Putin Wants To Annex "DPR" And "LPR" To Russia, Referendums Can Be Held In May - Media

By the middle of next month, the so-called "authorities" of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People’s Republic" (DPR) and "Luhansk People’s Republic" (LPR) intend to hold a referendum in the temporarily uncontrolled territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions on annexation to the Russian Federation.

This is reported by the Russian publication Meduza, citing its own sources.

According to the interlocutors of the publication, this can happen on May 14 and 15. They also said that the "republics" want to ask Russia to annex them within the boundaries in which they were recognized by President Vladimir Putin's decree of February 21, 2022. It is about all the territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Another source of the publication noted that initially the referendums in the "DPR" and "LPR" were supposed to be held in April, but due to the failures of the Russian army in Ukraine, the dates of their holding were postponed several times.

The interlocutor said that the Kremlin does not believe that Russia needs to annex the "depressed regions" of Donbas. He also stressed that the annexation of the "DPR" and "LPR" is a personal desire of Vladimir Putin.

As Ukrainian News Agency reported, on February 21, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognizing the independence of the self-proclaimed "DPR" and "LPR".

Recall that in the documents signed by Putin, the so-called "republics" are recognized within the administrative boundaries of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.