Russian-installed authorities in occupied regions of Ukraine began conducting referendums to annex the areas into Russian territory Friday in a vote that has faced widespread international condemnation.
A volunteer of Luhansk regional election commission is handing out ribbons in Russian colors.
The voting is taking place in Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and the rest of the provinces that are under Russian control.
According to a New York Times translation, the only question in both Russian and Ukrainian languages is "Do you wish to break away from Ukraine and create an independent state that will enter the Russian Federation?"
The entire process will take five days with officials going door to door with ballots for the first four days.
The results of the referendum are expected to be rigged in favor of the regions joining Russia.
The exiled Ukrainian governor of the Luhansk region alleged that some of the voting was being done under threat of arrest or job loss.
After Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his support for the referendum in Ukraine, he ordered the army to be drafted in order to escalate the war.
In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of the G7 group of nations condemned the "sham referenda". The UN Charter states that any annexation of Ukrainian territory would be a gross violation of Ukraine's sovereignty.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Russians that over 50,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in the conflict. Fight back or surrender to the Ukrainians. These are options for you to take. Zelensky said that the war against Ukraine for the majority of Russian citizens is not something that is shown on TV or on the internet.
Putin said he was prepared to use nuclear weapons in case of a threat to Russia'sterritorial integrity. Concerns have been raised that Russia could use the referendums to justify its annexation of Ukrainian territory, and that it could use nuclear weapons to retaliate against Kyiv. Russian authorities in the annexed territories can forcibly conscript Ukrainians into their own military.
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