In late September 2022, in the context of the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, Russian-installed officials in Ukraine staged so-called

referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...

s on the annexation of occupied territories of Ukraine by Russia. They were widely described as sham referendums by commentators and denounced by various countries. The validity of the results of the referendums has only been accepted by

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. The votes were conducted in four areas of Ukraine – the Russian-occupied parts of

Donetsk Donetsk ( , ; ; ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin, and Stalino, is an industrial city in eastern Ukraine located on the Kalmius River in Donetsk Oblast, which is currently occupied by Russia as the capita ...

and

Luhansk Luhansk (, ; , ), also known as Lugansk (, ; , ), is a city in the Donbas in eastern Ukraine. As of 2022, the population was estimated to be making Luhansk the Cities in Ukraine, 12th-largest city in Ukraine. Luhansk served as the administra ...

oblasts of Ukraine, and the Russian-appointed

military administration Military administration identifies both the techniques and systems used by military departments, agencies, and armed services involved in managing the armed forces. It describes the processes that take place within military organisations outs ...

s of

Kherson Oblast Kherson Oblast (, ; ), also known as Khersonshchyna (, ), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) in southern Ukraine. It is located just north of Crimea. Its administrative center is Kherson, on the northern or right bank ...

and

Zaporizhzhia Oblast Zaporizhzhia Oblast (), commonly referred to as Zaporizhzhia (), is an oblast (region) in south-east Ukraine. Its administrative centre is the city of Zaporizhzhia. The oblast covers an area of , and has a population of The oblast is an import ...

, captured and occupied in the first week of the 2022 invasion – as well as in Russia. At the time of the referendums, Russia did not fully control any of the four regions, where military hostilities were ongoing. Much of the population had fled since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The referendums were illegal under

international law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...

and have been condemned by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

as violations of the

United Nations Charter The Charter of the United Nations is the foundational treaty of the United Nations (UN). It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the United Nations System, UN system, including its United Nations System#Six ...

. On 30 September 2022, Russia's president

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

announced the annexation of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts of Ukraine in an address to both houses of the

Russian parliament The Federal Assembly is the bicameral national legislature of Russia. The upper house is the Federation Council (Russia), Federation Council, and the lower house is the State Duma. The assembly was established by the Constitution of the Russian F ...

. The United Nations, Ukraine, and many other countries condemned the annexation.

Background

Under the conditions of Russian military occupation and complete dominance of Russian media, the residents of

and

oblasts of Ukraine were promised the inclusion of these regions into Russia, as with Crimea. As the director of the Donetsk Institute for Social Research and Political Analysis suggested in 2014, it had been decided to refuse accession referendums due to low support for joining Russia: 35% supported it, while 65% saw themselves as part of Ukraine. In Russia, a 2015 poll by the

Levada Center The Levada Center is a Russian independent, nongovernmental polling and sociological research organization. It is named after its founder, the first Russian professor of sociology Yuri Levada (1930–2006). The center traces back its history t ...

showed that 19% of polled Russians wanted eastern Ukraine to become part of Russia. In March 2021, 25% of polled Russians supported the annexation of the

Donbas The Donbas (, ; ) or Donbass ( ) is a historical, cultural, and economic region in eastern Ukraine. The majority of the Donbas is occupied by Russia as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War. The word ''Donbas'' is a portmanteau formed fr ...

separatist republics to Russia. In the context of the invasion of Ukraine, Russian officials spoke about joining even before the deployment of troops: on 21 February, during a meeting of the

Security Council of Russia The Security Council of the Russian Federation ( SCRF or Sovbez; ) is a constitutional consultative body of the Russian president that supports the president's decision-making on national security affairs and matters of strategic interest. Comp ...

Sergey Naryshkin Sergey Yevgenyevich Naryshkin ( rus, Серге́й Евге́ньевич Нары́шкин, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej jɪˈvɡʲenʲjɪvʲɪtɕ nɐˈrɨʂkʲɪn; born 27 October 1954) is a Russian politician who has served as the Director of SVR, di ...

mixed up the topic of conversation and directly supported their entry into the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. The reservation gave rise to many rumors about the reality of this plan. Later, the heads of the DPR and the LPR

Denis Pushilin Denis Vladimirovich Pushilin (born 9 May 1981) is a Russian politician who has served as the Head of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) since 2018. He has held the position in an acting capacity ever since the Russian annexation of the DPR in ...

and

Leonid Pasechnik Leonid Ivanovich Pasechnik (; ; born 15 March 1970) is a Russian politician who has served as head of the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) since 2017. He holds the position in acting capacity ever since the Russian annexation of Donetsk, Kherson ...

announced plans to hold referendums, but with the proviso that voting would be held after the end of the war. On 9 June, on the 350th anniversary of the birth of

Peter the Great Peter I (, ; – ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...

, Russian president

described the land that had been conquered by Peter in the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

against Sweden as land being returned to Russia. He also compared the task facing Russia today to that of Peter's. Ukraine September 2022

In the

, rumours about the creation of the "Kherson People's Republic" or annexation appeared immediately after the occupation in March. Kherson residents responded with rallies under the slogan " Kherson Is Ukraine", which were repressed, with protestors being kidnapped. Local journalist Oleg Baturin, a victim of such a kidnapping, spoke about the use of torture and humiliation against him. The occupying authorities of the

Kharkiv Oblast Kharkiv Oblast (, ), also referred to as Kharkivshchyna (), is an oblast (province) in eastern Ukraine. Kharkiv borders Luhansk Oblast to the east, Donetsk Oblast to the southeast, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast to the southwest, Poltava Oblast to the w ...

ruled out a formal vote until Russia occupied the entire region. The Russian military-appointed authorities of the

in August signed a decree on preparations for the referendum. However, the decision to hold referendums is not under the jurisdiction of local authorities, but under the administration of the president of Russia.

President of Ukraine The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after the start of the Russo-Ukraini ...

emphasized that holding referendums in the occupied territories would eliminate the possibility for

negotiations Negotiation is a dialogue between two or more parties to resolve points of difference, gain an advantage for an individual or Collective bargaining, collective, or craft outcomes to satisfy various interests. The parties aspire to agree on m ...

for Russia. Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine

Iryna Vereshchuk Iryna Andriivna Vereshchuk (, ; born 30 November 1979) is a Ukrainian social activist, politician, and former People's Deputy of Ukraine of the 9th Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, 9th convocation. On 4 November 2021, Vereshchuk was appointed Deputy P ...

added that the participation of Ukrainian citizens in these elections would be regarded as

collaborationism Wartime collaboration is cooperation with the enemy against one's country of citizenship in wartime. As historian Gerhard Hirschfeld says, it "is as old as war and the occupation of foreign territory". The term ''collaborator'' dates to the 19th c ...

