugs andpurposefully exterminated entire ethnic groups forthesake ofgrabbing land andresources, hunting people like animals. This iscontrary tohuman nature, truth, freedom andjustice.

While we– we are proud that inthe20^th century our country led theanti-colonial movement, whichopened up opportunities formany peoples around theworld tomake progress, reducepoverty andinequality, anddefeat hunger anddisease.

Toemphasise, one ofthereasons forthecenturies-old Russophobia, theWestern elites’ unconcealed animosity towardRussia is precisely thefact that we did not allow them torob us during theperiod ofcolonial conquests andforced theEuropeans totrade with us onmutually beneficial terms. This was achieved bycreating astrong centralisedstate inRussia, which grew andgot stronger based onthegreat moral values​​ofOrthodox Christianity, Islam, Judaism andBuddhism, aswell asRussianculture andtheRussian word that were open toall.

There were numerous plans toinvade Russia.Such attempts were made during theTime ofTroubles inthe17^thcentury andintheperiod ofordeals after the1917 revolution. All ofthemfailed. TheWest managed tograb hold ofRussia’s wealth only inthelate 20^thcentury, when thestate had been destroyed. They called us friends andpartners, but they treated us like acolony, using various schemes topumptrillions ofdollars out ofthecountry. We remember. We have not forgottenanything.

Afew days ago, people inDonetsk andLugansk,Kherson andZaporozhye declared their support forrestoring our historicalunity. Thank you! (Applause.)

Western countries have been saying forcenturies that they bring freedom anddemocracy toother nations. Nothing couldbe further from thetruth. Instead ofbringing democracy they suppressed andexploited, andinstead ofgiving freedom they enslaved andoppressed. Theunipolar world is inherently anti-democratic andunfree; it is false andhypocritical through andthrough.

TheUnited States is theonly country intheworld that has used nuclear weapons twice, destroying thecities ofHiroshimaandNagasaki inJapan. Andthey created aprecedent.

Recall that during WWII theUnited States andBritain reduced Dresden, Hamburg, Cologne andmany other German cities torubble, without theleast military necessity. It was done ostentatiously and,torepeat, without any military necessity. They had only one goal, aswith thenuclear bombing ofJapanese cities: tointimidate our country andtherest oftheworld.

TheUnited States left adeep scar inthememory ofthepeople ofKorea andVietnam with their carpet bombings anduse ofnapalm andchemical weapons.

It actually continues tooccupy Germany, Japan,theRepublic ofKorea andother countries, which they cynically refer toasequals andallies. Look now, what kind ofalliance is that? Thewhole worldknows that thetop officials inthese countries are being spied onandthattheir offices andhomes are bugged. It is adisgrace, adisgrace forthose who dothis andforthose who, like slaves, silently andmeekly swallow this arrogantbehaviour.

They call theorders andthreats they make totheir vassals Euro-Atlantic solidarity, andthecreation ofbiological weaponsandtheuse ofhuman test subjects, including inUkraine, noble medicalresearch.

It is their destructive policies, wars andplunderthat have unleashed today’s massive wave ofmigrants. Millions ofpeople endurehardships andhumiliation ordie bythethousands trying toreach Europe.

They are exporting grain from Ukraine now. Whereare they taking it under theguise ofensuring thefood security ofthepoorestcountries? Where is it going? They are taking it totheself-same Europeancountries. Only five percent has been delivered tothepoorest countries. Morecheating andnaked deception again.

Ineffect, theAmerican elite is usingthetragedy ofthese people toweaken its rivals, todestroy nation states. Thisgoes forEurope andfortheidentities ofFrance, Italy, Spain andother countrieswith centuries-long histories.

Washington demands more andmore sanctionsagainst Russia andthemajority ofEuropean politicians obediently go along withit. They clearly understand that bypressuring theEU tocompletely give upRussian energy andother resources, theUnited States is practically pushing Europetoward deindustrialisation inabid toget its hands ontheentire Europeanmarket. These European elites understand everything– they do, but they prefertoserve theinterests ofothers. This is no longer servility but directbetrayal oftheir own peoples. God bless, it is up tothem.

But theAnglo-Saxons believe sanctionsare no longer enough andnow they have turned tosubversion. It seems incredible but it is afact– bycausing explosions onNord Stream’s international gas pipelines passing along thebottom oftheBaltic Sea, they have actually embarked onthedestruction ofEurope’sentire energy infrastructure. It is clear toeveryone who stands togain. Thosewho benefit are responsible, ofcourse.

