Russian President Vladimir Putin will sign agreements on Friday to annex the occupied regions of Ukraine that just held referendums that were near-universally viewed as rigged, the Kremlin announced a day ahead of the event.
Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday that the ceremony would take place on Friday afternoon local time and that the president would deliver a speech and then meet with Russian-backed leaders of the four occupied regions that held referendums earlier this week.
The move to hold the referendums in the self-declared Donetsk Republic and Luhansk Republic, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson and proceed with annexation represents a significant development in the now-seven-month-old war that began solely from Putin’s aggression.
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Each of the referendums supposedly demonstrated an overwhelming desire to join the Russian Federation, but the White House came out strongly on Wednesday against the alleged results. The results “were manufactured and manipulated. Ukrainian civilians were forced to cast ballots under the watch of armed guards,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during Wednesday’s briefing.
“We have seen videos and reports of armed officials going door to door, intimidating voters and stopping Ukrainians on the street and forcing them to vote. These so-called referenda have been an exercise in coercion and disinformation executed by puppet authorities following orders from Russia,” she added.
Jean-Pierre said last week that the Biden administration is “prepared to impose additional swift and severe economic costs on Russia along with our allies and partners” if it goes ahead and annexes the territory, though she did not elaborate, and she has also said the United States would “never” recognize that territory as Russian.
In annexing this territory, Russia has warned that it will view attacks on these regions as attacks on themselves and will respond as such, while Ukrainian officials have continued to insist that they will defend their territory from Russian invaders until they reclaim all of their land.
“In the event of a threat to the territorial integrity of our country and to defend Russia and our people, we will certainly make use of all weapon systems available to us,” he said last week. “This is not a bluff.”
“The Kremlin’s sham referenda are a futile effort to mask what amounts to a further attempt at a land grab in Ukraine,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement on Thursday. “To be clear: The results were orchestrated in Moscow and do not reflect the will of the people of Ukraine. The United States does not, and will never, recognize the legitimacy or outcome of these sham referenda or Russia’s purported annexation of Ukrainian territory. This spectacle conducted by Russia’s proxies is illegitimate and violates international law. It is an affront to the principles of international peace and security.”
Last week, Putin announced the call-up of roughly 300,000 reservists, an indication the West has said demonstrates Russia’s struggle with manpower. The decision from the Russian leader led to an exodus in which plane tickets to nearby countries sold out and images from border crossings showed long lines of cars waiting to leave. Others have taken to the streets to protest.
“I think the first portions of the mobilized members of Russian society have, in fact, made it into Ukraine in small numbers,” a senior U.S. military official told reporters on Wednesday, adding, “just the mechanics of outfitting that size of a force is very difficult.” The official also explained that they don’t have “a sense on the numbers that have entered into Ukraine” or where the new troops are heading.
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During Putin’s speech announcing the call-up, he reiterated his threat to use nuclear weapons, which U.S. officials have condemned as irresponsible. The administration has communicated “directly” and “privately” to the Russians about the possibility and warned them that “the United States will respond decisively, alongside our allies and partners,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan said last weekend, adding that there would be “catastrophic consequences.”
The U.S. announced a $1.1 billion military aid package to Ukraine on Wednesday, bringing the total U.S. aid to Ukraine since Russia invaded to more than $16 billion. This package includes 18 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, or HIMARS, and ammunition for them, which U.S. officials have credited for Ukraine’s successful counteroffensive earlier this month. It brings the total number of HIMARS the U.S. has provided to Ukraine to 34, according to a Department of Defense fact sheet.