, which is punishable by imprisonment for up to 12 years with confiscation of property. According to Ukrainian intelligence, before the Ukrainian counteroffensive, Russia planned to hold a referendum in

in November, with a planned 75% vote in favour. In parallel, on 21 September,

announced mobilization in Russia, which indicated the desire of the Russian leadership to further escalate the war with Ukraine.

Organization

The preparation of referendums and the formation of a new image of Russia after the annexation of Ukrainian territories were entrusted to the first deputy head of the presidential administration,

Sergey Kiriyenko Sergey Vladilenovich Kiriyenko (''né'' ''Izraitel''; ; born 26 July 1962) is a Russian politician who has served as First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of Russia since 5 October 2016. He previously served as the 30th ...

. Under his leadership, an image was formulated for an external audience – Russia as a "continent of freedom" for supporters of right-wing ideologies from all over the world. As ''Meduza'' reported, the organization of the referendums was handled by the Russian

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative authority of China, headed by the Premier * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of S ...

's Administration for Ensuring Affairs under the leadership of Alexander Kharichev, a close associate of Kiriyenko. The voting was directly supervised by Kharichev's deputy Boris Rappoport, who is considered a crisis manager and specializes in problematic election campaigns, and since 2014, together with

Vladislav Surkov Vladislav Yuryevich Surkov (; born 21 September 1964) is a Russian politician and businessman. He was First Deputy Chief of the Russian Presidential Administration from 1999 to 2011, during which time he was often viewed as the main ideologis ...

, he has been involved in the affairs of the DPR and the LPR. The chief technologist and coordinator of the referendums was the vice-governor of

Sevastopol Sevastopol ( ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea and a major port on the Black Sea. Due to its strategic location and the navigability of the city's harbours, Sevastopol has been an important port and naval base th ...

, Sergei Tolmachev. Rappoport also selected employees and political technologists with experience in working with the opposition for the role of "political instructors" in the occupation administrations. As ''

Meduza ''Meduza'' (Russian: Медуза, named after the Greek goddess Medusa) is a Russian- and English-language independent news website, headquartered in Riga, Latvia. It was founded in 2014 by a group of former employees of the then-independent ...

s sources noted, despite salaries of up to 1–2 million rubles a month, few people were ready to go to the occupied territories. and key positions in the governments of the DPR and the LPR were appointed in preparation for the referendums by an official of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vitaliy Khotsenko, and a former vice-governor of the

Kurgan Oblast Kurgan Oblast () is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Kurgan. According to the 2021 Census, the population was 776,661, down from 910,807 recorded in the 2010 Census. History Formed by De ...

, Vladislav Kuznetsov. According to the interlocutor of the publication, the Russian authorities planned to soon remove

and

and replace them with completely controlled functionaries. According to ''Meduza'', the Russian authorities planned to hold referendums under the slogan " Together with Russia" (it appeared in the campaign in the

, and a forum of the same name was held in

Kherson Kherson (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian and , , ) is a port city in southern Ukraine that serves as the administrative centre of Kherson Oblast. Located by the Black Sea and on the Dnieper, Dnieper River, Kherson is the home to a major ship-bui ...

). The alternative slogan "

New Russia Novorossiya rus, Новороссия, Novorossiya, p=nəvɐˈrosʲːɪjə, a=Ru-Новороссия.ogg; , ; ; ; "New Russia". is a historical name, used during the era of the Russian Empire for an administrative area that would later becom ...

", which implied a "new quality" and a stronger Russia, did not please

and members of the Security Council. The IMA-Consulting group, associated with the first deputy head of the presidential administration,

Alexey Gromov Alexey Alexeyevich Gromov (; born 31 May 1960) is a Russian politician. He is First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of Russia. He has the federal state civilian service rank of 1st class Active State Councillor of the Rus ...

, was responsible for the campaign preparations for the referendums. Russian official Alexander Malkevich of the

Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation The Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation (), sometimes shortened to Civic Chamber (), is a consultative civil society institution with 168 members created in 2005 in Russia to analyze draft legislation and monitor the activities of the parliame ...

claimed that over 100 "international observers" from 40 countries were present at the referendums, after Ukrainian intelligence sources had warned that Russian special services had been recruiting foreigners, who would face criminal liability. No observers from international organizations such as the

OSCE The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization comprising member states in Europe, North America, and Asia. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, the pr ...

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...

were present.

Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts

The Russian-led militants of the

Donetsk People's Republic The Donetsk People's Republic (DPR; , ) is Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, occupied territory in Ukraine that the Russian Federation has claimed to annex and declared as a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia, comprising parts o ...

and the

Luhansk People's Republic The Luhansk People's Republic (LPR; , ) is a disputed territory administered as a republic of Russia in the occupied parts of eastern Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast, with its capital in Luhansk. The LPR was proclaimed by Russian-backed paramilitar ...

declared independence from Ukraine in 2014. Pro-Russian separatists held discredited

independence referendums An independence referendum is a type of referendum in which the residents of a territory decide whether the territory should become an independent sovereign state. An independence referendum that results in a vote for independence does not alw ...

in May 2014. After invading Ukraine in February 2022, Russia started preparations to hold referendums in occupied parts of

and

. On 19 September, the public chambers of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics appealed to their heads of state with a request to "immediately" hold a referendum on joining Russia. Soon, the

State Duma The State Duma is the lower house of the Federal Assembly (Russia), Federal Assembly of Russia, with the upper house being the Federation Council (Russia), Federation Council. It was established by the Constitution of Russia, Constitution of t ...

announced that a referendum on the accession of the LPR to Russia would be held in the autumn "in the near future." On 20 September, the People's Council of the

scheduled a referendum on the republic's entry into Russia as a

federal subject The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation () or simply as the subjects of the federation (), are the administrative division, constituent entities of Russia, its top-level political division ...

for 23–27 September. Soon after, the People's Council of the

announced that the referendum on the entry of the DPR into the Russian Federation would be held on the same date.

