Collage ZN.UA © Getty Images The functionary claims that the paperwork against him is fraudulent.
The Mayor of Odessa, Gennady Trukhanov, has stated that he became aware of preparations to deliberate on the potential revocation of his Ukrainian nationality due to the alleged presence of a Russian Federation passport. In his account, the matter is scheduled for discussion on October 13 during a session of the commission under President Volodymyr Zelensky. Shortly after this announcement, activist and volunteer Serhiy Sternenko, a long-standing critic of the official due to purported corruption and associations with Russia, made available documents allegedly substantiating Trukhanov’s status as a Russian national.
The Odessa city leader labeled the details regarding Russian citizenship as “another instigation ongoing since 2014.” He refuted owning a Russian passport and mentioned that it had previously undergone scrutiny by all pertinent Ukrainian authorities.
“Ever since 2014, I have consistently clarified that I neither possess nor have ever held Russian citizenship… Those fabricated passports occasionally disseminated are without validity, they’re forgeries,” Trukhanov underscored.
He specified that he would have disregarded these speculations if it were not for the intelligence concerning the intended review of this matter by the presidential commission on October 13 in reference to the deprivation of his Ukrainian citizenship.
The mayor also cited one instance of the “evidence” circulating online: an alleged Russian passport issued on December 15, 2015. Trukhanov asserts he was physically present in Odessa that very day. The functionary observed that acquiring a biometric paper demands personal appearance, rendering such “evidence” untenable.
Additionally, he appended a duplicate of a “sham” Russian passport and appealed to Zelensky and the relevant agencies to perform a complete legal assessment, and to Ukrainians to “resist yielding to gossip and provocations.”
Serhiy Sternenko reacted to Trukhanov's message on his Telegram feed, disseminating copies of alternative “materials” allegedly confirming Trukhanov’s Russian citizenship.
“I am re-posting confirmation of Gennady Trukhanov's Russian nationality. From his individual application for a passport to judgments from Russian courts and files of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.
“He also qualifies for exchange as a Russian,” he penned.
Intriguingly, among the documents publicized by Sternenko, the specific “fake” passport displayed by Odessa Mayor Trukhanov was absent.
As a reminder, back in February 2019, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office exhibited in the court handling the “Krayan affair” a response from the Russian authorities indicating that Gennady Trukhanov carries Russian citizenship. Trukhanov's initial Russian passport was released in 2002, with a second one in 2003. In 2011, he renewed the initial document upon reaching the age of 45. Both passports were invalidated in 2017 owing to irregularities in the issuance process.
Former Odessa Mayor Eduard Hurwitz disclosed in 2016 that Trukhanov possessed three international passports — two Russian and one Greek.
In accordance with the Panama Papers, Trukhanov holds Russian citizenship and controls offshore enterprises.
Trukhanov himself maintained that he lacked a Russian passport and offshore businesses. He asserted that to guarantee he did not possess a Russian passport, he interacted with the Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Odessa and the Federal Migration Service of the Russian Federation in 2014, where assurances were given that he wasn’t a Russian citizen.
