On Friday, Russia will start carrying out its plan to hold referendums in four regions it controls to annex about 15% of Ukrainian territory. The West has denounced this as a flagrant violation of international law that will significantly escalate the conflict.
President Vladimir Putin expressly backed the referendums as the Russian-controlled districts queued up to demand quick ballots to join Russia following nearly seven months of fighting and a significant battlefield setback in northeastern Ukraine earlier this month.
Voting will take place in the self-proclaimed Donetsk (DPR) and Luhansk (LPR), which Putin recognised as independent soon before the invasion, as well as in the Russian-installed administrations in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia areas.
Results are anticipated soon after the voting, which the West and Ukraine claim is a sham. Voting is scheduled to start on Friday and end on Tuesday.
Following the outcomes, Russia will formally annexe the regions.
U.S. President Joe Biden informed the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly that ‘the Kremlin is arranging a sham referendum to try to conquer areas of Ukraine.’
‘Ukraine is entitled to the same freedoms as any other independent country. We pledge our support for Ukraine,’ Biden described the conflict as a global struggle between democracy and despotism.
Ukraine claims it will never accept Russian control of any of its territory and will fight until the last Russian soldier is expelled. Ukraine’s post-Soviet borders were acknowledged by Russia under the 1994 Budapest Memorandum.
Post Your Comments