For many of you, what is happening now in Ukraine is simply a conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and the details no longer matter. However, for the neighboring countries, it’s not quite that simple. In fact, Ukraine finds itself in a similar territorial situation to that of its neighbors, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania after WWII, when Ukraine and Russia, as part of the USSR, annexed parts of their territories. Fast forward: these two bullies are no longer united, and the occupied territories of these countries have become part of Ukraine. But what is the situation for minorities in the territories occupied by Ukraine now that karma has struck the former bully, and it needs our support and that of the entire Planet (for a similar issue PL, SK, HU, RO faced in the past)?
This guy Zebra requested research and facts, so here is a longer reply that provides an overview of the current situation regarding minorities and human rights in Ukraine.
I’m also glad you shared your experience, but I stand to my point: Ukraine’s treatment of minorities shows they’re evading responsibility, just like they’ve avoided confronting their Soviet past.
You say minorities aren’t restricted because you speak Russian without problems, but your experience doesn’t erase what’s happening to others. I’ve done a little research, and the facts back me up.
Take a look at Vancicăuți in Chernivtsi, a majority-Romanian area in Ukraine.
On February 26, 2025, their local council issued a directive (No. 31) forcing kids in the schools to use Ukrainian not just in class, but during breaks (!!!), activities, even in online chats. BucPress reported on March 3, 2025 (link below), that experts see this as pushing linguistic assimilation, squeezing out Romanian in a community where it’s their heart language. And it’s not just language, ActiveNews on March 4, 2025 (link below), says Romanians have been trying to register their Orthodox Church since August 2024, but Ukraine’s authorities have delayed it for six months, breaking their own laws. Romanians are losing churches where they worship in their language, like in Chernivtsi and Storozhynets. That’s a direct hit on their religious freedom.
And it’s not just Romanians.
Hungarians in Zakarpattia have lost schools, down from 99 to 67 since 2017 (U.S. State Dept., 2024), because of laws forcing Ukrainian in education.
Ruthenians can’t even get their language recognized, so they have no schools (Council of Europe, 2022).
Roma kids? Only 40% go to school because of discrimination (U.S. State Dept., 2024). These are restrictions on language, education, and religion, exactly what I said.
You might not feel it as a Russian-speaker, maybe because Russian’s more common, even with some laws against it. But for smaller groups, it’s a different story. I called it ethnic cleansing because these policies erase cultures over time, maybe not with violence, but by choking their language and identity. The Vancicăuți case proves my point: it’s a slow squeeze, just like the Bolsheviks did, even if it’s not as brutal. Ukraine had a chance after 1991 to fix its past wrongs, but instead, they’re doubling down. You say you’ve talked to people like me and it goes nowhere, but dismissing this as “no problems” ignores what’s right in front of us.
Now about the bigger picture.
You Ukrainians want help from Europe, the USA, from the whole world in your fight against Russia. But what are you fighting for if this is how you treat others, if this is how you treat the diaspora sons and daughters of those who are helping you right now? Romania and Hungary were supporting you with everything they’ve got, weapons, aid, refugees, while their minorities in Ukraine are losing their schools, churches, and languages. The ActiveNews article mentions Romanians in Ukraine fighting alongside you, spilling their blood for your sovereignity. Yet you can’t even register their church or let their kids speak Romanian during school breaks?
How does that show you’re any better than the Russians, who claim they invaded to protect their people in eastern Ukraine?
Romania and Hungary haven’t sent troops to defend their minorities, they’ve done the opposite, standing by you in your struggle. But this is how Ukraine repay them? If you want to prove Ukraine is different, start by treating your minorities with the respect they deserve, not with policies that echo the very oppression you claim to fight against. Human rights are not a luxury you can't provide durring wartime, they were absent even in peacetime.
Let’s go even deeper into history, because this isn’t just about today. What’s happening in Crimea and eastern Ukraine, Russia taking over, claiming to protect their people, happened to Romanian and Hungarian territories too. Northern Bukovina and Zakarpattia, where Romanians and Hungarians live, were once part of Romania and Hungary before the Soviets redrew the borders after World War II and gave them to Ukraine. Ukraine now holds these lands, but how are you different from the Bolsheviks (Russians, you said) who forced those changes in the first place? You’re doing now the same thing they did, imposing your language, erasing cultures, and ignoring the rights of the people who’ve lived there for centuries. The Bolsheviks didn’t care about the locals when they annexed those territories, and now Ukraine doesn’t seem to care either, with policies like the one in Vancicăuți.
If you’re fighting for justice against Russia, why can’t you face your own history and treat these minorities with the fairness they deserve?
If Ukraine can't show basic respect for our people, why should we keep trying to save yours?
#Ukraine #Romania #Hungary #Slovakia #Russia
For many of you, what is…
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