Illegal elections held in Russian-backed Donetsk, Luhansk

The self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People’s
Republics, backed by the Russian government, held elections on Nov. 11 to their
heads of government and councils. As expected, Denis Pushilin was elected head
of the Donetsk government, while Leonid Pasechnik was elected head in Luhansk.
Turnout was reported at 80% in Donetsk by local authorities and 77% in Luhansk.
In order to entice voters, markets were organized with discounted products,
news reports said. Students were also reported to be required to attend a
celebratory concert.

Western and Ukrainian authorities repeated their
condemnations of the elections, which were held in violation of the Minsk
Accords aimed at ending the armed conflict in Donbas. During their Nov. 11
trilateral talks in France, French President Emmanuel Macron and German
Chancellor Angela Merkel “firmly emphasized the position of condemning the
elections in certain territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and support
for Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence,” Ukrainian
President Poroshenko told a briefing afterwards.

In particular, the elections didn’t occur with the
participation of Ukrainian political parties and didn’t involve international
observers. Ukrainian leaders called for new sanctions against those organizing
the elections. Poroshenko didn’t meet with Russian President Putin during the
ceremonies commemorating the 100-year anniversary of World War One’s
conclusion.

Zenon Zawada: We expect
Western governments to heed Ukraine’s call and approve a new round of sanctions
for the illegally held elections in these regions, collectively known as
“Donbas.” They were organized in order for the Kremlin to legitimize
its new leaders in these territories and pressure Ukraine to conduct direct
talks with them to end the armed conflict. These new leaders won’t change
anything themselves since they are almost entirely controlled by the Kremlin.

Poroshenko not meeting with Putin confirms our view
that the talks for a UN peacekeeping mission in Donbas are postponed
indefinitely, to be renewed not earlier than 2020, after Ukraine’s new cabinet
is formed.