Thedictates oftheUS are backed upbycrude force, onthelaw ofthefist. Sometimes it is beautifully wrapped sometimesthere is no wrapping atall but thegist is thesame– thelaw ofthefist.Hence, thedeployment andmaintenance ofhundreds ofmilitary bases inallcorners oftheworld, NATO expansion, andattempts tocobble together new militaryalliances, such asAUKUS andthelike. Much is being done tocreate aWashington-Seoul-Tokyomilitary-political chain. All states that possess oraspire togenuine strategicsovereignty andare capable ofchallenging Western hegemony, are automatically declaredenemies.

These are theprinciples thatunderlie US andNATO military doctrines that require total domination. Westernelites are presenting their neocolonialist plans with thesame hypocrisy, claimingpeaceful intentions, talking about some kind ofdeterrence. This evasive word migratesfrom one strategy toanother but really only means one thing– undermining any andall sovereign centres ofpower.

We have already heard about thedeterrence ofRussia, China andIran. Ibelieve next inline are othercountries ofAsia, Latin America, Africa andtheMiddle East, aswell ascurrentUS partners andallies. After all, we know that when they are displeased, they introducesanctions against their allies aswell– against this orthat bank orcompany.This is their practice andthey will expand it. They have everything intheirsights, including our next-door neighbours– theCIS countries.

Atthesame time, theWest has clearly been engagedinwishful thinking foralong time. Inlaunching thesanctions blitzkriegagainst Russia, forexample, they thought that they could once again line upthewhole world attheir command. Asit turns out, however, such abrightprospect does not excite everyone– other than complete political masochists andadmirers ofother unconventional forms ofinternational relations. Most statesrefuse to”snap asalute“ andinstead choose thesensible path ofcooperation with Russia.

TheWest clearly did not expect suchinsubordination. They simply got used toacting according toatemplate, tograbwhatever they please, byblackmail, bribery, intimidation, andconvincedthemselves that these methods would work forever, asif they had fossilised inthepast.

Such self-confidence is adirect product notonly ofthenotorious concept ofexceptionalism– although it never ceases toamaze– but also ofthereal ”information hunger“ intheWest. Thetruth has been drowned inanocean ofmyths, illusions andfakes, using extremelyaggressive propaganda, lying like Goebbels. Themore unbelievable thelie, thequicker people will believe it– that is how they operate, according tothisprinciple.

But people cannot be fed with printed dollarsandeuros. You can't feed them with those pieces ofpaper, andthevirtual,inflated capitalisation ofwestern social media companies can't heat theirhomes. Everything Iam saying is important. Andwhat Ijust said is no less so:you can't feed anyone with paper– you need food; andyou can't heat anyone’shome with these inflated capitalisations– you need energy.

That is why politicians inEurope have toconvince their fellow citizens toeat less, take ashower less often anddresswarmer athome. Andthose who start asking fair questions like “Why is that, infact?” are immediately declared enemies, extremists andradicals. They point backatRussia andsay: that is thesource ofall your troubles. More lies.

Iwant tomake special note ofthefact thatthere is every reason tobelieve that theWestern elites are not going tolookforconstructive ways out oftheglobal food andenergy crisis that they andthey alone are toblame for, asaresult oftheir long-term policy, dating backlong before our special military operation inUkraine, inDonbass. They have nointention ofsolving theproblems ofinjustice andinequality. Iam afraid theywould rather use other formulas they are more comfortable with.

Andhere it is important torecall that theWest bailed itself out ofits early 20^th century challenges with WorldWar I. Profits from World War II helped theUnited States finally overcome theGreat Depression andbecome thelargest economy intheworld, andtoimpose ontheplanet thepower ofthedollar asaglobal reserve currency. Andthe1980scrisis– things came toahead inthe1980s again– theWest emerged from itunscathed largely byappropriating theinheritance andresources ofthecollapsed anddefunct Soviet Union. That's afact.

Now, inorder tofree itself from thelatestweb ofchallenges, they need todismantle Russia aswell asother states thatchoose asovereign path ofdevelopment, atall costs, tobe able tofurther plunderother nations’ wealth anduse it topatch their own holes. If this does nothappen, Icannot rule out that they will try totrigger acollapse oftheentiresystem, andblame everything onthat, or, God forbid, decide touse theold formulaofeconomic growth through war.

