Novorossiya (confederation)

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flags used by pro Russian separatists and supporters of the confederation

Novorossiya or New Russia (Russian: Новороссия, IPA: [nəvɐˈrosʲɪjə]; Ukrainian: Новоросія, romanized: Novorosiia, [novoroˈsijɐ]), also referred to as the Union of People's Republics (Russian: Союз народных республик, tr. Soyuz narodnykh respublik, IPA: [sɐˈjuz nɐˈroːdnɨx rʲɪˈspublʲɪk]; Ukrainian: Союз народних республік, romanized: Soiuz narodnykh respublik, [soˈjuz nɐˈrodnɪx resˈpublik]), was a project^[1][2] for a confederation between the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) in Eastern Ukraine, both of which were under the control of pro-Russian separatists.^[3]

The concept of "Novorossiya" emerged in public discourse with the beginning of the Donbas war in eastern Ukraine. Referring to the historic Novorossiya, a former imperial Russian territory conquered from the Cossacks and the Ottomans in which Russian settlers were encouraged to settle,^[4] Russia promoted the Novorossiya concept as a new identity for the Ukrainian breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk.

The two constituent republics of the confederation had no diplomatic recognition, while the Ukrainian government classified them as terrorist groups and initially referred to their territory as the Anti-terrorist Operation Zone.^[5][6] The creation of Novorossiya was declared on 22 May 2014,^[7] and one month later spokesmen of both republics declared their merger into a confederal "Union of People's Republics".^[8] Within a year, the project was suspended: on 1 January 2015, the founding leadership announced the project had been put on hold, and on 20 May the constituent members announced the freezing of the political project.^[9][10]