On October 14, the SBU published a photo of Trukhanov’s Russian passport, saying that the mayor of Odessa was deprived of Ukrainian citizenship for possessing a valid passport from the aggressor country, Russia. President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky noted that he had signed the corresponding decree.
Trukhanov said the day before that he intended to go to court and also continue to perform his duties as mayor of Odessa. Today he said he was “confident of victory.”
“I am confident in my victory. My lawyers are now writing to all law enforcement agencies and the Office of the President to get official confirmation of this decree, because we have not officially seen anything. I will contact international organizations, international human rights organizations and countries, in particular the United States, if I find lawyers there, so that they make a request,” Trukhanov said.
According to him, he is not going to leave Ukraine.
“Today I remain the mayor of the city… Until this information is accepted by the deputies at the session, I will continue to remain the mayor of the city and fulfill my duties. Today there will be a meeting of the commission on technogenic-environmental safety and emergency situations, where we will resolve very important issues of preparation for the winter period,” he added.
This morning, on the website of the Office of the President, a decree of the head of state on the creation of the city military administration of Odessa and a decree on the appointment of the former head of the Dnepropetrovsk Military Administration Sergei Lysak as its head appeared.
Context
The media reported that Trukhanov have Russian citizenship, back in April 2016. He called this information “a stream of lies” and a month after the investigation was released showed a certificate of absence of Russian citizenship. However, later SAPO reported that Trukhanov revoked his Russian citizen’s passport in 2017 in a Russian court.
In October 2025, Zelensky several times hinted at “decisions of the central government” regarding local leaders who are not working effectively enough, including promising to “deal with the issue of Odessa.”
On October 13, Trukhanov stated that the allegedly preparing a provocation – information about his Russian passport with photos of “invalid, fake” documents is being distributed online. “Since 2014, I have constantly explained that I do not have and never had Russian citizenship. I was checked by all the relevant authorities of Ukraine – everyone,” he wrote.
On October 14, Zelensky released information that some officials confirmed their Russian citizenship. On the same day, the SBU reported that Trukhanova deprived of Ukrainian citizenship and published a photo of his Russian passport. Document issued On December 15, 2015, it will cease to apply in exactly two months.
According to the law on local self-government, deprivation of citizenship is the basis for early termination of the powers of the mayor, notes “BBC News Ukraine”.