Russia is aware ofits responsibility totheinternational community andwill make every effort toensure that cooler headsprevail.

Thecurrent neocolonial model is ultimatelydoomed; this much is obvious. But Irepeat that its real masters will cling toit totheend. They simply have nothing tooffer theworld except tomaintainthesame system ofplundering andracketeering.

They do not give adamn about thenatural rightofbillions ofpeople, themajority ofhumanity, tofreedom andjustice, therighttodetermine their own future. They have already moved ontotheradical denialofmoral, religious, andfamily values.

Let’s answer some very simple questionsforourselves. Now Iwould like toreturn towhat Isaid andwant toaddress alsoall citizens ofthecountry– not just thecolleagues that are inthehall– butall citizens ofRussia: do we want tohave here, inour country, inRussia, “parentnumber one, parent number two andparent number three” (they have completely lostit!) instead ofmother andfather? Do we want our schools toimpose onour children,from their earliest days inschool, perversions that lead todegradation andextinction?Do we want todrum into their heads theideas that certain other genders existalong with women andmen andtooffer them gender reassignment surgery? Is thatwhat we want forour country andour children? This is all unacceptable tous. Wehave adifferent future ofour own.

Let me repeat that thedictatorshipoftheWestern elites targets all societies, including thecitizens ofWesterncountries themselves. This is achallenge toall. This complete renunciation ofwhat it means tobe human, theoverthrow offaith andtraditional values, andthesuppression offreedom are coming toresemble a“religion inreverse”– pureSatanism. Exposing false messiahs, Jesus Christ said intheSermon ontheMount: “Bytheir fruits ye shall know them.” These poisonous fruits are already obvious topeople,andnot only inour country but also inall countries, including many people intheWest itself.

Theworld has entered aperiod ofafundamental, revolutionary transformation. New centres ofpower are emerging. Theyrepresent themajority– themajority!– oftheinternational community. They areready not only todeclare their interests but also toprotect them. They see inmultipolarity anopportunity tostrengthen their sovereignty, which means gaininggenuine freedom, historical prospects, andtheright totheir own independent,creative anddistinctive forms ofdevelopment, toaharmonious process.

AsIhave already said, we have manylike-minded people inEurope andtheUnited States, andwe feel andsee theirsupport. Anessentially emancipatory, anti-colonial movement against unipolarhegemony is taking shape inthemost diverse countries andsocieties. Its powerwill only grow with time. It is this force that will determine our futuregeopolitical reality.

Friends,

Today, we are fighting forajustandfree path, first ofall forourselves, forRussia, inorder toleave dictate anddespotism inthepast. Iam convinced thatcountries andpeoples understand that apolicy based ontheexceptionalism ofwhoeverit may be andthesuppression ofother cultures andpeoples is inherentlycriminal, andthat we must close this shameful chapter. Theongoing collapse ofWestern hegemony is irreversible. AndIrepeat: things will never be thesame.

Thebattlefield towhich destiny andhistory have called us is abattlefield forour people, forthegreathistorical Russia. (Applause.) Forthegreat historical Russia, forfuture generations, our children, grandchildrenandgreat-grandchildren. We must protect them against enslavement andmonstrousexperiments that are designed tocripple their minds andsouls.

Today, we are fighting so that itwould never occur toanyone that Russia, our people, our language, orourculture can be erased from history. Today, we need aconsolidated society, andthisconsolidation can only be based onsovereignty, freedom, creation, andjustice.Our values ​​are humanity, mercy andcompassion.

AndIwant toclose with thewords ofatrue patriot Ivan Ilyin: “If Iconsider Russia myMotherland, that means thatIlove asaRussian, contemplate andthink, sing andspeak asaRussian; that Ibelieve inthespiritual strength oftheRussian people. Its spirit is myspirit; its destiny is mydestiny; its suffering is mygrief; andits prosperityis myjoy.”

Behind these words stands agloriousspiritual choice, which, formore than athousand years ofRussian statehood,was followed bymany generations ofour ancestors. Today, we are making thischoice; thecitizens oftheDonetsk andLugansk people's republics andtheresidents oftheZaporozhye andKherson regions have made this choice. Theymade thechoice tobe with their people, tobe with their Motherland, toshare inits destiny, andtobe victorious together with it.

Thetruth is with us, andbehind usis Russia!

(Applause.)