The Moscow-appointed authorities in the Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia, partially occupied by the Russian army, announced on Monday the official launch of preparations for the referendum on the accession of this region to Russia.
“I signed an order for the Central Electoral Commission to start work on organizing a referendum on the annexation of the Zaporizhia region to Russia,” said Yevgeny Balitsky, head of the civil and military administration established in the southern territories. Russian-controlled region.
He made the remarks at a forum of a local pro-Russian movement called “We Stand Together with Russia” in Melitopol, according to a video posted on Yevgeny Balitsky’s official Telegram account.
“Many citizens do not want to live” in Ukraine
In mid-July, Yevgeny Balitsky announced that he wanted to organize such a referendum in early autumn.
The launch of official preparations for the referendum comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that peace talks with Russia will be impossible if such referendums are held in Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine.
“He (Zelensky) must ask his citizens why many of them do not want to live in his country,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Since the beginning of the February 24 offensive against Ukraine, the Russian army has conquered a large part of two southern regions, Kherson and Zaporijjia. Since then, the Moscow-controlled authorities say they want to organize their attachment to Russia, although the Kremlin has not officially stated this objective publicly.
Source: BFM TV
