Referendum on joining Russia will not held until the conflict stops, Kherson official

According to the deputy head of the Russian-appointed government in occupied Kherson, the area will not hold a vote on legally joining Russia until violence in Kherson and surrounding districts of Odesa and Mykolaiv subsides.

According to Kirill Stremousov, deputy director of the Kherson Military-Civilian Administration, there are present “no negotiations regarding a referendum.”

“We’ll announce later when some kind of vote or plebiscite is taking place, but it won’t be today, and it won’t be tomorrow because our first task is to restore order and organize a system of administration in the Kherson region,” Stremousov added.

Ukrainian officials have previously warned that Russian soldiers and the Russian-installed administration were planning a false referendum, akin to Russian efforts to establish separatist republics in the Donbas in 2014.

Since the commencement of the invasion in late February, the territory in southern Ukraine has been under Russian control. More than a dozen people told CNN earlier this month of their horrific travels out of the besieged zone, presenting a striking picture of the current atmosphere of terror.

While referendum preparations appear to have been dialed back, Stremousov recently stated that Kherson’s pro-Russian officials will want a Russian military installation. He also said the Russian-backed administration is pressing ahead with plans to set up a new “banking system” that will be “fully integrated” into the Russian system.

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