Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said on Sunday that if Russia goes ahead with referendums on joining Russia in the occupied territories of his country, it will not be possible to negotiate with Ukraine or its international allies. Russian forces and their separatist allies now hold large swathes of territory in eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region and southern regions after launching what the Kremlin calls a “special military operation” in their neighbor’s territory. Officials in both areas raised the possibility of holding referendums.
Zelenskiy said in a video speech overnight that Kyiv is firmly sticking to its position of not giving any territory to Russia. “The position of our country remains as it has always been. We will not give up anything that is ours,” Zelensky said. If the occupiers proceed along the path of pseudo-referendums, they will close for themselves any chance of talks with Ukraine and the free world, which the Russian side will clearly need at some point.”
Russian and Ukrainian officials held several meetings shortly after Russian forces launched an invasion of Ukraine in February. But little progress has been made and no meeting has taken place since late March, with each side accusing the other of ceasing contact. Russian forces hold most of the Kherson region in southern Ukraine, and officials in charge have suggested a referendum on joining Russia could be held in the coming weeks or months.
In Donbass, Russian proxies seized chunks of territory in 2014, held referendums on independence, and declared “people’s republics” in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. The Kremlin recognized the republic on the eve of the February invasion. The governor of the almost entirely Russian-controlled Luhansk region signaled at the weekend that Russia was preparing for a new referendum in the newly conquered areas and offering residents benefits for participating.
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