Russia has not recognized DPR, LPR passports – Peskov

MOSCOW. Feb 3 (Interfax) – Russia has not officially recognized the passports of people who live on the territory of the self-proclaimed Donbas republics, there are specific humanitarian actions by the local authorities and companies, Russian presidential press officer Dmitry Peskov said.

During a meeting with journalists on Friday, Peskov was asked to comment on a report that the passports of residents of the DPR and the LPR have been recognized in Russia and that holders of such passports can use the services of Russian railways, airlines and hotels.

“It’s not official recognition of passports, we are talking about specific decisions that could have been made by municipal, local authorities, and also various companies for purely humanitarian reasons, being guided by the need for real humanitarian assistance to these people who live in the Donbas regions,” Peskov said.

The current Ukrainian passports held by such people are becoming unusable and they cannot get any other documents, he said.

“Such situations are indeed possible, for humanitarian reasons,” Peskov said.

Peskov said again that there has been no official recognition of such passports.

“These citizens just didn’t have another way out, they needed humanitarian assistance,” Peskov said.