Ukraine may refer to Russia by a new name, Moscovia. President Volodymyr Zelensky is evaluating such a possibility, after an online petition that has secured over 25,000 signatures claiming that this is the historical name of Russia.
The petitioner says that this name was used in Europe and some Asian languages as well as on historical maps between the 16th and 19th centuries.
It says that Russia has only existed for 301 years, when the Tsar of Moscow, Peter the First, proclaimed the kingdom of Moscow as the Russian Empire. Zelensky has tasked Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to deal with the issue.
"The issue raised in the petition requires a careful evaluation both in terms of the historical and cultural context, as well as keeping in mind the possible international legal consequences. Thus, I have instructed the prime minister and asked him to take a complex approach and explore such an opportunity," stated Zelensky.
The response of Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Russia, was not long in coming, who said that this was the next proof of the anti-Russian campaign being undertaken in Ukraine. According to the Ria Novosti agency, the vice-president of the Russian Duma, Boris Chernyshov, has commented on the petition claiming that such initiatives can only be treated with a smile.
The harshest was the reaction of the deputy president of the security council in Russia, Dmitry Medvedev. "If we are in Moscow, Ukraine is Bandera's dirty Reich," he said, referring to Ukrainian nationalist leader Stapan Bandera.
He named Zelensky as the chief Nazi of Kiev.