«986-page lawsuit»: Trukhanov has taken Zelenskyy to court over a decree on citizenship

The former mayor of Odessa, Hennadii Trukhanov, has filed a lawsuit against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy with the Supreme Court of Ukraine. The former mayor is demanding that the presidential decree stripping him of his citizenship be revoked.

He stated this in an address to the people of Odesa.

«This is not just a statement of a few pages. Our statement of claim, with appendices, consists of 986 pages. These are official documents verified by NABU, materials obtained by my defence team in court, and official responses from foreign lawyers. In particular, there is an official response dated 30 December 2025, which clearly states: I do not have and have never had citizenship of the Russian Federation,» he noted.

Trukhanov said he had expected the decision to be reviewed without a trial, but received no response from the state authorities.

«I thought that the head of state might simply have been misled, not having fully understood the situation or having had the real facts concealed from him… But, unfortunately, no miracle occurred. No one reviewed anything. Therefore, I had to act strictly within the legal framework,» explained the former mayor.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Hennadii Trukhanov. Illustrative photo: Office of the President

According to him, the Supreme Court had already opened proceedings in the case on 9 April. Furthermore, it granted the plaintiff’s motion, specifically regarding the involvement of third parties: the State Migration Service of Ukraine and its regional office in the Odesa region, as well as the request for additional evidence.

«For Lady Justice, it makes no difference who is the claimant and who is the defendant. Therefore, my only hope today is an independent, fair and lawful court. And we will see this through to the end,» he is convinced.

Trukhanov also emphasised that he considers himself Ukrainian and stated that since 2014 he has been assisting the Armed Forces of Ukraine and remained in Odesa during the shelling.

«I am Ukrainian by birth. I was born, lived and worked in Odesa. Since 2014, I have supported the Armed Forces of Ukraine both at my own expense and through my role as mayor. I missed hardly a single air raid on our city, so that I could be there for the people. And today, I have effectively been deprived of the opportunity to engage in any public or professional activity,» said Hennadii Trukhanov.

The former mayor added that he would keep the public informed about the progress of the court proceedings.