The introduction of some norms into Ukrainian legislation that relate to the Russian national minority will not lead to the end of the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine, said Olha Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine.

"There have been a lot of changes to the legislation that regulate issues of national minorities, the status of the Russian national minority, and not the Russian-speaking population. There were conclusions of the Venice Commission. The complex of all these decisions and assessments allowed the European Commission to say that we have fulfilled all the necessary criteria for starting negotiations in this area," Stefanishyna told reporters in Kyiv on Monday.

She stressed that there are no restrictions for persons who are considered a Russian national minority, from the point of view of the law they have the same rights as others.

"There are restrictions regarding the language, and some security considerations. This is obvious in war conditions, when the aggressor is the Russian Federation, which carries out its aggression through a package of propaganda narrative of the ‘Russian world.’ These are certainly justified restrictions," the Deputy Prime Minister said.

She stressed that the reforms needed for EU membership are at the top of the agenda. "And when certain former and current European politicians start clinging to such small things, it only destabilizes. If we introduce some norms into the legislation that relate to the Russian national minority, the war will not end, and we will not get closer to victory," Stefanishyna stressed.