The return of the territories occupied by russia is not only the goal of Ukraine's counteroffensive, but also the sincere desire of every Ukrainian. Find out what problems Ukraine will face after the de-occupation of Crimea and Donbas and how to solve them

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The return of the borders to their 1991 state is the main goal, which is constantly reminded by the Ukrainian authorities. The population of Ukraine also agrees with these statements. We have written more about what Ukrainians would consider a victory here. 

However, the return of the Crimean Peninsula and Donbas, which have been under occupation for more than nine years, will mean not only Ukraine's victory over russia but also the beginning of a difficult path with many challenges. And we need to prepare for this today.

Earlier, we talked about the complex history of Crimea and the mistakes made by the Ukrainian authorities when proclaiming the peninsula's autonomy, but these are not all the challenges that Ukraine will have to overcome after liberating the territories from russian invaders. 

How is Ukraine's political and economic preparation for victory going?

The start of Ukraine's summer counteroffensive, which has already liberated more than 130 square kilometers in the southern and eastern directions, has given rise to a more heated discussion of prospects in the de-occupied territories. 

The Ukrainian government has also intensified project work on issues related to the future of Donbas and Crimea. Thus, the Postwar plan of Ukraine includes a strategy for the economic recovery of Crimea. In addition, the authorities presented a general step-by-step plan that the country should follow after the return of all territories and announced the start of work on legislation for the de-occupied territories to be used during the transition period.

However, many important issues remain under consideration and are commented on only in terms of a "general vision" of the situation. This means that Ukraine does not have ready-made procedures and solutions to address some of the problems. Let's discuss the first part of the most important challenges.

Read more about resolving a number of other important issues that are inextricably linked to the return of Donbas and Crimea to Ukraine's control in Part 2 of this article.

What to do with collaborators and russians?

For the successful reintegration of the occupied territories, Ukraine must ensure fair justice for those who sided with the aggressor country. However, their number may reach half a million or even a million people. Therefore, the first challenge will be the state's inability to bring all collaborators and traitors to justice, as it is physically impossible to imprison so many people. 

Therefore, criminal cases are likely to be initiated against those directly involved in crimes against Ukraine and humanity, including former Ukrainian government officials, those who took an oath and betrayed it. Relevant legislative changes are already being prepared, but what about the rest?

A possible solution could be lustration, i.e., dismissal and a ban on working in certain areas and in certain positions for a certain period of time. However, there is still no clear algorithm, and therefore, a very large number of people who are not actually involved in collaboration activities now fall under the category of traitors. For example, business owners who were forced to temporarily work in the russian-occupied territories.

Thus, Ukraine should develop and publish a draft law that will clearly describe the concept of "collaboration activities" and the means and methods that will be used to bring to justice those who are actually involved in crimes. After all, without a pre-developed clear algorithm, the country will not be able to achieve peace in the liberated territories.

As for the russians who are now illegally residing in the occupied territories and are in fact colonizers, according to Ukrainian law, they will be deported. It should be noted that we are talking about russian citizens, not Ukrainians who were forced to obtain a russian passport. For more details on what Ukraine will do with russians after the return of the territories, please see here.

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Holding elections in the de-occupied territories: what are the challenges?

In the first stages of the return of the occupied settlements to Ukrainian control, the territories will be subordinated to newly created military administrations, which will later be reformatted into civil-military administrations. But the transition to civilian life is inevitable. And this raises many questions, including when and how to hold elections. After all, according to experts, holding elections in the first years after de-occupation would be a big mistake, and it is absolutely unacceptable.

According to international practice, elections should be held no earlier than two years and no later than five years after de-occupation or crisis. However, Ukraine still has no clear position on this issue. Moreover, it is currently impossible to say how long it will take, for example, for Donbas to adapt to Ukraine after almost 10 years of occupation. And the transition phase is an extremely important part of the reintegration of the regions, on which the future of not only the liberated territories but the entire country depends. Therefore, Ukraine needs to achieve clarity on this issue as soon as possible and create a certain concept that will allow it to move in a pre-determined vector. 

The work of state institutions and civilian infrastructure: what is missing for stable functioning?

In order for people in the de-occupied territories to continue living, studying, and working, Ukraine needs to create a talent pool of managers, civil servants, law enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges, teachers, etc. Moreover, this is important not only for the actual possibility of living in the liberated territories, but also for the proper reintegration of the regions. After all, the "talent pool" must be specially trained to work with people who have lived under russian rule for a long time. 

However, the main challenge is to find a balance. Because if Ukraine replaces people in all positions with personnel from "outside", the new administration will simply not be accepted by the local population, which will eventually lead to an even deeper split in society.

We remind you! Back in early May, russia launched an PSYOP claiming that Zaluzhnyi and Budanov were killed, and now the information campaign has only gained new momentum. Read more about why russia is spreading fakes and what the benefits are in our previous article.

Photo: Getty Images

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