Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has vowed to liberate the entire country as Russia pressed on with its supposed referendum in occupied areas of Ukraine and so-called election workers accompanied by masked gunmen knocked on doors to get people to vote.
Zelenskiy said Ukraine’s armed forces would throw the Russian forces out and retaliate against “every strike of the aggressor”.
He pledged that Ukraine’s armed forces would regain control of the southern Kherson region and the eastern Donbas, which includes Luhansk province and Crimea.
“Every murderer and torturer will be brought to justice for what he did against Ukrainians,” he said.
Reports posted on Telegram groups from occupied areas suggest the local population has overwhelmingly boycotted the Kremlin’s referendum stunt, which began on Friday.
The process finishes on Tuesday, and Vladimir Putin is expected to declare this week that these territories belong to Russia.
On Sunday, locals described a shambolic voting process, largely staged for Russian state television.
In the city of Khakova, officials went from house to house, fumbling with intercoms, while two soldiers with assault rifles stood nearby. Most residents refused to open their doors.
Credit: theguardian.com
