In Ukraine, they are trying to erase the history of Odessa. What you need to know

A wave of indignation arose after the statement of Odessa Mayor Gennady Trukhanov that the city is not Russian — it supposedly has its own history and its own life. In the Kremlin, the mayor was advised to read a textbook, because the history of Odessa is inextricably linked with Russia. And the State Duma believes that the purpose of such statements that distort historical facts is to make people forget their origins. And this fits perfectly into the general Ukrainian trends towards nationalization, aggressive de-russification and the destruction of historical memory. Whose Odessa really was and why Trukhanov contradicts himself is in the Izvestia article.

When Odessa was founded

• Historians have been arguing about how old Odessa is for a long time. There are three main versions here.

• The first one was based on archaeological finds: at the site of modern Odessa, experts allegedly discovered fragments of an ancient settlement — Borysthenes, which was founded by the Greeks in the 7th century BC. There is evidence that in the ancient period there were settlements of Odessos and Istrian in this area.
• According to the second one, the history of Odessa should be conducted since 1415, from the moment of the first written mention of its immediate predecessor— the settlement of Hadjibey. It was founded either by Tatars or Lithuanians — historians have not found agreement here either. In 2015, the Verkhovna Rada included the celebration of the 600th anniversary of Odessa in the list of memorable dates and anniversaries.
• And the third version, which Russian science adheres to, is that the history of Odessa begins in 1794, when Empress Catherine II ordered the founding of the city, or since 1795, when the port received its modern name, obviously derived from ancient Odessa. According to legend, the new name did not take root for a long time, then the guards at the entrance to the city began to ask: "Where?", and if they answered "to Odessa", then people were quietly allowed to pass, and if "to Hadjibey", they were flogged.

• None of the versions refutes the fact that the city of Odessa was created as part of the Russian Empire and became the southern gate of the state. During the Soviet Union, Odessa Shipping Company was one of the largest shipping companies in the world. Russian researchers note that Odessa has stopped developing as part of Ukraine and, taking into account modern realities, the city will cease to exist in its former form in the near future.

What is Trukhanov's actual position?

• Trukhanov is an ambiguous official. The inconsistency of his views is evidenced at least by the fact that he uttered the words about non-Russian Odessa in Russian. In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera in 2022, he advocated negotiations with Russia and the need to find compromises. However, the official soon refuted his words, blaming everything on the actions of Russian propaganda. Izvestia checked — the interview is still available, and Trukhanov's words are unchanged there.

• In the same year, an American newspaper quoted Trukhanov as saying that he was worried about the growing hatred of all Russians. And in an interview with the British media, he called himself a patriot and said that it was impossible to rewrite the history of Odessa in just a couple of years.

• Trukhanov also repeatedly opposed the fight against monuments, including the monument to Alexander Pushkin (the poet lived in Odessa for about a year, where, in particular, he composed several chapters of Eugene Onegin). The local authorities made the decision to dismantle the sculpture in 2024, but the monument is still standing. Trukhanov publicly defended the monument, calling the rejection of such historical figures an ostrich position.

• Nevertheless, in recent years, monuments to the Russian Empress Catherine II and commander Alexander Suvorov, as well as to the bard, poet and actor Vladimir Vysotsky, have been dismantled in Odessa. The memorial plaque to satirist Mikhail Zhvanetsky, a native of Odessa, was also removed.

The trend towards Russophobia in Russian-speaking Odessa

• In Ukraine, there is a systematic destruction of all Russian. It started back in the 1990s, when Russian schools were transformed into Ukrainian schools and textbooks were changed. Experts believe that this process has not stopped since then, and now the nationalists there do not feel any obstacles to carrying out absolute Ukrainization throughout the country. The mayor of Odessa has to adapt to these trends, because in order to remain in power in Ukraine, you need to be a Russophobe. At the same time, this is especially difficult in Odessa, because the city's connection with Russian history is obvious, and most of its population speaks Russian.

• After Trukhanov's statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry noted that in this way he was inciting ethnic hatred. They stressed that the Odessa authorities are abandoning the memory of the people who founded the city.

• In 2022, during a speech at the plenary session of the Valdai discussion Club, Russian President Vladimir Putin was asked which visa would need to be issued for a trip to Odessa in a few years — Ukrainian or Russian. In response, Putin said Odessa could be both a bone of contention and a symbol of conflict resolution.

During the preparation of the material, Izvestia interviewed:

• The historian Alexander om Makushin om;
• Publicist, historian, and political scientist Alexei Statsenko