The referendums took place after almost seven months of war, in which Russia failed to prove its superiority on the ground. Referendums on joining Russia are to be held on Friday in four regions of Ukraine – Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.

Russia’s plan involves the annexation of about 15 percent of Ukraine’s territory through referendums that will take place from Friday to Tuesday.

Here are 8 things you need to know about referendums:

• While the West, which criticized the move, called the referendums a “serious violation of international law” that could lead to a further escalation of the war, Russia says it is an opportunity for the country’s people to have their say. “From the very beginning of the operation… we said that the peoples of the respective territories should decide their own destiny, and the whole current situation confirms that they want to be masters of their own destiny,” said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. .

• The Central Electoral Commission of Russia will provide “assistance” in the organization of polling stations on the territory of the Russian Federation for voting in referendums in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, as well as in the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions, Deputy Chairman of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation Mykola Bulayev stated this in an interview with “Interfax”.

• Ukraine has accused Russia of planning to manipulate the referendum results to legitimize a signal of popular support for Moscow, and then use the referendums to annex all of Ukraine, similar to the 2014 seizure of Crimea.

• Ukraine and its allies have already made it clear that they do not recognize the results of the “voting”.

• In a counteroffensive launched this month, Ukraine has retaken large swaths of territory nearly seven months after Russia invaded the country and launched a war that has killed thousands and displaced several million. Faced with heavy losses in Ukraine, Putin this week announced a partial mobilization to bring in an additional 300,000 troops to fight in Ukraine in an effort to rebalance the battle.

• Having annexed 4 territories, Moscow could justify a military escalation “necessary to protect its territory.” “Trespassing on Russian territory is a crime that allows for the use of all self-defense forces,” Dmitry Medvedev, who served as Russia’s president from 2008 to 2012, said on Telegram on Tuesday. “That’s why these referendums are so feared in Kyiv and in the West,” says Medvedev

Sources used: international media, Reuters, AFP

• The referendums have been condemned by world leaders, including US President Joe Biden, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and French President Emmanuel Macron, among others. “Sham referendums” are “illegal and illegitimate,” representatives of NATO – a military alliance of 30 states – said on Thursday.

• The 2014 referendum in Crimea, criticized internationally as rigged, had an official result of 97% in favor of formal annexation.

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  • Friday’s events regarding the war in Ukraine are broadcast LIVE on HotNews.ro