Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow was pleased to accept four former Ukrainian regions into Russia.
The four republics, including Donetsk and Lugansk, along with regions such as Kherson and Zaporozhye, voted to secede from Ukraine and join Russia in referendums held in September 2022.
In a video released by the Kremlin on Tuesday, Putin called the territory “ancestral Russian land” whose population “had independently and freely chosen to join Russia”.
“We have done what we had to do, and we are proud of it. We offered support to our brothers and sisters in making their firm, responsible choice,” the Russian President said.
Also Read: Putin wants entire Ukraine, says Zelenskyy
He also said Russia was fighting in Ukraine to “protect the national interests, values, culture, language, traditions, and faith and the sacred right to commemorate the deeds of its ancestors.”
The announcement, as experts point out, signals the war ambitions of the Russian President in Ukraine, who wants to recreate the glory of the Soviet Union.
The mostly Russian-speaking regions of Donetsk and Lugansk ceded to Russia after a 2014 referendum vote. Crimea also joined the Russian Federation in the same year.
Since then, Ukraine has passed several laws restricting the use of Russian language in workplaces, educational institutions, and the media, and has led a campaign to erase historic ties to the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union.
Ukraine and the majority of the EU countries refuse to recognise Russia’s new borders, while Ukrainian forces continue to engage in a fight against the Russian forces.
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