Questions

In the Donetsk People's Republic, the referendum question was phrased as ''Вы за вхождение Донецкой Народной Республики в состав Российской Федерации на правах субъекта Российской Федерации?'' ("Do you approve of the Donetsk People's Republic being incorporated into the Russian Federation with subject rights of the Russian Federation?"). The same wording, with only the name of the republic changed, was used on the ballots issued across the Luhansk People's Republic: ''Вы за вхождение Луганской Народной Республики в состав Российской Федерации на правах субъекта Российской Федерации?'' ("Do you approve of the Luhansk People's Republic being incorporated into the Russian Federation with subject rights of the Russian Federation?"). Since neither entity recognizes the status of Ukrainian as an administrative language of any kind, the text on the ballots was printed exclusively in Russian.

Results

According to the results released by the Russian Central Election Commission through its sections in the DPR and the LPR, 99.23% (2,116,800 voters) supported the annexation in

and 98.42% (1,636,302 voters) in

. The turnouts were 97.51% (2,131,207 voters) and 94.15% (1,662,607 voters), respectively. After these figures were released,

, the

Head of the Luhansk People's Republic The Luhansk People's Republic (LPR; , ) is a disputed territory administered as a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, occupied parts of eastern Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast, with its capital in L ...

, said that he plans on visiting Moscow to request the admission of Luhansk into the Russian Federation.

Kherson Oblast

The Russian military occupation of parts of

began on 3 March 2022, when its capital city was captured by the Russian military after the six-day

Battle of Kherson The battle of Kherson took place on 1 March 2022 on the southern front of the Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russ ...

. On 12 March, Ukrainian officials claimed that Russia was planning to stage a referendum in Kherson to establish the Kherson People's Republic, similar to the

and the

. Serhii Khlan, deputy leader of the Kherson Oblast Council, claimed that the Russian military had called all the members of the council and asked them to cooperate.

Lyudmyla Denisova Liudmyla Leontiivna Denisova (born 6 July 1960) is a Ukrainian politician. After twice serving as Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine, Denisova worked as Ombudsman for Human Rights in Ukraine from March 2018 to May 2022. Ukrayinska Pravd ...

, Ombudsman of Ukraine, stated that the referendum would be illegal because "under Ukrainian law any issues over territory can only be resolved by a nationwide referendum". Later that day, the Kherson Oblast Council passed a resolution stating that the proposed referendum would be illegal. On 11 May 2022, Kirill Stremousov, a deputy head of the

Kherson military–civilian administration The ongoing military occupation of Ukraine's Kherson Oblast () by Russian forces began on 24February 2022, when Russian forces invaded Ukraine from Crimea. It was administrated under a Russian-controlled military-civilian administration until ...

, announced his readiness to send President

with a request for Kherson Oblast to join the Russian Federation, noting that there would be no creation of the "Kherson People's Republic" or referendums regarding this matter. Commenting on these statements, Putin's press secretary

Dmitry Peskov Dmitry Sergeyevich Peskov (, ; born 17 October 1967) is a Russian diplomat serving as the Kremlin Press Secretary, spokesman for President of Russia, Russian president Vladimir Putin since 2012.Telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas pi ...

channel, said that the Kherson region began to prepare for a referendum on joining Russia. The referendum was going to be prepared by the pro-Putin

United Russia The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...

party, but members fled the region towards the end of July after Ukrainian forces shelled the

Antonivka Road Bridge The Antonivka Road Bridge (), usually referred to as the Antonivskyi Bridge ( ), is a ruined box girder bridge on the Dnieper river in Kherson, Kherson Oblast, southern Ukraine. It became a flashpoint during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and ...

. Authorities in the occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast region have not ruled out the possibility of a joint referendum. On 5 September, Stremousov announced that the referendum in Kherson Oblast had been postponed due to "security reasons." On 7 September,

Andrey Turchak Andrey Anatolyevich Turchak (; born 20 December 1975) is a Russian politician who currently serves as Head of the Altai Republic since 3 October 2024. He has also served as Secretary of the General Council of United Russia from 12 October 2017 t ...

, secretary-general of the United Russia party, stated that it "would be right and symbolic" to hold the referendums in Russian-occupied Ukraine on 4 November, Russia's Unity Day; Stremousov stated that preparations would be made for this date, "even if we are ready for this referendum to take place right now". On 20 September, Head of the Kherson Oblast Military–Civilian Administration

Volodymyr Saldo Vladimir Vasilyevich Saldo (, ; born 12 June 1956) is a Ukrainian and Russian politician serving as the acting collaborationist governor of the annexed Kherson Oblast since 4 October 2022. A member of the ruling United Russia, he previously ...

announced that the referendum on the entry of the

into Russia would be held from 23 to 27 September.

Question

The text printed on the ballots is bilingual, with Ukrainian alongside Russian:

Result

According to the figures released by the

regional section of the Russian Central Election Commission, 87.05% (497,051) supported the annexation to the Russian Federation, with 12.05% (68,832) against and 0.9% of ballots invalid, on a turnout of 76.86%.

TASS The Russian News Agency TASS, or simply TASS, is a Russian state-owned news agency founded in 1904. It is the largest Russian news agency and one of the largest news agencies worldwide. TASS is registered as a Federal State Unitary Enterpri ...

reported that 571,001 voters took part.

Zaporizhzhia Oblast

The Russian military occupation of parts of

began on 27 February 2022, when the port city of

Berdiansk Berdiansk or Berdyansk (, ; , ) is a port city in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, south-eastern Ukraine. It is on the northern coast of the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Berdiansk Raion. The c ...

was captured by the Russian military after a three-day battle. In July 2022, Yevhen Balytskyi, the Russian-installed Mayor of

Melitopol Melitopol is a city and municipality in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, southeastern Ukraine. It is situated on the Molochna River, which flows through the eastern edge of the city into the Molochnyi Lyman estuary. Melitopol is the second-largest city ...

and the head of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast Military–Civilian Administration, signed an order for the Central Election Commission of Zaporizhzhia to begin investigating the possibility of a referendum for the region to join the Russian Federation. The date of the referendum on the entry of the Zaporizhzhia region into Russia will be determined "as soon as its security and freedom of expression are guaranteed," Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Russian-installed main council of the regional administration, told the media. On 11 August 2022, authorities in the occupied region expressed their desire to hold the referendum on 11 September 2022. On 26 August 2022, the Electoral Commission for the preparation of a referendum in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast began work. On 22 September, Balytskyi announced that the referendum on the entry of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast into Russia will be held from 23 to 27 September. This would include all of Zaporizhzhia, including territories not controlled by the Russian military administration. Vladimir Rogov, a collaborator with the Russian administration, demanded Ukrainian troops leave the region "immediately," and that after the referendum "they will be considered occupiers." At the time of the referendum Russia controlled 73% of the region's territory but not its capital, the town of

Zaporizhzhia Zaporizhzhia, formerly known as Aleksandrovsk or Oleksandrivsk until 1921, is a city in southeast Ukraine, situated on the banks of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. It is the Capital city, administrative centre of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Zaporizhzhia ...

