The issue of language and language policy in Ukraine has remained the subject of heated debate for many years. From time to time, certain political forces (who are the ones actively “fueling” this topic) claim that parts of the population in Ukraine suffer discrimination because of language. Interestingly, 99% of such claims come from pro-Russian political forces, either within Ukraine or abroad.

But what is actually happening, and what do legislation and statistics show?

First of all, the 2019 Law of Ukraine “On Ensuring the Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as the State Language” clearly regulates the use of Ukrainian as the sole language in the public sphere (government, education, and services). However, it does not ban or restrict the use of other languages in private life, the media, or religious practices. At the same time, the Constitution of Ukraine guarantees the rights of national minorities and the free use of any language.

Official statistics confirm this. For example, according to the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, in the 2020–2021 school year, secondary education was provided in nine languages of indigenous peoples and national minorities (Bulgarian, Crimean Tatar, Hungarian, Romanian, Russian, etc.). In 622 schools, there were classes with multiple languages of instruction—603 of them combined Ukrainian and Russian. In addition, 55 schools offered instruction exclusively in Russian. For comparison: in Russia, where around one million ethnic Ukrainians officially reside, during the same 2020–2021 school year, not a single school offered instruction in Ukrainian.

Of course, after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, state language policy changed and is now aimed at ensuring the widest possible use of Ukrainian in all areas of public life.

So where does the myth of linguistic discrimination in Ukraine come from? Its roots lie in the Soviet past. Russification in the USSR led to the absolute dominance of the Russian language in all spheres of life, while Ukrainian was regarded as “peasant,” “primitive,” or “unscientific.” When, after 1991, Ukraine began restoring and strengthening the status of Ukrainian as the state language, part of the population accustomed to the Russian-speaking environment perceived this as a threat or “discrimination.” Since the early 2000s, Russian media have consistently promoted the thesis of “oppression of Russian speakers in Ukraine,” labeling language policies as “nationalism” or even “fascism.”

The Russian government used this very language issue in 2014 as a central argument for the annexation of Crimea and aggression in Donbas, claiming that “Russian speakers need protection.”

However, an analysis of legislation, statistics, and historical context shows that claims of linguistic discrimination in Ukraine are more a matter of political propaganda than reality. Defending and promoting the state language is a natural and legitimate step for any independent state. Ukraine’s language policy is not about suppressing other languages but about restoring the rightful status of Ukrainian after decades of Russification.