UK says Russia plans to hold referendums in newly occupied areas of southern Ukraine

Servicemen of pro-Russian troops drive tanks during the Ukraine-Russia conflict near the settlement of Olenivka in Donetsk region, Ukraine July 29, 2022. REUTERS/Alexander Ermoshenko

July 30 (Reuters) – Russian-installed authorities in newly occupied southern Ukraine are under pressure and may be preparing to hold referendums on joining Russia later this year, said the British Army on Saturday.

“Local authorities are likely coercing people into divulging personal information in order to build voter rolls,” the Defense Department said in a Twitter intelligence update.

Russia classifies these occupied areas as being under an interim “civil-military administration”.

Ukraine probably repelled small-scale Russian assaults from the long-established front line near Donetsk in the eastern Donbass region, while in the Kherson region Russia probably established two pontoon bridges and a system ferry to compensate for nearby bridges damaged in recent times. strikes, according to the update.

Reporting by Juby Babu in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard

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