. On the first day of the "referendum", Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Main Council of MCA, said that the Russian-controlled part of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast will be ''de jure'' independent for "some time" following the referendum.

Question

The text printed on the ballots is bilingual, with Ukrainian alongside Russian:

Result

On 27 September, Russian officials of the

Central Election Commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...

in Zaporizhzhia claimed that the referendum passed, with 93.11% (of 541,093 voters) favoured joining the Russian Federation. The declared turnout was 85.4%. According to the data provided by the commission, the support for the annexation was 90.01% in the

Melitopol Raion Melitopol Raion () is one of the five raions (districts) of Zaporizhzhia Oblast in southern Ukraine. The administrative center of the region is Melitopol. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number ...

, while in its administrative center, Melitopol, it was 96.78%.

Other planned locations

Mykolaiv Oblast

On 8 August 2022, Ekaterina Gubareva, deputy head of the Kherson Civilian-Military Administration announced the annexation of occupied territories of

Mykolaiv Oblast Mykolaiv Oblast (, ), also referred to as Mykolaivshchyna (, ), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) of Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Mykolaiv. At the most recent estimate, the population ...

. She also claimed that in some occupied towns, Russian mobile communications have begun to work. According to her, such a decision was made in order to provide the population with social payments in the "liberated" territories, as well as to establish mobile communications and television broadcasting. On 13 August 2022, the head of the military-civilian administration of the Mykolaiv Oblast, Yuriy Barbashov claimed that a referendum would take place in

Snihurivka Snihurivka ( ) is a small city in Bashtanka Raion, Mykolaiv Oblast, Ukraine. It hosts the administration of . Population: It was occupied by Russia from 19 March 2022 until 10 November 2022. History Snihurivka was a settlement in Kherson ...

to join Russia. The referendum would be aligned with the one in Kherson Oblast. Moreover, Ekaterina Gubareva, deputy head of the military-civilian administration of Kherson, claimed that occupied parts of Mykolaiv Oblast would be annexed into Kherson Oblast. It was said that the referendum would take place in September. Snihurivka people protested against the sham referendum.

Kharkiv Oblast

On 8 July 2022, Vitaly Ganchev, the Russian-appointed head of the military-civilian administration of

, said that Kharkiv is an 'inalienable' part of Russian territory and intends for Kharkiv to be annexed by the

. But on 11 August, Ganchev told the

Russia-24 Russia-24 () is a state-owned Russian-language news channel from Russia. It covers major national and international events and focuses on domestic issues. It is owned by VGTRK. History The broadcast began July 1, 2006 in Russia, February 7, 20 ...

TV channel that the authorities of the areas of Kharkiv Oblast controlled by Russian troops are not yet ready to discuss a referendum on joining Russia, because "only 20 percent and no more" of the region is under Russian control. Residents lacking food were denied aid unless they submitted information for the voting register. The

Security Service of Ukraine The Security Service of Ukraine ( ; abbreviated as SBU [] or SSU) is the main Internal security, internal security agency of the Government of Ukraine, Ukrainian government. Its main duties include counter-intelligence activity and combati ...

(SBU) assessed that a similar referendum would have occurred in Kharkiv Oblast if not for the Ukrainian counteroffensive in September that forced Russia to retreat from most of the territory it occupied.

Opinion polls

There are no public independent statistics on attitudes towards referendums in the occupied territories. A survey taken before the

by the

Kyiv International Institute of Sociology Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS; , КМІС) is a Ukrainian organization conducting sociological research in the fields of social and socioeconomic research, marketing research, political research, health studies, and research con ...

(KIIS) suggested that support for joining the

ranges from 1% in

to 13.2% in

Luhansk Oblast Luhansk Oblast (; ), also referred to as Luhanshchyna (), is the easternmost Administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) of Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Luhansk. The oblast was established in 1938 and bore the n ...

. According to closed polls commissioned by the Russian authorities in July 2022, about 30% of those surveyed supported joining Russia, about 30% supported staying in Ukraine, and the rest declined to answer. In the poll conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology between 13 and 18 May 2022, 77% of Ukrainians living in Russian-occupied territory said they did not support any territorial concessions to Russia, even if it would prolong the war. A KIIS poll conducted in September 2022 found that 87% of Ukrainians opposed any territorial concessions to Russia, up from 82% in May 2022. Only 24% of ethnic

Russians in Ukraine Russians constitute the country's largest ethnic minority in Ukraine. This community forms the largest single Russian community outside of Russia in the world. In the 2001 Ukrainian census, 8,334,100 identified themselves as ethnic Russians (17. ...

supported territorial concessions to Russia. Many Ukrainians have fled Russian-occupied territories to avoid referendums and living in territory annexed by Russia. According to Ukrainian journalist Serhiy Harmash, "In Kherson and the region of Zaporizhzhia, many hate Russia — but in Donetsk and Luhansk, people have had their heads filled with

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded l ...

for the past eight years."

Opinions on the goals of holding referendums

Military analysts link the decision to hold referendums with the weakness of the Russian Federation on the battlefield. Their announcement followed the rapid advance of the Ukrainian army in the weeks prior, defeating Russian troops in the

Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

direction and on the offensive in the east and south. Analysts estimate Russia has lost tens of thousands of troops, has announced a

mobilisation Mobilization (alternatively spelled as mobilisation) is the act of assembling and readying military troops and supplies for war. The word ''mobilization'' was first used in a military context in the 1850s to describe the preparation of the ...

to recruit new soldiers, and is facing mounting backlash over its long-term invasion and the general mobilisation order. Sources such as ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' have called the referendums pre-determined and assumed that Russia will dictate that the results will favour annexation.

