Number of Ukrainian citizens leaving their country disclosed

"The bill on multiple citizenship provides for the right to have two or more passports. Currently, there are six million Ukrainian citizens abroad. This bill is for them, so as not to lose them," Ruslan Gorbenko, an MP from the ruling Servant of the People party in the Verkhovna Rada, one of the authors of the new bill, told a parliamentary meeting, Report informs.

Gorbenko said this is especially important for displaced persons who have moved abroad due to the Russian attacks:

"The bill currently includes those who defend our country and are stateless or have citizenship of another country, including Russia. That is, in our country, it allows this category of people to obtain Ukrainian citizenship. There are many military legions in our country, consisting of citizens of Russia and Belarus. Since they defended Ukraine in this war, we give them the right to obtain citizenship. We also give them this opportunity to their relatives."

Volodymyr Vyatrovych, another Ukrainian MP, also said that the new bill allows people born outside Ukraine, but whose ancestors lived in Ukraine, to obtain Ukrainian citizenship:

"Foreigners of Ukrainian descent can obtain Ukrainian citizenship through a simplified procedure after living in the country for one year."

"This bill creates opportunities for the return of Ukrainians who have already acquired citizenship of other countries. We are talking about both those who left long ago and those left in 2022," the MP said.