Russia postpones the referendum in the occupied territories

The occupying power recognizes that the attack of Ukraine may make it impossible to hold the declared referendum in the occupied territories.

On Monday, Kirill Strimosov told Russian television and the TASS news agency that residents of occupied parts of Ukraine should wait for the announced referendum.

Strimosov is the deputy head of the Russian Occupation Council of the Kherson region. It was not clear whether he was talking about postponing the elections in the Kherson region or in the entire occupied territories.

Earlier this summer, Russian-controlled authorities hinted at holding referendums in the occupied territories. Voters have to say whether they want to belong to Russia or not.

It is difficult to respect the outcome of the vote by countries other than Russia.

Now Strimosov says the plan has been “postponed.” He said the reason is the security situation Reuters. Kherson is under Russian control, but Ukraine launched a major counterattack to retake the area.

contradicting himself

Financial Times He writes that Stremousov posted a video a few hours after the interview was published. There he claims that the break is indisputable, and that “everything goes according to plan.”

to me France’s Agence France-Presse He said there was no question of any delay. Because no date has been set.

In the video clip, he drives a motor boat on the Dnipro River. “No matter what anyone says,” he says, “there will be no Nazis in Kherson.”

He added that all the counterattacks to Ukraine had failed.

The last time Striamosov posted a video, he was mocked. He claimed that everything went well in the war. But fact-checkers revealed that he was staying at a hotel in Russia, 750 kilometers to the east.

According to the Financial Times, there can be doubts that the latest video from Stremousov is also real.

The bridges over the Dnipro River are vital for Russian soldiers to receive supplies. As part of the offensive of Ukraine, they are subjected to heavy artillery attacks. They use American missiles with high accuracy.

In the background of the video you can see the 1.4 km Antonivka Bridge. It does not appear to be damaged, while Russian sources have also confirmed that it has stopped working.

BBC Reports indicate that Striamosov himself said that the bridge was so badly damaged that cars could not drive over it.

questionable choice

It is difficult to respect the outcome of the vote by countries other than Russia.

In 2014, the Russian authorities in Krym held a similar vote. The result showed that 97 percent of those who voted would become Russian citizens.

At the time, both the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSSE) chose not to send observers. Only a few countries accepted the result.