Russia has decided to delay holding "referendums" in the occupied regions of Ukraine on their annexation by Moscow following military setbacks, Meduza reported, citing unnamed sources close to the Kremlin.
While Moscow had not announced a clear date for the so-called referendums, Andrei Turchak, a member of the ruling United Russia party, recommended holding them on November 4 to coincide with the Russian National Unity holiday.
Moscow had been moving ahead with plans to hold purported referendums on joining Russia in the occupied regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhya.
Ukraine launched a counteroffensive in the northeast and southeast, driving Russian forces from most of Kharkiv while also regaining territory in Donetsk and Kherson.
The Kremlin has recalled its political strategists from Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions amid Ukraine's counteroffensive, Meduza reported, citing its sources.
Russia expected to capture Kyiv within days of launching its massive, unprovoked invasion on February 24 and initially expected to hold referendums in April, Meduza reported.
However, tough Ukrainian resistance pushed that target date back first to September and then to November. Now it has been pushed back again indefinitely.
Ukraine and its Western allies have said they will not recognize any referendums in the Russian-occupied regions.
