The Government Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language, Taras Kremin, in his speech on Radio Liberty (“Liberty.Live”), refuted the statements of the U.S. Special Representative for the Middle East, Steven Vitkoff, regarding the possibility of Russia maintaining control over five regions of Ukraine due to their Russian-speaking population.
This is reported by Kyiv24
«I want to warn that discussions about language, especially by our allies, do not correspond to our international agreements and the treaties we actually have»
Language Situation in Ukraine and the Impact of War
Kremin emphasized that after the beginning of Donald Trump’s second presidential term on March 1, he signed a decree granting the English language the status of the sole state language. According to the language ombudsman, there is no reason to believe that control over territories with a Russian-speaking population can be secured by Russia, especially considering the changes in the language situation in Ukraine.
He noted that the situation has changed significantly due to the war, and a policy of Russification continues in the territories occupied by Russia. “Over 11 years of war, the linguistic landscape in Ukraine has significantly revived. Today, the majority of Ukrainians, regardless of the region, prefer the Ukrainian language in both public and private spheres of life,” said Kremin. “Since 2014, numerous cases of linguicide, humiliation of people, and destruction of national identity have been recorded in temporarily occupied territories.”
Dynamics of Language Sentiments Among the Ukrainian Population
According to a survey conducted by the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation and the Razumkov Center from November 29 to December 14, 2024, among 1,518 residents of government-controlled territories in Ukraine, 78% of respondents identified Ukrainian as their native language. This is an 18% increase compared to data from ten years ago, when this figure was 60%. At the same time, the share of people who identified Russian as their native language decreased from 15% to 6%. This indicates a significant transformation in the linguistic identity of Ukrainian society.