Why Crimeans don't want to get Russian license plates
27.05.2015, 08:49
Не нужен им номер российский
В Крыму лишь малая часть автомобилистов получила российские госномера и водительские права. Местные власти, озабоченные...
http://www.gazeta.ru/auto/2015/05/26_a_6722849.shtml
File this under "bizarre unintended consequences of Russia's annexation of Crimea."
A recent Gazeta.ru article spotlighted an interesting trend. More than a year after the majority of peninsula's residents voted to join the Russian Federation, most of them are still using Ukrainian license plates and drivers' licences.
It's not because Crimeans are in any way attached to their old driving documents. The reason is so face-palmingly bureaucratic it could have only come from the former Soviet Union.
You see, as far as Ukrainian government is concerned, the Ukrainian license plates and drivers' licenses are still valid. The cars are still registered under those license plates. And if the cars are found on Ukrainian territories with non-Ukrainian license plates, they get seized and towed away. Which is a problem for the vast majority of Crimean drivers, who still like to be able to travel to the mainland.
Keep in mind that, at the moment, Russia and Crimea are only connected by barges. Going to the mainland through Ukraine is just simpler. Plus, a lot of Crimeans still have connections on the mainland.
As the article explains, having Russian license plates and licenses doesn't really benefit the Crimeans - but having Ukrainian plates makes border-crossings a lot less of a hassle.
Neither Crimean government nor the Russian federal government are particularly happy about the situation. Last fall, Crimean government passed the law making it illegal for residents to have cars with "foreign" license plates for more than 90 days in a row. But Crimeans came up with an oh so quintessentially post-Soviet workaround. They leave the peninsula for a few days once every 90 days, and, whola - they are technically never in Russian Federation for more than 90 days.
Meanwhile, the federal government is in a holding pattern. Back in May 2013, before there was even a hint of Maidan, let alone what would become the Ukrainian Crisis, Duma passed the law that would make it much harder for people who don't have Russian drivers' licenses to work in Russia. The law was supposed to kick in on May 204, but because Crimea was just annexed, the date was postponed until June 2015. And now, the current situation in Crimea is forcing Russian legislature to postpone it yet again, this time until 2017.
Drivers' rights activist Pyotr Shkumatov told Gazeta.ru that he's convinced that it's just a temporary thing. Cars age going to age, and people are going to want to buy new cars - and the new cars with have Russian license plates. it may take a while, he said, but it's only a matter of time. Until then, he doesn't think the federal government would force the issue.
And personally, I don't think it will. While I think most Crimeans are happy to stay with Russia, the government doesn't seem particularly inclined to do anything that might piss them off.