Referendums on the accession of eastern Ukraine to Russia continued on Sunday for the third day in a row, and the Russian parliament could in a few days approve the accession of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, which could thus receive “full protection”, – said the head of Russian diplomacy in the UN Sergey Lavrov, Reuters reports.

After the possible annexation of these Ukrainian territories, Moscow can present the Ukrainian counteroffensive to return these regions as an aggression against Russia, writes news.ro.

A possible annexation will increase the risk of a military confrontation between Russia and NATO in conditions where the West, including NATO member states, is arming Ukrainian troops.

British Prime Minister Liz Truss is urging Britain and its allies to ignore threats from Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom she accuses of making a strategic mistake.

“I don’t think he anticipated the strong reaction of the free world,” she told CNN.

“We must not listen to his rattling swords and false threats. Instead, we should continue to impose sanctions against Russia and support Ukrainians,” Truss said in an interview that aired on Sunday.

Ukraine and its allies dismiss the annexation referendums as a “simulacrum” designed to justify the escalation of the war and mobilization after the latest defeats suffered by Russia.

On Wednesday, Putin ordered the first mobilization since World War II, prompting protests across Russia and the escape of many conscripts.

Two senior parliamentarians complained on Sunday about the mobilization and ordered regional officials to address the situation and the “excesses” fueling public anger.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov tried to justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Saturday, repeating Moscow’s lie that the government in Kyiv was illegitimately installed and full of neo-Nazis.

Three quarters of the UN General Assembly voted to rebuke Russia and demand the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine.

After the speech at the press conference, Lavrov said that the Ukrainian regions, where the referendums are held, will be under the “full protection” of Moscow after the annexation.

When asked whether Russia has a reason to use nuclear weapons to protect these Ukrainian regions after the annexation, Lavrov replied that Russian territory, including the territory that “will be included in the Constitution of the Russian Federation in the future, is under the full protection of the state.” . “

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba replied that these threats with nuclear weapons are “absolutely unacceptable” and Kyiv will not succumb to them.

The State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, may discuss bills on the annexation of territories occupied by Russia to Ukraine on Thursday, the official Russian news agency TASS reported on Saturday, citing anonymous sources.

The Federation Council, the upper house of Russia’s parliament, could consider the bill the same day, a source cited by Russian news agency Interfax said, and Putin could address the chambers on Friday, a source cited by Russian media said. RIA news agency

These referendums, hastily organized by Russia after Ukraine retook a significant part of the country’s northeast during a counteroffensive in September, allow residents of occupied Ukrainian regions to express their opinion, Moscow claims.

The territory occupied by the Russian army and pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine is 15% of the country’s territory, and together with the Crimea annexed by it in 2014, Russia will appropriate a part of Ukraine the size of the American state of Pennsylvania.

But Russia does not fully control four regions, but only 60% of the Donetsk region, for example, which is under the control of pro-Russian separatists.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi assured on Sunday that Ukraine will return its territory to Russia.

“We will definitely liberate our entire country from Kherson to Luhansk and from Crimea to Donetsk region,” he wrote on the Telegram social network.

On Sunday, Russia and Ukraine accused each other of attacks on civilians.

The Ukrainian army accuses the Russian army of carrying out dozens of missile and air strikes on military personnel and civilians over the past day.

Russia attacked Odesa port (south) with Iranian drones, without casualties.

Russia denies any attacks on civilians.

Ukrainian forces bombed a hotel in Kherson, occupied at the beginning of the Russian invasion, and killed two people, reports the Russian news agency RIA Novosti.

Ukraine did not immediately respond to these accusations.

The Ministry of Defense of Russia said that the Ukrainian army continued shelling in the area of ​​the Zaporizhia NPP controlled by it (south), targeting eight “kamikaze drones”.

Reuters writes that it could not verify this information on the ground.

Putin’s mobilization in the Russian war in Ukraine caused excitement in Russia.

According to the OVD-Info organization, which specializes in counting arrests, more than 2,000 people were arrested during anti-mobilization protests throughout Russia.