Russia to settle 114,000 people as part of colonization plan for southern and eastern Ukraine

Vnesheconombank, together with the Unified Institute for Spatial Planning of Russia, has developed so-called development plans for Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Luhansk region, Zaporizhzhia region, and Kherson region.

These include 15 master plans that would increase the population by 67,100 people. Another 10 territorial planning projects are expected to increase the population by an additional 46,700 people.

Russia plans to build more than 13 million square meters of new housing in the occupied territories, over 140 kindergartens, dozens of schools, and about a hundred outpatient clinics and medical centers.

The plans also include building and reconstructing more than 3,270 kilometers of roads, nearly 430 kilometers of railway lines and 19 stations, as well as sea yacht marinas and berths, and reconstructing four airfields.

Russians also intend to create 25 industrial parks, eight machine-building enterprises, 15 construction materials plants, six mining facilities, and enterprises for processing spoil heaps.

The implementation of all these projects by the aggressor state is expected to involve 225,400 people.

The occupiers also plan to develop tourism in the occupied territories, aiming to attract up to 9.4 million tourists by 2044.

Territorial issue

Since the beginning of 2026, Ukraine has held several rounds of negotiations with the aggressor state. The key issue that has not yet been resolved is control over the non-occupied territories of Donbas.

Bloomberg reported that Russia is ready to sign a draft peace memorandum if Ukraine agrees to withdraw its troops from the entire Donetsk region.

At the same time, the Kremlin is allegedly ready to withdraw its troops from the Sumy region, Kharkiv region, and Dnipropetrovsk region and abandon its claims to the parts of the Kherson region and Zaporizhzhia region controlled by Ukraine.

In response, Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected any exchange of the Donbas for other regions. He stressed that Russia understands it will only be able to hold border territories temporarily, and that the time will come when the Armed Forces of Ukraine will push the occupying forces out.