Ani Lorak is summoned for a “test of loyalty” to the Kremlin after receiving a Russian passport
20 June 09:26
Ani Lorak, a traitor to Ukraine, became a Russian citizen and immediately found herself at the center of a new political scandal. After the singer, who has long lived in Moscow, received a Russian passport, the Kremlin started talking not only about her citizenship, but also about her “debt to society.” Well-known propagandists and officials are publicly demanding that she clearly express her position on the war against Ukraine, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports, citing Russian media.
According to Russian media, she was issued a passport in the name of Karolina Kuek on June 9, 2025. She did not change her personal data and continues to live in Russia, where she has been actively building her career since 2014, after the outbreak of the war in Donbas.
However, both in Ukraine and in Russia itself, this news caused a mixed reaction.
Ukraine: betrayal and silence
In Ukraine, the information about the Russian passport caused a wave of outrage. Lorak was once again accused of betrayal and a final break with her Ukrainian identity. Her silence on Russia’s full-scale invasion and her active involvement in Russian show business have caused rejection by a large part of Ukrainian society since 2022.
Information about her citizenship application appeared in March 2024. According to the Russian media, the documents were submitted in February of that year. Lorak did not comment on these reports at the time. After the invasion began, she made no public statements about the war, avoided mentioning Ukraine, and stopped all professional activities in her country in 2017.
She has been under Ukrainian sanctions since 2022, along with Taisiya Povaliy and Anna Sedokova.
Russia: I have a passport, but no patriotism
Ironically, the singer has also received criticism in Russia because she has not yet publicly supported the “special operation.” Propaganda outlets decided to remind Lorak of her “debt to society.”
In particular, Vitaly Borodin, head of the Federal Project for Security and Anti-Corruption, called the fact that she received a Russian passport “a spit in the face of our society” on his Telegram channel. He demanded that Ani Lorak, as well as artists Oleksandr Revva and Lolita Miliavska, publicly express their support for the war against Ukraine.
As a reminder, in March 2023, Lorak stated that she “does not support violence,” but emphasized that she was a musician, not a politician. Despite this, Russian officials are no longer satisfied with this wording.
What is known about Ani Lorak
Karolina Kuek was born in the city of Kitsman in Bukovyna. In 2008, she was awarded the title of People’s Artist of Ukraine. Her career developed rapidly in the 2000s, she represented Ukraine at the Eurovision Song Contest and was one of the most popular performers in the country.
However, after the outbreak of the war in Donbas in 2014, she moved to Moscow. There, she performed extensively on television and in concert halls, and won several Russian awards, including the Golden Gramophone and Song of the Year.
After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Lorak did not condemn the actions of the aggressor country in which she lived and worked.
Ukrainian artists then condemned her “position,” and the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Information Policy appealed to the president to strip the singer of the title of People’s Artist of Ukraine.
In October 2022, the National Security and Defense Council imposed sanctions on Karolina.
Lorak does not hide the fact that she pays money from her concerts to a Russian foundation that “helps” deported Ukrainian children from Zaporizhzhia and Donbas. In interviews with propagandists, she has stated that her mission is to “serve people.”
After Russian media began circulating old photos of Lorak with wounded Ukrainian soldiers in 2014 in 2025, the singer again came under a barrage of criticism. This was probably the impetus for the final decision to completely change her citizenship and distance herself from Ukraine, even legally.