Conduct

During the first four days, only specific people were able to vote, and it was possible to vote in adjoining territories. On the last day, 27 September, polling stations would open for residents. The occupation authorities explained this decision by concern for the safety of residents, many of whom had to vote in front-line settlements. Voters were coerced into voting with armed soldiers going door to door to collect votes. Ballots were filled out by the soldiers rather than the voters themselves (voters were required to give their votes verbally to a soldier, who wrote on a sheet of paper). Individuals were not allowed to vote, as there was only one vote allowed per household. Voters did not need any form of identification in order to cast a vote. The events ended on 27 September, although, according to the UK ambassador to Ukraine, the final results had likely already been decided beforehand. According to a contributor at the ''

Washington Law Review The ''Washington Law Review'' is the flagship law review at the University of Washington School of Law. The first ''Washington Law Review'' was established in 1919 and published only a single volume, while the current publication history starts i ...

'', Russia will try to use the illegal referendums to give official justification for the annexation of additional Ukrainian territory and for possible negotiations with Ukraine about its NATO status, which is currently unclear due to conflicting statements in past Ukrainian law.

First day

The election commissions began work at 8:00 a.m. Moscow time on 23 September. Polling stations for "voting" opened in Russia at the same time. On the first day of "voting", rallies were held in Russian cities "in support of referendums on joining Russia" in the occupied Ukrainian regions. In a number of cases, students were offered money and additional points for participating in the rally.

Second day

Anonymous local residents of the cities complained that along with the "election commissions" walking around the apartments, there were military men with automatic rifles, and that "there is no secret ballot." Head of the Luhansk Regional Military–Civil Administration

Serhii Haidai Serhiy Volodymyrovych Haidai (; born 6 November 1975) is a Ukrainian entrepreneur and politician. He was the head of the Luhansk Regional Military–Civil Administration from 25 October 2019 to 15 March 2023. Since March 15, 2024, Haidai is ...

said that "commissioners" threatened to break down doors, collected names of those who voted "no", and used the opportunity to identify men eligible for conscription. Residents of

told reporters that there were many tents with Russian propaganda in the centre of the city, and there were also volunteers with ballot boxes.

Third day

According to data published by the organizers, on the third day of the referendum, the turnout exceeded 50% in the DPR, LPR and Zaporizhzhia Oblast, according to Russian media – which makes the referendums "valid".

Fourth day

According to the organizers and Russian media, the referendum was recognized as "valid" in the Kherson Oblast: according to their data, more than 50% of voters were able to vote there.

Fifth day

Unlike previous days, on the fifth day of polling, the referendum was held at polling stations.

Reactions

United Nations General Assembly resolution ES-11 L

Ukraine

The government considers the referendum illegitimate, and has accused Russia of coercing residents to vote, as well as busing in sympathetic voters from Crimea.

Russia

Former Russian president and Deputy Chairman of the

Russian Security Council The Security Council of the Russian Federation ( SCRF or Sovbez; ) is a constitutional consultative body of the Russian president that supports the president's decision-making on national security affairs and matters of strategic interest. Comp ...

Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...

posted on Telegram that "The referendums are over, the results are clear. Welcome home, to Russia!". A number of Russian experts, including Mikhail Minakov and Oleg Ignatov, pointed out that the referendums were illegal even per Russian law and the fact that they were conducted without any form of control over significant parts of the territories was described as a unique precedent that undermined even slightest illusions of their legality. In March 2024, Vladimir Putin praised the "return" of the annexed territories to Russia, saying, "As for

Novorossiya Novorossiya rus, Новороссия, Novorossiya, p=nəvɐˈrosʲːɪjə, a=Ru-Новороссия.ogg; , ; ; ; "New Russia". is a historical name, used during the era of the Russian Empire for an administrative area that would later becom ...

, as for the Donbas, the people living there ... declared their desire to return to their native family. Their way back to their homeland turned out to be harder, more tragic, but nevertheless, we did it."

International organisations

*: UN Secretary-General

António Guterres António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (born 30 April 1949) is a Portuguese politician and diplomat who is serving as the ninth and current secretary-general of the United Nations since 2017. A member of the Socialist Party (Portugal), ...

called the referendums a "violation of the

UN Charter The Charter of the United Nations is the foundational treaty of the United Nations (UN). It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the United Nations System, UN system, including its United Nations System#Six ...

and international law". Some days later he said, "The Charter is clear. Any annexation of a State's territory by another State resulting from the threat or use of force is a violation of the Principles of the UN Charter and international law. ... e so-called 'referenda'" cannot be called a genuine expression of the popular will. * The

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization comprising member states in Europe, North America, and Asia. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, the p ...

(OSCE): Heads of OSCE condemned the plans to hold referendums on Ukraine's occupied territories, calling it illegal under both international and Ukrainian law. *

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

Secretary General of NATO The secretary general of NATO is the chief civil servant of the NATO, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an intergovernmental military alliance with 32 member states. The officeholder is an international diplomat responsible for coordinat ...

Jens Stoltenberg Jens Stoltenberg (; born 16 March 1959) is a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party. Since 2025, he has been the Minister of Finance in the Støre Cabinet. He has previously been the prime minister of Norway and secretary general of NATO. ...

wrote on Twitter that "Sham referendums have no legitimacy and do not change the nature of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. This is a further escalation in Putin's war". * EU:

High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Un ...

Josep Borrell Josep Borrell Fontelles (; born 24 April 1947) is a Spanish politician who served as High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission from 2019 to 2024. A member of the Spani ...

stated that "The European Union strongly condemns these planned illegal 'referenda' which go against the legal and democratically elected Ukrainian authorities".

Countries

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Minister for Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral re ...

