Ukraine parliament backs language exam for citizenship
Ukrainian lawmakers backed draft legislation Tuesday that requires would-be citizens to pass a language exam, part of measures to strengthen the country's language and culture after Russia's invasion.
More than 300 of 450 members of parliament voted for the bill, several lawmakers said on social media. It would still need to be approved in a final reading.
The bill says that foreigners applying for citizenship must know the fundamentals of Ukrainian law and history and speak Ukrainian.
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Failure to pass examinations within two years of being granted citizenship could see it revoked, the bill proposed by Prime Minister Denys Shmygal says.
Following the annexation of Crimea by Russia and the war in Donbas in 2014, Ukraine embarked on dismantling Soviet-era monuments and changing place names.
But since Moscow began its invasion in February, Ukrainians are also thinking about the status of the Russian language in private and public spaces.
