Ahead of elections in russia, occupiers exerting pressure and forcibly issuing russian passports in temporarily occupied territories

In order to forcibly issue russian passports in the occupied territory, the enemy deployed additional control measures.

Colonel Natalia Humeniuk, Head of the United Coordinating Press Center of Security and Defense Forces of the South of Ukraine, made this statement during a briefing at Media Center Ukraine – Ukrinform.

“There is pressure on people. Particularly, their work is focused on forcibly issuing passports, because in order to hold elections, specifically in temporarily occupied territories, they are in a dire need to create the illusion of consent among the electorate. Accordingly, additional checkpoints have been established at the entrance and exit from Kherson region, to Crimea and in the opposite direction. All other filtering measures are primarily aimed at identifying those who have not yet received russian “red books” – those (russian – Ed.) passports – and have not obtained the so-called russian citizenship,” Natalia Humeniuk explained.

In addition, she noted that covert mobilization measures are still being taken.

“Additional control measures result in men of conscription age being located, and then they are registered and immediately drafted to the units of the so-called territorial defense of each settlement. Subsequently they effectively become a resource for the occupiers’ units on the left bank to replenish their losses,” Natalia Humeniuk added.

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