Top Kremlin Official Leads Efforts To Stage Sham Referenda In Occupied Ukraine, U.S, says

A top Kremlin official is leading Russia’s efforts to stage sham referenda in occupied parts of Ukraine, The State Department principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said during a daily press briefing, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

“Preparations for the sham referenda are being led by the first deputy head of Russia's presidential administration, Sergey Kiriyenko. He is responsible for overseeing the Russia-held territories in advance of their attempted incorporation into Russia, which would be illegal if completed,” Patel said.

Washignton assesses that Russia could hold sham referenda in Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, and parts of Kharkiv. They “could take place in the coming weeks,” Patel said.

“We expect Russia to manipulate the results of these referenda in order to falsely claim that the Ukrainian people want to join Russia,” he said.

As part of the sham referenda, Russia "will undoubtedly employ propaganda and disinformation campaigns, falsify voter turnout and exaggerate the percentage of those who supposedly voted in favor of joining Russia," Patel added. “We want to be clear that any claim by the Kremlin that the Ukrainian people somehow want to join Russia is a lie. Polling shows that just 3% of Ukrainians say that they would like Ukraine to be a member of the Russia-led Eurasian Customs Union.”

Asked by TURAN's correspondent about potential U.S. response to the Kremlin's actions, Patel said that the U.S continues "to have at our arsenal a number of consequences that we can continue to put onto Russia, whether that be economic sanctions and other things as well."

"Our support for Ukraine is unwavering, and we continue to take steps to ensure that Ukraine can defend itself, defend its territorial integrity, defend its sovereignty, as well as put it in the best position possible at a potential negotiating table," he said.

Alex Raufoglu

Washington D.C.