An Italian citizen originally from Mariupol, Ukraine, has reported receiving an updated driver's license that lists his hometown as a Russian city.
Anton Gross, who describes himself as a lawyer and immigration businessman, shared about this on Instagram.
Gross said that despite having a 20-year driving history in Italy and renewing his license for the second time, this was the first instance where Mariupol was indicated as part of Russia. He posted a photo of the license showing "MARIUPOL RUS" in the place of birth field, with "RUS" standing for Russia. Gross also shared an image of his Italian passport, correctly identifying Mariupol as part of Ukraine.
The incident caught the attention of Lia Quartapelle, a member of the Democratic Party, who announced she would submit a parliamentary inquiry. The Italian news outlet Repubblica also reported on the story.
In a follow-up post, Gross shared that the Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport claimed he had been carrying a driver's license with an error since 2003.
"To definitively reassure the parliamentarians who raised this issue, we note that during the renewal of the driving license, Mariupol was not identified as a Ukrainian city due to a manual data entry error," according to a ministry note.
The ministry added that the error, dating back to 2003, was simply not detected during the update. They promised to issue a new license immediately.
However, Gross emphasized that his previous license had "SU" (Soviet Union) listed, not "RUS" (Russia). "I was indeed born in the Ukrainian SSR, in the city of Zhdanov, later renamed Mariupol. If they had left SU, I wouldn't have written about it on my social networks, but would have quietly asked to correct the mistake," he explained.
Mariupol, a strategic port city in Ukraine's Donetsk oblast on the Sea of Azov, came under siege by Russian forces in late February 2022. The city was subjected to intense bombardment and a brutal blockade that lasted for nearly three months.
During the siege, Mariupol's residents faced severe shortages of food, water, electricity, and medical supplies. The city's infrastructure was heavily damaged, with many residential buildings, hospitals, and schools destroyed. One of the most notorious incidents was the bombing of the Mariupol Drama Theater, where hundreds of civilians had taken shelter.
The occupation resulted in a severe humanitarian crisis, with thousands of civilians killed and many more displaced. Reports of human rights abuses, including forced deportations to Russia, emerged during and after the siege.
In March 2022, the Italian government expressed readiness to rebuild the Mariupol Drama Theater, which was destroyed by Russian occupiers in an airstrike.
The capture of Mariupol was strategically important for Russia, as it helped create a land bridge between Russian-controlled areas in eastern Ukraine and the annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Read also:
- HRW, Truth Hounds document Russia’s destruction of Mariupol
- Ukraine honors victims of Mariupol theater bombing by Russia, demands Russian accountability
- Russia continues demolishing buildings in occupied Mariupol to conceal its crimes against civilians, Ukraine says
