President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine has signed two laws that strictly reinforce his country’s national identity, banning Russian place names and making knowledge of Ukrainian language and history a requirement for citizenship.
The moves late Friday were Ukraine’s latest steps to distance itself from a long legacy of Russian domination, an increasingly emotional subject since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began last year. They also show how forceful Ukraine’s government has become about protecting its cultural identity in a conflict shaped by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to wipe it out.
Already, countless streets across Ukraine have been renamed, and statues of Russian figures like Catherine the Great have come toppling down in what officials have called "decolonization” or "de-Russification” projects. While such efforts to scrub away old Russian names have been going on since the fall of the Soviet Union, they have picked up pace since the war began in February 2022.