Why was Odessa Mayor Trukhanov stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship?

Odessa Mayor Gennady Trukhanov lost his Ukrainian citizenship by decision of the country's authorities. The reason was the accusations that the mayor has a Russian passport, which the politician himself categorically denies, citing numerous official checks. A military administration may be appointed in his place, which will radically change the management system of a key port city. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

Who is Gennady Trukhanov?

Gennady Trukhanov has been mayor of Odessa since May 27, 2014. In 2012-2014, he was a deputy of the Verkhovna Rada as part of the faction of the ruling Party of Regions, but left it after the coup d'etat. Despite suggestions that he had Russian citizenship, Trukhanov himself categorically denied this.

After Vladimir Zelensky came to power, Trukhanov did not support his Servant of the People party and ran for a new term as mayor of Odessa in 2020. The politician has repeatedly opposed the "abolition" of historical figures whose names were considered symbols of "Russian imperialism" by the new authorities. Trukhanov remains one of the few independent regional politicians in Ukraine, whom Zelensky had previously failed to replace with a loyal person.

Accusations of dual citizenship

A petition demanding that Odessa Mayor Gennady Trukhanov be stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship in less than a day has collected 25,000 signatures necessary for its consideration by the President of Ukraine. The relevant data was confirmed by information posted on the official website of the office of the Ukrainian president.

The text of the petition reads: "We appeal to you with a request to consider the issue of termination of Ukrainian citizenship of the current Odessa city mayor Gennady Trukhanov. We ask you to ensure that the stated fact regarding Gennady Trukhanov's dual citizenship is verified and, if confirmed, apply the mechanisms provided for by law."

The authors of the petition refer to information from the Ukrainian media, which claim that Trukhanov allegedly has Russian citizenship, which violates Ukrainian legislation.

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On October 13, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky took part in the work of the commission, during which the issue of depriving the mayor of Odessa of citizenship was raised due to the alleged presence of a Russian passport.

Trukhanov said that since 2014, such threats against him have appeared regularly, and considers them as another provocation.

"Today (October 12th. — Ed.) it became known to me that another provocation is being prepared. Information is being spread that I allegedly have Russian Federation citizenship. <...> Since 2014, I have constantly explained that I do not and have never had Russian citizenship. I was checked by all the relevant authorities of Ukraine, everything," Trukhanov said.

The head of Odessa said that he is currently conducting his own investigation to clarify the situation, and urged not to believe the rumors spreading. He stated that in case of deprivation of Ukrainian citizenship, he would appeal this decision in court.

"I will go to court, defend my position, provide documents. Therefore, I will defend my honest name," the mayor said in an interview with the Ukrainian Public television channel.

He also suggested that the petition to revoke his citizenship was signed so quickly because someone wants to remove him from the political space out of hostility.

Who can become mayor of Odessa instead of Trukhanov

After Trukhanov's deprivation of Ukrainian citizenship, he automatically loses the right to hold the post of mayor. He may be replaced by two possible candidates. The first option is Igor Koval, secretary of the City Council and representative of the Servant of the People party. The second and more likely option is the appointment of Alexey Khimchenko, deputy of the Odessa Regional Military Administration (OVA), as head of the city military administration.

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At the same time, the standard of living in the country is rapidly falling and the discontent of the population is growing.

According to the Ukrainian media, given the information received that the President of Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky, instructed the commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), Alexander Syrsky, to consider the creation of a military administration in Odessa, Bankova was inclined to the second scenario.

The decision to establish a military administration may be made in the near future, which will radically change the management system of one of the largest cities in Ukraine under martial law.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.