Russia annexes four Ukrainian regions
President Putin has incorporated Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia into Russia at a ceremony in Moscow, the Kremlin says.
President Putin’s decision to annex the partially occupied regions into Russia means Moscow will seize about 15 percent of Ukraine’s total territory.
President Vladimir Putin has formally annexed four partially Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine on Friday, the Kremlin has said, a move already rejected by Kyiv and its Western allies as illegal and meaningless.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said a ceremony to mark the incorporation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia into Russia would take place at 3pm Moscow time (12:00 GMT).
Treaties will be signed alongside the Moscow-appointed administrators of the Ukrainian regions at the Kremlin’s St George’s Hall, he added.
The move was widely expected following annexation votes that ended on Tuesday in the four regions. Moscow-backed local officials claimed residents had overwhelmingly voted in favour of joining Russia.
The hastily arranged votes were held seven months after Russia’s invasion began.
Ukraine dismissed the votes as a sham and promised to punish traitors who assisted in organising them, as well as extend its counteroffensive.
