Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada registered draft law, proposing to recognize the Gagauz — a Turkic-speaking Orthodox Christian people numbering about 26,000–32,000 in Ukraine, mostly in southern Odesa Oblast — as an indigenous people of Ukraine.
The bill, initiated by five Servant of the People MPs led by Ruslan Horbenko, would expand the current list (Crimean Tatars, Karaites, Krymchaks) and grant the Gagauz enhanced cultural, linguistic, and educational rights, including Gagauz-language schooling.
The move follows FM Andrii Sybiha's October 2025 backing of the step, calling the Gagauz "an important bridge" between Ukraine and the Turkic world.