Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin spoke about the most important events of the outgoing year for our state and summarized 2020 in an interview with Ukraina.ru.
When asked about the event that had the greatest impact on the political, economic and social life of the DPR this year, Denis Pushilin noted that the coronavirus became the symbol of the outgoing year for most states.
“The pandemic has left its mark on all spheres of life, while we, surprisingly, turned out to be more prepared for the challenges than others. The world faced curfews, border closures, and a number of restrictions that came as a shock to millions of people. But we are in our seventh year of living in such conditions because of the war. COVID-19 has become another challenge that our people are handling with their usual resilience and enviable patience.
Our doctors endure colossal loads, bear the brunt of the fight against COVID-19. People have ranged themselves against the coronavirus danger, even though they are forced to keep a social distance and wear face masks. We have withstood this trial, and the epidemiological situation in the Republic is under control. I really hope that the vaccination will make all the unpleasant manifestations of the year associated with the pandemic go away,” Denis Pushilin said.
According to the Head of the Republic, this year could be regarded as the right time to stand up straight.
“We have stored up our strength and capabilities, prepared a bridgehead for economic growth and are ready for decisive positive changes.
The political sphere also has got prerequisites for improvement. The speech by Foreign Affairs Minister Natalya Nikonorova at the UN Security Council’s venue was an extraordinary event of this year. For the first time we have been to such a high international tribune. Ukraine this year has been strenuously demonstrating the rhetoric of its inability to implement the Minsk Agreements, claiming it had other plans than the Complex of Measures. Thanks to the political support of the Russian Federation, we were able to provide our position at the UN level and show politicians from different countries Ukraine’s underperformance in the Minsk process. I am confident that our diplomatic victories will unfold in the future.
The emergence of the Russian Donbass Doctrine was also an important moment for the history textbook, having an impact on the content of the subject itself. Our past and future are bound up with Russia — these are fundamental pillars that explain the reasons for all those fateful events taking place in our land now,” Denis Pushilin stressed.
The Head of State reminded that the Program of Recovery and Development had been launched this year and 6 billion rubles were allocated for its implementation.
“We are working hard to create conditions for the development of industrial enterprises. For machine building, for example, we are engaged in import substitution, repurposing of facilities to increase export volumes, among other things. These are all very encouraging positive trends, and we intend to expand them next year,” Denis Pushilin said.
Then the Head of the DPR named significant events of the year that influenced the vector of our aspirations.
“In April, the State Duma cancelled state fees for the residents of the DPR when obtaining a Russian passport. We do not need to explain how important this is for us.
In the past year, citizens of the Russian Federation living in the Republic had the opportunity to vote for amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation.
Our enterprises are establishing partnerships with the Russian business. There is confidence that in the next few years our industry will somehow make its way into world markets.
That is, “the caravan moves on” no matter what. Our ties with Russia are getting closer every day,” Denis Pushilin said.
As for the politics regarding Ukraine, the Head of the Republic claimed that we do not expect from Zelensky any real actions to resolve the conflict.
“There cannot be any. That is why the Minsk process is stalled — Ukraine is interested in doing everything to keep it in a deadlock,” Denis Pushilin noted.
At the end of the conversation, the Head of the DPR stressed:
“First of all, I am proud of my fellow countrymen, and this attitude does not depend on what year is now.”
