Donetsk People's Republic

The Donetsk People's Republic (DPR; Russian: Донецкая Народная Республика (ДНР), romanised: Donetskaya Narodnaya Respublika (DNR), IPA: [dɐˈnʲetskəjə nɐˈrodnəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə]) is a disputed republic of Russia with a capital in Donetsk, established on an illegally annexed part of Donetsk Oblast in eastern Ukraine. The DPR was created in 2014 when Russian-backed paramilitaries took control of settlements in the province. This started an eight-year war against Ukraine. The DPR declared itself to be an independent state, but is often described as a puppet state of Russia during the conflict. It was illegally annexed by Russia in 2022.

Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity in 2014, Russia occupied and annexed Crimea from Ukraine. In March 2014, pro-Russian, counter-revolutionary protests began in southeastern Ukraine. In the last census, the population of Donetsk Oblast was 57% ethnic Ukrainian and 38% ethnic Russian. Separatist protesters seized government buildings and proclaimed the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) as independent states. In April 2014, Russian paramilitaries took control of several towns in the region, starting the war in Donbas, part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian war. Russia covertly supported the separatists with its own troops, tanks and artillery, preventing Ukraine from fully retaking the territory. Russian citizens came to dominate the DPR leadership. In 2018, Ukraine declared the territory to be occupied by Russia. The DPR received no international recognition from any United Nations member state before 2022.

On 21 February 2022, Russia recognised the DPR and LPR as sovereign states. Three days later, it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, partially under the pretext of defending the republics. Russian forces captured more of Donetsk Oblast, which became part of the DPR. In September 2022, Russia proclaimed the annexation of the DPR and other occupied territories, following referendums widely described as fraudulent. The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution condemning the "attempted illegal annexation" and demanding that Russian forces withdraw.

The Head of DPR is Denis Pushilin, and its parliament is the People's Council. As a breakaway state, the ideology of the DPR was shaped by right-wing Russian nationalism, Russian imperialism, and Orthodox fundamentalism. Russian far-right groups played an important role among the separatists, especially at the beginning of the conflict. Organizations such as the UN Human Rights Office and Human Rights Watch have reported human rights abuses in the DPR, including internment, torture, extrajudicial killings, and forced conscription, as well as political and media repression. The DPR People's Militia has also been held responsible for war crimes, among them the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, killing 298 civilians. Ukraine declared the DPR a terrorist organisation.