Annexation postponed: Russian officials come up with new date for pseudo-referendums on occupied territories of Ukraine

YEVHEN KIZILOV – WEDNESDAY, 7 SEPTEMBER 2022, 17:36

Andrey Turchak, the First Deputy Chairman of the Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation and Secretary of the General Council of the "United Russia" party, has suggested holding the so-called "referendums on joining the Russian Federation" in the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia in early November.

Source: Moscow-aligned news outlet RIA Novosti on Telegram

Quote from Turchak: "Referendums in Donbas and the ‘liberated territories’ will be properly and symbolically held on 4 November, the Day of National Unity of Russian Federation."

Background: Russia has occupied parts of Ukrainian territories in Donbas, as well as part of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts since the beginning of the full-scale invasion on 24 February.

In order to claim the occupied territory as Russian, the occupying authorities have already planned to hold pseudo-referendums there several times, during which the local population will allegedly support the idea to join the Russian Federation.

Nevertheless, Russian plans were disrupted each time due to the resistance of the local population and the counteroffensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

In particular, on 5 September, Kirill Stremousov, the so-called "deputy head of the military-civilian administration of the Kherson Oblast" stated that "due to all these events" they have postponed the pseudo-referendum on incorporation of the Kherson region into Russian Federation for an indefinite amount of time.

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