Attachments: 6

The Central State Archive of the Highest Authorities and Administration of Ukraine provided an official response to a request registered on May 30, 2025, in which it confirmed the existence and validity of two key normative acts that laid the legal foundation for the establishment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The first document is the Resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine No. 1431-XII dated August 24, 1991, “On Military Formations in Ukraine,” which contains a direct provision subordinating all military formations stationed on the territory of the republic to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.

This act also included the decision to establish the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and to begin the formation of the Armed Forces as a national defense institution.

This means that on the very day of the declaration of independence, the legal process of transferring military jurisdiction from the USSR to Ukraine was initiated — a fact that is crucial for questions of legal succession, the command hierarchy, and the formation of a national defense doctrine. ... Read more ⇢

Attachments: 13

The request was submitted to the Central State Archive of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine (CSAVO) in order to obtain archival scan copies of the original document: the Resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine dated December 10, 1991, No. 1955-XII “On the Ratification of the Agreement on the Establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States,” as well as to clarify whether the document indeed contains the signatures of the leaders of the former Soviet republics.

In its response, the archive confirmed that the specified act is stored in the collection of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, fund No. 1, inventory No. 16, file No. 5761, pages 4–13.

Scanned copies of the pages were provided in the form of an archival document and include:

– the full text of the Resolution of December 10, 1991, No. 1955-XII;

– the complete text of the Minsk Agreement dated December 8, 1991.

In the accompanying letter, it is explicitly stated that the attached agreement text indeed contains the signatures of the President of Ukraine, the President of the Russian Federation (RSFSR), and the President of the Republic of Belarus. ... Read more ⇢

Attachments: 5

The submitted document confirms the existence of both the Resolution of the Supreme Council of the Ukrainian SSR dated August 24, 1991, and the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine. However, an analysis of their contents reveals fundamental legal discrepancies between them, particularly concerning succession, the state title, and the basis of sovereignty.

Resolution No. 1427-XII of the Supreme Council of the Ukrainian SSR clearly states:

“The Supreme Council of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic solemnly declares the independence of Ukraine and the establishment of an independent state — Ukraine.”

In this case, the reference to the Ukrainian SSR as a lawmaking subject disappears. The phrase “independent Ukrainian state” does not contain a specific state title (such as “republic”), does not refer to the current Constitution, and is framed as a political declaration rather than a legal act. The removal of the Ukrainian SSR from the text of the A ... Read more ⇢

Attachments: 10

The official response from the Central State Archive of the Highest Authorities of Ukraine, dated September 1, 2025, confirms the existence and validity of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine No. 55-XII of July 16, 1990, as an archival document preserved in the archive’s holdings.

The attached copy contains the full authentic text of the Declaration, which proclaims Ukraine’s state sovereignty based on the right of the Ukrainian nation to self-determination, the primacy of the Constitution of the Ukrainian SSR, territorial supremacy, exclusive rights to natural resources and cultural heritage, as well as the aspiration for international recognition.

At the same time, it should be noted that the current Law of Ukraine No. 2215-IX “On the Desovietization of Ukrainian Legislation”, adopted in April 2022, establishes in Section II, Paragraph 2, that:

“On the territory of Ukraine, acts of the state authorities and state administration bodies of the USSR and the Ukrainian SSR (Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic) shall not apply, except for  ... Read more ⇢