The Military Conflict Between Russia and Ukraine and Its Impact on the Situation of Stateless Persons and Migrants The legal status of residents of Crimea and eastern Ukraine was dramatically complicated by Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula in February 2014, its declaration of Crimea as a part of Russia in March 2014 after a sham referendum that violated Ukraine’s Constitution, and then the subsequent seizure of parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts by pro-Russian armed groups and their proclamation as independent “people’s republics.” UN Resolution 68/262 of (2014) affirms that Crimea should remain part of Ukraine under full Ukrainian sovereignty.18 Under Ukrainian law, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol are classified as temporarily occupied territories;19 the same is true for the parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts within which Russian armed groups and the Russian occupation administration have established and are exercising general supervision.20 The Problems of Documenting Residents of Territories of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts not Currently Controlled by Ukraine People who obtained passports on the territories of Ukraine that are not currently controlled by the Ukrainian government21 and lost these passports have had difficulties confirming their Ukrainian citizenship and are thus at risk of statelessness. To get new passports, Ukrainian citizens from territories not controlled by Ukraine must go through a procedure to establish their identities with Ukraine’s State Migration Service. Under this procedure, the State Migration Service sends requests 18 UN Resolution 68/262 of March 27, 2014, https://www.un.org/en/ga/search/ view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/68/262 19 Article 3 of Law of Ukraine “On Guaranteeing the Rights and Liberties of Citizens and the Legal Regime in Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine,” https://zakon.rada. gov.ua/laws/show/1207-18 20 Law of Ukraine “On Special State Policies to Ensure Ukraine’s State Sovereignty in Temporarily Occupied Territories in Ukraine,” https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/226819/print 21 For the remainder of this report, the term “territories not controlled by Ukraine” means the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, excluding the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. 13