Ukrainian Lawmakers Submit Bill to Use Term 'Muscovy' Instead of 'Russia'

The Ukrainian far-right Radical Party lawmakers have appealed to the country’s parliamentarians to support amendments to the State Register of Geographical Names by replacing the word "Russia" with "Muscovy."

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Ukrainian far-right Radical Party lawmakers have called on the country’s parliamentarians to support amendments to the State Register of Geographical Names by replacing the word "Russia" with "Muscovy."

"In order to meet the requirements of this Act, all public authorities, local governments, enterprises, institutions and organizations, including representative offices of foreign business entities that operate in Ukraine, are recommended to use the historical name of the territory of modern Russia – Muscovy — instead of the word 'Russia,' which is used as the name or synonym of, and/or to refer to the present territory of the Russian Federation or any part thereof," the draft legislation reads.

The authors of the draft law, Oleg Lozovoy and Oksana Korchinska, claim that since Kievan Rus' is currently part of modern central Ukraine, it is incorrect to use the word "Russia" to refer to the present territory of the Russian Federation.

The corresponding bill 2276a was registered in the Verkhovna Rada (the Ukrainian parliament) on July 3, 2015, and was put on the parliament’s agenda on February 3, 2016.