Referendums on joining Russia begin in four captured Ukrainian provinces, Kyiv and West condemn move
Russia-Ukraine conflict
Four regions of Ukraine are holding referendums on Friday overjoining Russia amid the ongoing crisis. The provinces — Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia — are currently under Russian control and in the past few months, Moscow has set up local governments to handle daily administration.
According to AFP, the four provinces together account for around 15 per cent of Ukraine’s territory and right now, it is almost a certainty that the results will favour annexation.
"From the very start of the operation ... we said that the peopleof the respective territories should decide their fate, and the whole current situation confirms that they want to be masters of their fate," Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier this week when asked about the referendums.
A similar process was followed by Russia during its annexation of Crimea in 2014 when it claimed that the results were signs of “popular support” — a move that was not recognised by the international community.
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The Ukrainian authorities have already made it clear that they will not accept or recognise the results of the referendums and this can lead to an escalation in the conflict. A majority of western countries have also condemned Russia for this move at the United Nations General Assembly.
While the plan for the referendums was in place for quite some time, they were accelerated by Ukraine winning back several captured territoriesin the past few weeks. The Russian forces lost ground in a number of areas as the resistance forces went on to claim victory in both Kharkiv and Luhansk.