The State Duma adopted the federal law on October 3, 2022, and the Federation Council approved it on October 4, 2022.
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The federal law ratifies the Treaty between the Russian Federation and the Kherson Region on the Accession of the Kherson Region to the Russian Federation and the Establishment of a New Constituent Entity of the Russian Federation, signed in Moscow on September 30, 2022.
The treaty is based on a free and voluntary expression of will by the people of the Kherson Region in a referendum held on September 27, 2022, during which the people of the Kherson Region voted to reunite with Russia as a constituent entity of the Russian Federation.
Under the treaty, the Kherson Region becomes part of the Russian Federation from the date of the signing of the treaty. As of the day of the accession of the Kherson Region to the Russian Federation, a new constituent entity – the Kherson Region – shall be established within the Russian Federation.
The treaty includes a preamble and nine articles setting forth provisions relating to the accession of the Kherson Region to the Russian Federation and establishing a new constituent entity of the Russian Federation, including provisions on citizenship, borders and government institutions in the new constituent of the Russian Federation.
Under the treaty, there will be a transitional period starting from the day of accession of the Kherson Region to the Russian Federation and the establishment of a new constituent entity of the Russian Federation and until January 1, 2026. It is designed to resolve matters related to integrating the Kherson Region into the economic, financial, lending and legal systems of the Russian Federation, as well as into the governance framework of the Russian Federation, and to settling matters related to military service and serving in the military on the territory of the Kherson Region.
The Russian Federation’s laws and other regulations shall apply in the Kherson Region as of the accession of the Kherson Region to the Russian Federation and the establishment of a new constituent entity of the Russian Federation, unless the laws of the Russian Federation state otherwise.
The laws and regulations enacted by the Military and Civilian Administration of the Kherson Region on the territory of the Kherson Region as of the day of the Kherson Region’s accession to the Russian Federation and the establishment of a new constituent entity of the Russian Federation shall apply on the territory of the Kherson Region throughout the transitional period or until the Russian Federation and/or the Kherson Region adopt the corresponding law or regulation.
Under the treaty, the laws and regulations enacted by the Military and Civilian Administration of the Kherson Region on the territory of the Kherson Region as of the day of the Kherson Region’s accession to the Russian Federation and the establishment of a new constituent entity of the Russian Federation, and the laws and regulations of the Kherson Region shall not apply unless they comply with the Constitution of the Russian Federation.