Kathmandu,

July 12,

All Ukrainians can now apply for fast-track Russian citizenship, according to a decree signed Monday by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Previously, this option had been open only to residents of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as residents of the southern Zaporizhzhia and the Kherson regions, which are largely under Russian control.

The decree on Monday ordered that “all citizens of Ukraine” be given “the right to apply for admission to the citizenship of the Russian Federation in a simplified manner”.

Ukraine condemned the decree as a violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty.