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For the historical territory of the Russian Empire, see Novorossiya.

Federal State of New RussiaФедеративное государство Новороссия
Flag Coat of arms of Novorossiya Coat of arms
Territory claimed by "Novorossiya" (in green) within Europe
Status	Unrecognized state
Capital	Donetsk
Official languages	Russian
Religion	Russian Orthodox (official)
Government	Provisional confederal republic
Confederation between Donetsk and Lugansk

• Declared	24 May 2014

The Federal State of New Russia (Template:Lang-ru; Federativnoye Gosudarstvo Novorossiya) or Novorossiya is an unrecognised confederation claiming the territory of Donetsk Oblast and Luhansk Oblast in eastern Ukraine, which shares a border with Russia. It was declared on 22 May 2014 and agreements were signed between leaders of two self-proclaimed republics on 24 May.

The status of New Russia is not currently clear. While the leadership of the Donetsk People's Republic announced that New Russia constitutes an established state, the self-proclaimed "Governor" of the Lugansk People's Republic, Valery Bolotov disputes his group's involvement in the merger, as the union treaty was instead signed on the group's behalf by "head of the Republic" Alexei Koriakin. As of 26 May, according to Bolotov, "none of the agreements have been concluded" but the intention is to form a "Union of People's Republics". In an interview on 31 May, Denis Pushilin, head of state of the Donetsk People's Republic, stated that New Russia currently exists as a union of people's republics, but cooperation could be deepened if more territories were to join.

History

Background

Main article: 2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine

Novorossiya (New Russia) was the name of a territory of the Russian Empire formed out of the Crimean Khanate, which had been annexed several years after the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca concluded the Russo-Turkish War in 1774. Russians soon flooded the region and established major cities such as Odessa. The region was later incorporated into the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the term Novorossiya began to be used again in calls for the independence of the regions corresponding to the historical area.

In a 1994 interview, the head of the separatist state of Transnistria in Moldova stated that the state was "an inalienable part of the Russian state's southern regions" including Odessa, Crimea, and other Ukrainian oblasts, which were collectively part of the Novorossiya region. Dmitry Trenin of the Carnegie Moscow Center wrote that in 2003 some Russian academics discussed the idea of a pro-Russia Novorossiya state being formed out of southern Ukraine in response to moves towards bringing Ukraine into NATO.

The term soon came into usage among Antimaidan protesters following the Euromaidan Ukrainian Revolution with a Novorussiya account being created on Twitter and gaining thousands of followers in the first weekend. Amidst talks in Geneva on resolving the rising unrest in southern and eastern Ukraine, President Putin noted at a Q&A session that the southern and eastern portions of Ukraine had originally been part of Novorossiya and suggested that it had been a mistake to cede them.

Formation

The New Russia Party, founded on 13 May 2014 in Donetsk, Ukraine, declared on its first congress of 22 May 2014 the formation of a new self-declared state named 'Novorossiya', inspired by the historical region of the Russian Empire that shared the same name. The congress was attended by pro-Russian separatist officials of the Donetsk People's Republic, Donbass People's Militia as well as by the Donetsk Republic leader Pavel Gubarev, writer Alexander Prokhanov, political scientist and Eurasia Party leader Aleksandr Dugin, and Valery Korovin. The state would, according to Dugin, have its capital city in Donetsk, Russian Orthodox Christianity as the state religion, and would nationalize major industries. According to Gubarev the state would also include (the major cities currently not under control of separatists) Kharkiv, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Odessa and Zaporizhia. Two days later, the self-appointed 'Prime Minister' of Donetsk Alexander Borodai and Lugansk "head of the Republic" Alexei Koriakin signed a document behind closed doors formalizing their merger into the new confederation.

Flag

Naval jack and fortress flag of imperial and modern Russia

Navy jack of the Confederate States of America

The flag of New Russia bears a strong resemblance to that of the Confederate States of America's navy jack and battle flag. According to the news portal of the Donetsk Republic, the flag is based on the naval jack of Russia and political analyst Mikhail Pavliv is credited with creating the "official banner" of the polity. However, Pavliv explains that he had simply stumbled upon the flag online somewhere, which was later picked up by party leader Pavel Gubarev. Gubarev has since stated that the inspiration for the flag came from "banners used by Cossacks who reclaimed the territories from Tatars and Turks for Russia in the 18th century;" however, no cossacks ever used a flag resembling the one chosen.

Government and politics

The prospective government structure and political programme of the new state, recounted here, are outlined in the official programme of the New Russia Party, proclaimed at Donetsk and published online on 23 May 2014.

Economics

Land, its subsoil, water, flora and fauna, as well as major industrial and financial assets created by "the labor of the people," are public property, and cannot be privately owned. Large property, industrial and financial assets will be owned by the state. Remuneration of each person will be measured by the "usefulness of work to society."

Government

The supreme legislative authority of Novorossiya is the "People's Council" (Template:Lang-ru), formed on the basis of nomination by the Soviets of People's Representatives or labour groups. Representatives will be held accountable to the head of the People's Council, elected from among its members.

The executive body of Novorossiya is the cabinet, which is formed by its president and approved by the People's Council.

Language

The official state language is Russian, and the use of other languages is free for the purpose of communication.

Military

Religion

All spiritual and religious education will belong to the Russian Orthodox Church. The state allows for freedom of religion except in cases it deems would "destroy the fabric of society and social harmony."

Territorial extent

Presently, only the unrecognized Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic have agreed to participate in the unification process. According to the leader of the Donetsk People's Republic, Pavel Gubarev, however, the envisaged final extent of the state will encompass not only the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, but also the present Ukrainian oblasts of Kharkiv, Kherson, Odessa, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhia, and Dnipropetrovsk.