The Ministry of National Unity of Ukraine () was a government ministry in Ukraine from April 2016 to July 2025. The Cabinet decided to create the Ministry of temporarily occupied territories and internally displaced persons, Ukrayinska Pravda (20 April 2016)
Created in 2016 as the Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories and IDPs () it was established to manage occupied parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, and Crimea regions affected by the Russian military intervention of 2014. After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Ministry also managed the newly-occupied territories across Ukraine, especially Kherson and Zaporizhzhia which were annexed by Russia along with Donetsk and Luhansk.
The Honcharuk Government in August 2019 merged the Ministry for Veterans Affairs into the ministry. But its succeeding Shmyhal Government reversed this merger in March 2020. On 16 July 2025 the ministry was merged with the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine.
History Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons
On 20 April 2016 the ministry was created by merging the State Agency for restoration of Donbas (formerly part of Ministry of Regional Development) and the State Service for Russian annexed Crimea and Sevastopol (formerly under direct administration of the Cabinet of Ukraine). Vadym Chernysh was on 14 April 2016New Cabinet formed in Ukraine, UNIAN (14 April 2016)Week’s balance: PM Groysman, Rada’s sabotage, and disappointing IMF forecast, UNIAN (18 April 2016) appointed as the first Minister of Temporarily Occupied Territories and IDPs in the Groysman government. Chernysh is the former head of the State Agency for restoration of Donbas.
The ministry was established in order to "search for solutions and reintegration strategies" for Ukraine to regain control Crimea and parts of (the historical region) Donbas. Vadim Chernish, Minister of temporarily occupied territories and IDPs: "The State shall clearly outline the position on the occupied territories and the people who were there", Zerkalo Nedeli (15 April 2016) Ukraine lost control over Crimea, which was unilaterally annexed by Russia in March 2014.EU & Ukraine 17 April 2014 FACT SHEET , European External Action Service (17 April 2014) In the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, pro-Russian protests escalated into an armed separatist insurgency early in April 2014, when masked gunmen took control of several of the region's government buildings and towns.Masked gunmen tighten grip on eastern Ukraine, Reuters (30 April 2014) This led to the creation of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic.Eighteen of thirty-four district election commissions in Donetsk and Luhansk regions captured – CEC, Interfax-Ukraine (22 May 2014) Violence between the Ukrainian army and the forces of the two breakaway republics escalated into an armed conflict. This war in Donbas led to 1.6 million people becoming internally displaced persons, according to the 2016 registry of the Ukrainian government. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights reported in March 2016 that 800,000 to 1 million of them lived within Ukrainian government controlled Ukraine.Over 3 mln people live in conflict zone in Ukraine's east – UN report, Interfax-Ukraine (3 March 2016) This part of the Russo-Ukrainian War continued until subsumed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The Honcharuk Government (on 29 August 2019) merged the Ministry for Veterans Affairs into the ministry degrading the first to an agency as it previously existed.New Cabinet formed in Ukraine The Rada appointed the new Cabinet: Avakov and Markarova remained (РАДА ПРИЗНАЧИЛА НОВИЙ КАБМІН: АВАКОВ І МАРКАРОВА ЛИШИЛИСЬ), Ukrayinska Pravda (29 August 2019) On 23 January 2020 then Minister Oksana Koliada stated that the Ministry would likely be split up again into a separate Ministry for Veterans Affairs with the Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories and IDPs to be renamed "Ministry of Reintegration". Two ministries will be in charge of Donbas: they will divide the Ministry of Veterans, Ukrayinska Pravda (23 January 2020) Indeed, on 4 March 2020 the new Shmyhal Government undid the merge of the two ministries. It also renamed the ministry to Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories ().
Ministry of National Unity of Ukraine On 19 November 2024 President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the creation of a new (to be formed) ministry, that he then named Ministry of Unification of Ukrainians. Zelenskyy claimed this new ministry was necessary for the "institutional strengthening of the policy towards Ukrainians abroad, towards our people from all waves of migration."
On 3 December 2024 the government decided to rename the Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories to its new name: the Ministry of National Unity of Ukraine. According to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal this renamed ministry would conduct the task of the ministry that President Zelenskyy spoke of on 19 November 2024. Early December 2024 the Ukrainian diaspora organizations and Ukrainian World Congress had not been informed about the creation of this ministry that was aimed to facilitate them.
On 16 July 2025 the ministry was merged with the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine.
List of ministers Heads of predecessor government agencies of the ministry State Agency for restoration of Donbas Name of minister Term of office Start End Andriy Nikolayenko 22 September 2014 14 October 2014 Vadym Chernysh 26 June 2015 20 April 2016
State Service on issues of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol city Name of minister Term of office Start End Aslan Ömer Kırımlı 14 May 2015 19 August 2015 Nariman Ustayev 20 August 2015 20 April 2016
List of ministers of the Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories [and IDPs] Name of ministry Name of minister Term of office Photo Start End Temporarily Occupied Territories and IDPs Vadym Chernysh 20 April 2016 Cabinet of Ukraine approved creation of Temporarily Occupied Territories and IDPs. Radio Liberty. 20 April 2016 29 August 2019 Temporarily Occupied Territories, IDPs and veterans Oksana Koliada 29 August 2019 4 March 2020 Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories Oleksii Reznikov 4 March 2020 3 November 2021Parliament sacks Deputy Prime Minister Reznikov, Ukrinform (3 November 2021) Iryna Vereshchuk4 November 20218 August 2024
List of ministers of the Ministry of National Unity of Ukraine Name of ministry Name of minister Term of office Photo Ministry of National Unity of Ukraine Oleksiy Chernyshov 3 December 2024 to 16 July 2025
See also Temporarily occupied and uncontrolled territories of Ukraine Russian military intervention in Ukraine (2014–present) Anti-Terrorist Operation Zone (Ukraine) Russo-Ukrainian War Humanitarian situation during the war in Donbas
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References
External links November 2016 interview with minister Vadym Chernysh by UNIAN