Fake referendums in occupied areas: Russian attempts to raise stakes to see no success

Any sham referendums that the Russians could plot in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine on accession to the Russian Federation will not be recognized by Ukraine and the international community.

That’s according to Head of the Office of the Ukrainian President’s Office, Andriy Yermak, Ukrinform reports referring to his Telegram channel.

"Any sham referendums in the CADLO (temporarily occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions - ed.) on acceding to Russia will not be recognized by Ukraine and the world. And attempts by Russians to raise stakes in this manner and undermine Ukrainian sovereignty will not succeed anyway," Yermak said.

Read also: Russia’s ‘referendums’ in temporarily occupied territories will have no legal basis - MFA

The head of the President's Office has stressed that the issue of territorial integrity and sovereignty is fundamental for Ukraine.

According to a number of media reports, Russia’s puppet authorities in the CADLO could be preparing grounds for holding a referendum on the accession to the Russian Federation of the territories currently occupied by Russian invaders.