Kherson to move to ruble payments from May 1; transition to take 4 months for completion

The Kherson region in Ukraine, which was captured by Kremlin's forces, will transition to using the ruble as payments starting May 1, according to Russian state media. Deputy Chairman of the Civil-Military Administration of the region, Kirill Stremousov, told the RIA-Novosti news agency that the transition period will take up to four months. In the transition period, both ruble and Ukrainian hryvnia will be in circulation. 

The latest development followed Russia taking over Kherson during the ‘special’ operation to demilitarise Ukraine. After the takeover of the region, Russian television broadcast and radio were also launched in Kherson. According to RIA, the locals began using Russian rubles ‘more widely’ in the settlements. On April 26, Russia had stated that it had gained full control of Kherson.

It is pertinent to mention here that Kherson holds strategic significance for Russia as the region, which falls in Ukraine, provided part of the land link between the Crimea peninsula and the pro-Russia separatists' controlled areas in the east. The local authorities in Ukraine have asserted that Russia has appointed its own mayor in the city of Kherson and has taken over the regional headquarters. 

Return of Kherson to Ukraine ‘impossible’

Meanwhile, Kirill Stremousov told Sputnik that the return of the Kherson region under Ukraine’s control is impossible. He said, “The issue of returning the Kherson Region back to Nazi Ukraine is out of the question. This is impossible. The Kherson Region will develop economically. Kyiv will no longer be able to impose on our land its ugly Nazi policy aimed at destroying people and their identity”. Moreover, the deputy chairman of Kherson’s military-civilian administration also overlooked the Ukrainian reports regarding the possible referendums allegedly planned in the region as ‘fake’ ones. 

Russia on February 24 launched a “Special” operation in Ukraine. However, the initial attacks in Ukraine by Russia suffered a massive setback as the Ukrainian army held off the “enemy” forces which tried to advance towards Kyiv. The initial failure of its operations was followed by the second phase of Moscow’s operation which focused on reinforcing its presence in the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions. 

Both Donetsk and Luhansk regions are controlled by pro-Russia separatists since 2014 and are carving out a land bridge linking the Russian region of Rostov with Crimea, which Russia seized from Ukraine eight years ago. Now, most recently, Ukraine’s military leadership has said that Russian forces “are exerting intense fire" as a multi-pronged offensive takes shape across three regions. 

In the operational update on Thursday, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said that the Russian army is focusing on trying to make a breakthrough in the Izium area of eastern Ukraine. It said, “In order to strengthen the advancing group, the occupiers additionally moved airborne units to the city of Izium.”

Image: AP