Penny Wong Penelope Ying-Yen Wong (born 5 November 1968) is an Australian politician who is serving as the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the Government in the Senate in the Albanese government since 2022. A member of the Australian Labor Pa ...

stated "The areas of Ukraine currently occupied by Russian forces are the sovereign territory of Ukraine. No sham referendum will change this." *

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

: Austrian Foreign Ministry stated "the sham referenda lack any legitimacy under international law and will not be recognized". *

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

: Permanent representative to the United Nations, Ronaldo Costa Filho, stated that "it is unreasonable to assume that populations in areas in conflict can freely express their will." *

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

stated that Moscow's nuclear rhetoric and so-called referenda "amplify the necessity of consistent support" for Ukraine's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. *

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

: Prime Minister

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

said on Twitter that Canada and the G7 "will never recognize the outcome". *

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

State Councilor A State Councillor of the People's Republic of China () serves as a senior vice leader within the State Council and shares responsibilities with the Vice Premiers in assisting the Premier in the administration and coordination of governmental a ...

and Foreign Minister

Wang Yi Wang Yi ( zh, s=王毅, p=Wáng Yì; born 19 October 1953) is a Chinese diplomat and politician who has been serving as Director of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Committee Foreign Affairs Commission Office since January 2023, and ...

said that sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected. *

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

: **President

Miloš Zeman Miloš Zeman (; born 28 September 1944) is a Czech politician who served as the third president of the Czech Republic from 2013 to 2023. He also previously served as the prime minister of the Czech Republic from 1998 to 2002. As leader of the Cze ...

signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. **

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Petr Fiala Petr Fiala (; born 1 September 1964) is a Czech politician and political scientist who has been the prime minister of the Czech Republic since December 2021 and leader of the Civic Democratic Party (Czech Republic), Civic Democratic Party (ODS) ...

wrote on Twitter that "the Czech Republic does not recognise the referendums on the annexation of four Ukrainian regions to Russia" and that "Russia's annexation of these territories is unacceptable and illegitimate and the Czech Republic continues to regard these territories as Ukrainian." *

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Mette Frederiksen Mette Frederiksen (; born 19 November 1977) is a Danish politician who has been the Prime Minister of Denmark, prime minister of Denmark since June 2019, and Social Democrats (Denmark)#Leaders of the Social Democrats, leader of the Social Democr ...

condemned the referendums and called them "illegally orchestrated by Russia on Ukrainian soil" and added "they have nothing to do with the will of the people". *

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

Kaja Kallas Kaja Kallas (; born 18 June 1977) is an Estonian politician and diplomat. She was the first female prime minister of Estonia, a role she held from 2021 until 2024, when she resigned in advance of her appointment as High Representative of the ...

tweeted "We will never recognize this" and "Ukraine has every right to take back its territory." President

Alar Karis Alar Karis (; born 26 March 1958) is an Estonian molecular geneticist, developmental biologist, civil servant and politician who, since 11 October 2021, has served as the sixth president of Estonia. Prior to presidency Karis was born in Tar ...

signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. *

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Sauli Niinistö Sauli Väinämö Niinistö (, born 24 August 1948) is a Finnish politician who served as the 12th president of Finland from 2012 to 2024. A lawyer by education, Niinistö was Chairman of the National Coalition Party (NCP) from 1994 to 2001, Mini ...

and

Sanna Marin Sanna Mirella Marin (; born 16 November 1985) is a Finnish former politician who served as prime minister of Finland from 2019 to 2023 and as the leader of the Social Democratic Party of Finland (SDP) from 2020 to 2023. She was a Member of Pa ...

condemned Russia's sham referendums and stated that Finland will not recognise any attempt to annex parts of Ukraine. *

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Emmanuel Macron Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France and Co-Prince of Andorra since 2017. He was Ministry of Economy and Finance (France), Minister of Economics, Industr ...

called the referendums a "farce" and stated that France would not recognise the results. *: The

condemned the referendums, reaffirming support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. *

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

Olaf Scholz Olaf Scholz (; born 14 June 1958) is a German politician who served as the Chancellor of Germany from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party (SPD), he previously served as Vice-Chancellor of Ge ...

strongly criticised the idea of Russia holding referendums in parts of Ukraine. He said it is "quite clear these sham referendums cannot be accepted", citing their illegitimacy according to "international law and by the understandings that the world community has found". *

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

: Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York Harold Adlai Agyeman stated that the international community "cannot continue to live in parallel universes" and urged Russia to respect the sovereignty of Ukraine. *

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

: Minister of the Prime Minister's Office Gergely Gulyás announced that Hungary does not recognize the annexation of Ukrainian territory by Russia. *

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

: The Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs

Arindam Bagchi Arindam Bagchi is an Indian diplomat of Indian Foreign Service. He was appointed the Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs in March 2021 and served there till 3 January 2024. On 16 October 2023, he was appointed India's Per ...

expressed support for "sovereignty and territorial integrity" of Ukraine. *

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

Joko Widodo Joko Widodo (; born 21 June 1961), often known mononymously as Jokowi, is an Indonesian politician, engineer, and businessman who served as the seventh president of Indonesia from 2014 to 2024. Previously a member of the Indonesian Democratic ...

remarked that the referendum further complicates peace negotiations to resolve the conflict. *

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Spokesperson A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others. Duties and function In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...

of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nasser Kanaani emphasized the necessity of observing territorial integrity under international law. *

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

: Irish Foreign Minister

Simon Coveney Simon Coveney (born 16 June 1972) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment from 2022 to 2024. He served as Leader of Fine Gael#Deputy leaders, deputy leader of Fine Gael from 2017 to 202 ...

stated that Ireland rejects the "sham referendums" and that "Ireland will never recognise Russian claims to illegally-annexed parts of Ukraine, and will remain steadfast in its support for the people of Ukraine." *

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

: The

Israeli Foreign Ministry The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs (; ) is one of the most important ministries in the Israeli government. The ministry's role is to implement Israel's foreign policy, and promote economic, cultural, and scientific relations with other c ...

announced that Israel will not recognize the results of the referendum held in four occupied districts in eastern Ukraine. In a published message it is written that "Israel recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and will not recognize the results of the referendums in the eastern regions of Ukraine". *

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

: In a phone call with President Zelenskiy, Japanese Prime Minister

Fumio Kishida Fumio Kishida (born 29 July 1957) is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP) from 2021 to 2024. He has been a member of the House of Representatives in the National Diet ...

strongly condemned Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territory, saying that "the process Russia called a referendum and its annexation of parts of Ukraine should never be accepted." *

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan spokesperson Aibek Smadiyarov stated that Kazakhstan will not recognise the referendums. He also added that "Kazakhstan proceeds from the principles of territorial integrity of states, their sovereign equivalence and peaceful coexistence". *: President

Egils Levits Egils Levits (born 30 June 1955) is a Latvian politician, lawyer, political scientist and jurist who served as the tenth president of Latvia from 2019 to 2023. He was a List of members of the European Court of Justice, member of the European Cour ...

signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. *: President

Gitanas Nausėda Gitanas Nausėda (; ; born 19 May 1964) is a Lithuanian politician, economist, and banker who is serving as the ninth and incumbent president of Lithuania since 2019. Born in Klaipėda, Nausėda graduated from Vilnius University with an economic ...

signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. Minister of National Defence and historian

Arvydas Anušauskas Arvydas Anušauskas (born 29 September 1963) is a Lithuanian politician and historian. He focuses on the history of the interwar Lithuanian secret services, KGB actions in Lithuania, and Soviet repressions in Lithuania. As a member of the Homela ...

compared the annexation referendums to the rigged 1940 parliamentary elections in

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

and

that led to the annexation of Soviet-occupied Baltic states in 1940. *

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

: Permanent Representative to the UN

Juan Ramón de la Fuente Juan Ramón de la Fuente Ramírez (born 5 September 1951 in Mexico City) is a Mexican psychiatrist, academician and politician who has served as the secretary of foreign affairs since 2024 in the cabinet of Claudia Sheinbaum. He previously serve ...

