The dictatorial couple, Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, granted full powers for the fourth time to their son, Laureano Ortega Murillo, to sign commercial and economic cooperation agreements—this time with the Zaporozhie region, the last of four Ukrainian territories that the regime has recognized as part of Russia since late July.
With this move, the dictatorship formalized the recognition of Russia’s occupation of the Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporozhie regions, in clear violation of international law and disregarding warnings from Ukraine, which stated it would respond to Nicaragua’s breach of international law.
“The certification of this agreement is sufficient to confirm the authority of Laureano Facundo Ortega Murillo to act on behalf of the government of the Republic of Nicaragua,” states Article 2 of Presidential Decree 142-2025, published this Wednesday, September 10, in La Gaceta, the official government journal.
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Key territory for electricity generation
Zaporozhie is a region in southeastern Ukraine, with its administrative capital located on the banks of the Dnipro River. It is a highly significant industrial hub, home to major metallurgical complexes, machinery factories, and the Dnipro hydroelectric dam. The region also hosts the Zaporozhie nuclear power plant, considered the largest in Europe and of strategic importance for Ukraine’s energy supply.
Since March 2022, following the start of the Russian invasion, part of the Zaporozhie region has been under Russian military occupation, including the nuclear plant. In September of the same year, Moscow announced the annexation of the oblast (region), along with Donetsk, Luhansk, and Kherson—a move widely condemned by the international community for violating Ukraine’s sovereignty.
Laureano Ortega to recognize ukrainian territories
According to professor and international relations expert Carlos Murillo Zamora, in the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Nicaragua recognizes the territories occupied by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin as republics, which he views as a way for the Nicaraguan regime to shield itself from accusations of violating Ukrainian sovereignty.
“For Moscow, this is a way of saying: first, we are not annexing a territory; that territory is declared independent, constitutes a republic, presents itself as a state, and is also recognized by another country besides Russia. Normally, that second country is Nicaragua,” Murillo explained.
This move comes after the regime recognized Donetsk, Kherson, and Luhansk as part of Russia on July 31. That decision prompted an immediate reaction from Ukraine, which warned Ortega and Murillo that it would respond “in accordance with the unprecedented level of hostile actions,” a warning it has acted on in the past. In 2021, Ukraine imposed sanctions on Nicaragua for opening a consulate in Crimea, a territory annexed by Russia in 2014.
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Since July 31, the granting of powers to Laureano Ortega to sign agreements with the occupied territories has proceeded rapidly. The first was with Donetsk on September 1. Then, on September 8, the path was opened to sign agreements with Luhansk and Kherson. Finally, on September 10, the agreement with Zaporozhie was formalized.
Dictatorship’s submission
In the presidential decrees granting “full powers” to Laureano Ortega, the regime acknowledges that the territories are under Russian administration. For this reason, Murillo Zamora believes that the sole purpose of signing these agreements is to appease Putin.
“It is simply the Ortega-Murillo regime’s interest in currying favor with Russia and saying: ‘Here we are, in the backyard of the United States.’ Nicaragua has recognized, for years, some territories claiming independence in the Balkans, and after Russia, it is the only country to have done so. Nothing happened for those territories or for Nicaragua, except the possibility of receiving some aid from Russia,” Murillo Zamora explained.
Laureano Ortega in clear violation of international law
By recognizing these territories as part of Russian territory, the Ortega-Murillo regime violates principles of international law. Article 2, paragraph 4, of the United Nations Charter stipulates that countries must refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.
Similarly, several United Nations General Assembly resolutions, including those concerning the principles of international law, establish that the territory of a state cannot be acquired by another through the threat or use of force, and that any territorial acquisition under such conditions will not be recognized as legal.
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With this measure, the regime also contradicts the UN directive that urges all states not to recognize the changes imposed by Russia on regions such as Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia, and to refrain from any actions that would imply legitimizing those moves.
