Interfax: Renaming of cities by Ukraine for de-communization purposes complicates negotiation process – Pushilin

DONETSK. May 12 (Interfax) – Denis Pushilin, an authorized representative of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) in the Trilateral Contact Group on the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, has criticized the decision made by the Verkhovna Rada to rename some cities in the territories uncontrolled by Ukraine.

“These are not very reasonable actions, schizophrenia with the de-communization. If you take this path, you should give up the enterprises that were built in the Soviet Union by our fathers and grandfathers, you need to change their names […] And I think it will not have any influence on elections. But it is already complicating the [negotiation] process,” Pushilin told reporters on Thursday.

As an example, he mentioned the recent decision made by Ukraine to rename the city of Artemivsk Bakhmut.

“We have obtained documents saying that they are asking to investigate a situation associated with a populated area that they have renamed Bakhmut. But we said we don’t know such a city, we know Artemivsk. For this reason, no further debate is possible. For this reason, their fantasy will not lead to anything good,” Pushilin said.

According to earlier reports, the Verkhovna Rada has renamed several populated areas in the parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions uncontrolled by Ukraine.

The parliamentarians have renamed 38 populated areas in the Donetsk region and 36 populated areas in the Luhansk region.