Sign petition: Ukrainian community in Portugal urges ban on insignia of Russian aggression

The Ukrainian community in Portugal is calling on national authorities to ban the public display of insignia associated with Russia’s war against Ukraine. 

The appeal was announced by Pavlo Sadokha, UWC Vice-President and President of the Union of Ukrainians in Portugal (UUP), who is leading a petition drive on the matter. 

Despite multiple appeals to the Portuguese government and European Parliament’s resolution of Feb. 23 condemning Russian disinformation and historical revisionism, pro-Kremlin supporters have continued to hold public rallies in Portugal promoting and justifying Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.

In response, the UUP has submitted an official appeal to the Portuguese parliament and has launched a petition drive, which is now open for signatures.

Among these events were so-called Immortal Regiment marches where participants openly displayed St George’s ribbons and the letters “Z” and “V” – symbols now widely recognized as representing Russian military aggression and war propaganda.

“These letters were originally used as tactical markings on Russian military vehicles during the invasion of Ukraine. But they’ve since become symbols of support for the war and the killing of civilians,” the community said.

Such demonstrations, they stressed, inflict deep psychological pain on Ukrainians — on those whose relatives were killed by Russian troops and missiles, who endured torture in captivity, and whose children were abducted by Russia after their parents were murdered.

This year, the psychological trauma was compounded by physical violence. According to the UUP, Ukrainian women were assaulted by participants of the “Immortal Regiment” during a march in Albufeira.

“The current Russian aggression against Ukraine, in both its goals and methods, can rightly be compared to Nazism and fascism — ideologies whose symbols are banned in many democratic European countries,” the UUP said in its appeal.

The community is calling on the Portuguese parliament to classify these emblems of war used by Russia in its genocidal war against Ukraine as totalitarian, and to prohibit their use in public spaces.

“The reality of Russian state terrorism, along with the neo-Nazi nature of its totalitarian regime, has become undeniable to the world,” the community said.

The UWC also explained the significance of the “Immortal Regiment” march, a propaganda event where participants carry portraits of Soviet soldiers and glorify the USSR’s role in the Second World War.