Circassian organizations are concerned about statement of Russian President on granting citizenship to compatriots

The Coordination Council of Circassian Public Organizations of Russia has sent an appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin asking to start implementing the measures under the plan for evacuation of Russians from Syria. At the same time, activists of the Circassian organizations have expressed their disagreement with the demand to be a "carrier of the Russian language and culture" for the persons who will need to accelerate the adoption of Russian citizenship.

The appeal to the Russian President was adopted at an emergency sitting of the above Council held in Maikop on December 15 and sent to Vladimir Putin on the following day, December 16.

On December 12, in his annual address to the Russian Federal Assembly, Vladimir Putin instructed "to develop an accelerated procedure for granting the Russian citizenship to our compatriots, carriers of the Russian language and Russian culture, direct descendants of those who were born in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union." "To those who want to take up permanent residence in our country and, therefore, give up their current citizenship," added the President of Russia.

"We hereby ask you to immediately begin implementing the measures envisaged by the plan for the evacuation of our compatriots from Syria," reads the appeal signed by the leaders of 11 Circassian public organizations of the KrasnodarTerritory, Adygea, Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia.

"We are concerned about the President's wording of 'carriers of Russian culture.' How can foreign Circassians know Russian, if they found themselves outside Russia 150 years ago? Compatriots should be representatives of one of the cultures of the nations of the Russian Federation. Circassians are one of the nations of Russia," said Amin Zekhov, the head of the public movement "Adyge Khase – 21^st Century".