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Voting on accession to Russia

New Russian regions won’t ban learning Ukrainian, diplomat assures

Yevgeny Ivanov said the new Russian regions would choose which languages to teach and learn themselves

MOSCOW, October 4. /TASS/. Learning Ukrainian and other languages will not be prohibited either in the Donetsk and the Lugansk People’s Republics or in the Zaporozhye and the Kherson Regions, a senior Russian diplomat told reporters on Tuesday.

"The [accession] treaties state that the official language is Russian, but learning (other languages - TASS) will not be prohibited," Yevgeny Ivanov, a Russian deputy foreign minister, said, referring to the Ukrainian language as well.

The diplomat said the new Russian regions would choose which languages to teach and learn themselves.

From September 23 to September 27, the two Donbass republics as well as the Kherson Region and the Zaporozhye Region held referendums where the majority of voters opted to join Russia. On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the heads of the four regions signed treaties on their accession to Russia.

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