, stated that any attempt to change borders of Ukraine by using threats and other means violates international law. *

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

Maia Sandu Maia Sandu (; born 24 May 1972) is a Moldovan politician who is serving as the sixth president of Moldova since 2020. She is the founder and former leader of the Party of Action and Solidarity and was Prime Minister of Moldova, prime minister o ...

stated that "the Republic of Moldova respects the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine and considers "false" the so-called referendums held by the Russian Federation in several Ukrainian regions", adding that Moldova "does not recognize any actions taken after the fake referendums" and that the 2022 invasion had "dramatically affected"

Moldova–Russia relations Moldova–Russia relations are the bilateral relations between the Republic of Moldova and the Russian Federation, two Post-Soviet states. Russian support for the self-proclaimed Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (Transnistria) and a substantial Ru ...

. *: President

Milo Đukanović Milo Đukanović (, ; born 15 February 1962) is a Montenegrin politician who served as the President of Montenegro from 2018 to 2023, previously serving in the role from 1998 to 2002. He also served as the Prime Minister of Montenegro (1991–19 ...

signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. *

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Mark Rutte Mark Rutte (; born 14 February 1967) is a Dutch politician who has served as the 14th Secretary General of NATO, secretary general of NATO since October 2024. He previously served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands, prime minister of the Neth ...

, said "Let it be clear that this annexation, like that of

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

, will never be accepted by The Netherlands. The world will not accept that

Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

changes borders with the stroke of a pen." *

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

: Foreign Minister

Nanaia Mahuta Nanaia Cybele Mahuta (born 21 August 1970) is a New Zealand former politician who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs (New Zealand), Minister of Foreign Affairs of New Zealand from 2020 to 2023. A member of the New Zealand Labour Party, Ma ...

said "Aotearoa New Zealand does not recognise the results of the sham referenda in Russia-occupied regions of Ukraine" *: Director general of the Department of International Organizations of the Foreign Ministry Jo Chol Su stated that "We respect the will of the residents who aspired toward the integration into Russia and support the Russian government's stand of making the above-said regions components of Russia." *: President

Stevo Pendarovski Stevo Pendarovski (, ; born 3 April 1963) is a Macedonian politician who served as the President of North Macedonia from 2019 to 2024. Early life and education Stevo Pendarovski was born on 3 April 1963 in Skopje. His family originates from Gal ...

signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. *

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

: President

Andrzej Duda Andrzej Sebastian Duda (born 16 May 1972) is a Polish lawyer and politician who has served as the sixth president of Poland since 2015. Before becoming president, he served as a Member of the Sejm from 2011 to 2014 and before becoming Member of ...

stated that the referendums are worth nothing and Poland will not recognise the results, and signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories *

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

Foreign Minister of Romania The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs () is the ministry responsible for external affairs of the Government of Romania, Romanian Government. The current foreign minister is Emil Hurezeanu. List of ministers of foreign affairs (1862–1989) ...

Bogdan Aurescu Bogdan Lucian Aurescu (born 9 September 1973) is a Romanian judge of the International Court of Justice. Prior to his swearing-in on 6 February 2024, Aurescu was a diplomat, law professor and politician, who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs ...

called the referendums "completely unacceptable" and reiterated Romania's support for the "independence, sovereignty & territorial integrity of Ukraine, within its internationally recognised borders". President

Klaus Iohannis Klaus Werner Iohannis (; ; born 13 June 1959) is a Romanian politician, physicist, and former teacher who served as the fifth president of Romania from 2014 until his resignation in 2025. Prior to entering Politics of Romania, national politics, ...

signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. *

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

: Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia Nikola Selaković said that the country will not recognise the results of the referendums. *: Singapore's

stated that "The decision by the Russian Federation to formally annex the occupied Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson violates international law and the UN Charter, and that the sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected." *

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

: President

Zuzana Čaputová Zuzana Čaputová (; Strapáková; born 21 June 1973) is a Slovak politician, lawyer and environmental activist who served as the fifth president of Slovakia from 2019 to 2024. Čaputová is the first woman to hold the presidency, as well as the ...

, Speaker of the National Council

Boris Kollár Boris Kollár (born 14 August 1965) is a Slovak businessman and politician. He served as a Member of the National Council (Slovakia), National Council from 2016 to 2023 and a Speaker of the National Council from 2020 to 2023. He has 17 children. ...

and Prime Minister

Eduard Heger Eduard Heger (; born 3 May 1976) is a Slovak politician, who served as the Prime Minister of Slovakia from 1 April 2021 to 15 May 2023. He previously served as the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance in the Matovič Cabinet, cabinet of I ...

strongly condemned the "pseudo-referendums" in a joint statement, emphasizing that the Slovak Republic recognizes Ukraine as an independent and sovereign state whose territorial integrity within internationally recognised borders must not be questioned. She also signed a joint statement that rejects Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territories. *

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

: The

condemned the "illegal voting shams organised in Ukraine", stressing the government's "firm support of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders". *: The Swedish prime minister

Magdalena Andersson Eva Magdalena Andersson (born 23 January 1967) is a Swedish politician and economist who has been serving as Leader of the Opposition since October 2022 and Leader of the Swedish Social Democratic Party since 2021. She has served as a Member of ...

stated in a press conference that the referendums in Russian-occupied Ukraine is "nothing but a farce". *: The Federal Council stated that Russia, as the occupying power, is obliged under international law to comply with international humanitarian law, human rights and the existing Ukrainian legal system and that the occupying power does not gain sovereignty over the area. Switzerland will not recognize the result of the so-called referendum. The

