Russian rouble to become official currency in Ukraine’s Kherson

Russian Rouble

The Russian occupiers of the Ukrainian region of Kherson have urged the population to exchange their savings for Russian roubles.

Payments in the Ukrainian national currency, the hryvnia, would end on January 1, head of the occupying forces Vladimir Saldo announced in a video on the Telegram messaging service on Tuesday.

He cited the massive drop in the value of the hryvnia due to Ukraine’s economic problems as the reason, saying the currency was “turning into paper.”

In the Kherson region, the regional capital of the same name and other towns are under Ukrainian control.

Most of the region, however, is occupied by Russian troops.

The currency decision, previously announced in October, is part of annexing the region into Russian territory.

The Ukrainian national currency has lost about 50 per cent of its value against the dollar since the beginning of the war.

In the other annexed regions of Luhansk and Donetsk, the rouble has been the official currency for some time.