Federal Department of Foreign Affairs The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA, , , , ), so named since 1979, is one of the seven Departments of the Swiss government federal administration of Switzerland, and corresponds in its range of tasks to the ministry of foreign affa ...

has summoned the Russian ambassador to convey Switzerland's position. *: The

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA; ) is a cabinet-level ministry of Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), and is responsible for the ROC's diplomacy and foreign relations. It is headquartered in the capital Taipei. The incumbent ...

condemned the annexation and reaffirms that it stands with like-minded countries in neither recognizing the outcomes of the sham referendums held by Russia nor accepting the actions taken by Russia to illegally annex Ukrainian territory. *: President

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...

has maintained a constructive relationship with both NATO and Russia, but decried the attempt with a public statement reading in part, "Such illegitimate '' faits accomplis'' will not be recognised by the international community. On the contrary, they will complicate efforts to revitalise the diplomatic process and deepen instability". *

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

: Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Mohamed Abushahab stated that referendums in Russian-occupied Ukraine will complicate Russia–Ukraine peace negotiations. * United Kingdom: Foreign Secretary

James Cleverly Sir James Spencer Cleverly (born 4 September 1969) is a British politician and Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Army Reserve Commissioned officer, officer who served as Home Secretary from November 2023 to July 2024 and as Foreign Secretary (Unit ...

said the UK had evidence that Russian officials had already set targets for "invented voter turnouts and approval rates for these sham referenda". * United States: President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

, speaking at the

UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its 79th session, its powers, ...

, denounced the "sham referenda" and stated that the United States will not recognize the results.

Human rights organizations

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

described the referendums as "a ruse for Russia to illegally annex occupied Ukrainian territory" and a "profound disregard for international law and the rights of people in the territories under its occupation". *

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

stated that the referendums "hold no legal value and don't provide a basis for annexation or transfer of sovereignty."

Other

As a result of the sham referendums and of the subsequent annexation, an

Internet meme An Internet meme, or meme (, Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through Social media, social media platforms. Internet memes manif ...

portraying a satirical annexation of

Kaliningrad Oblast Kaliningrad Oblast () is the westernmost federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of the Russian Federation. It is a Enclave and exclave, semi-exclave on the Baltic Sea within the Baltic region of Prussia (region), Prussia, surrounded by Pola ...

by the

as the " Královec Region" () emerged.

Possible consequences

The referendums have resulted in annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia Oblasts of Ukraine by Russia. On 22 September, Deputy Chairman of the

said that any weapons in Moscow's arsenal, including

strategic nuclear weapon A strategic nuclear weapon (SNW) is a nuclear weapon that is designed to be used on targets often in settled territory far from the battlefield as part of a strategic plan, such as military bases, military command centers, arms industries, tra ...

s, could be used to protect territories annexed to Russia from Ukraine. He also said that referendums organized by Russia-installed and separatist authorities would take place in large swathes of Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory and that there was "no turning back". Medvedev said that Donbas republics and other territories "will be accepted into Russia" and

will also be used to protect the annexed territories. Russian senator

Konstantin Kosachev Konstantin Iosifovich Kosachev (; born 17 September 1962) is a Russian politician and former diplomat. He is a senator at the Federation Council (Russian parliament's upper house) and chairs its Foreign Affairs Committee. He has been on the US s ...

warned that after the referendums, "protecting people in this region will not be our right, but our duty. An attack on people and territories will be an attack on Russia. With all the consequences." Russian Foreign Minister

Sergey Lavrov Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov (, ; born 21 March 1950) is a Russian diplomat who has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs (Russia), Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2004. He is the longest-serving Russian foreign minister since Andrei Gromyko d ...

did not rule out the use of nuclear weapons to defend annexed Ukrainian territories. Ivan Fedorov, the exiled mayor of occupied

, stated that the main reason for the pseudo-referendum in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast is to conscript local men into military service for Russia, just as was the case in the "people's republics" of the Donbas region during the

mobilization in Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics The general mobilization in the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic began on 19 February 2022, 5 days before the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Tens of thousands of local residents were forcibly mobilized ...

on 19 February 2022. Some estimates suggest that reconstruction of the war-torn annexed territories would cost Russia between $100 and $200 billion. The reconstruction of

Mariupol Mariupol is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius, Kalmius River. Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it was the tenth-largest city in the coun ...

alone will likely cost more than $14 billion.

Aftermath

On 29 September, the

Kremlin The Moscow Kremlin (also the Kremlin) is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin (fortification), Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Mosco ...

announced that Putin would sign treaties on the following day to formally annex territory from Ukraine. According to ''

'', the territories were not named, but Kremlin reporters indicated that four treaties would be signed, which corresponds to the four regions Russia in which the referendums were organized. Putin's press secretary

Dmitry Peskov Dmitry Sergeyevich Peskov (, ; born 17 October 1967) is a Russian diplomat serving as the Kremlin Press Secretary, spokesman for President of Russia, Russian president Vladimir Putin since 2012. On the same day, Putin recognized the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions as independent countries, hours before signing a decree on the annexation of all four regions.

References

External links

Explainer: Russia unfolds annexation plan for Ukraine
by Guy Faulconbridge and Felix Light, published by

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...

(2022-09-22) {{DEFAULTSORT:Russian-occupied Ukraine annexation referendums, 2022 September 2022 in Ukraine September 2022 in Russia 2022 referendums Russian invasion of Ukraine Separatism in Ukraine Russian irredentism Russification Annexation Donbas Politics of the Donetsk People's Republic Politics of the Luhansk People's Republic Kharkiv Oblast in the Russian invasion of Ukraine Kherson Oblast in the Russian invasion of Ukraine Mykolaiv Oblast in the Russian invasion of Ukraine Zaporizhzhia Oblast in the Russian invasion of Ukraine Russian referendums in Ukraine

Background

Organization

Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts

Questions

Results

Kherson Oblast

Question

Result

Zaporizhzhia Oblast

Question

Result

Other planned locations

Mykolaiv Oblast

Kharkiv Oblast

Opinion polls

Opinions on the goals of holding referendums

Conduct

First day

Second day

Third day

Fourth day

Fifth day

Reactions

Ukraine

Russia

International organisations

Countries

Human rights organizations

Other

Possible consequences

Aftermath

See also

Likewise referendums

Irredentism

Geopolitical aspects

References

External links