DONETSK/SLAVIANSK, Ukraine – Pro-Moscow rebel leaders in eastern Ukraine called on Monday for their region to become part of Russia, the day after staging a referendum on self-rule, although Moscow stopped short of endorsing their bid for annexation. Announcing the result of the vote in one of the two provinces where it was held, a leader of the “People’s Republic of Donetsk,” Denis Pushilin, said it was now an independent state and would appeal to join the Russian Federation. “The people of Donetsk have always been part of the Russian world. For us, the history of Russia is our history,” he said. “Based on the will of the people and on the restoration of historic justice, we ask the Russian Federation to consider the absorption of the Donetsk People’s Republic into the Russian Federation,” he told a news conference. There and in neighbouring Luhansk, some officials said they might now hold a second referendum on joining Russia, like one held in Crimea, a Ukrainian region Moscow seized and annexed in March after protesters ousted Ukraine’s pro-Russian president. Donetsk and Luhansk together are home to 6.5 million people and represent around a third of Ukraine’s industrial output. Their declarations create the… Read full this story
- MH17 black boxes not found: Ukraine rebel leader
- Ukraine urges calm, saying Russian invasion not imminent
- Ukraine's leaders appeal for calm and say attack is not imminent - as Russia makes combat readiness inspections near border
- Two years after ceasefire weary Ukraine still at war
- US response on Ukraine offers little optimism, Russia says
- Sulík says Russia "will not return Crimea", prompting scandal
- Britain Says Moscow Is Plotting to Install a Pro-Russian Leader in Ukraine
- ‘Russia Planning Major Military Action’: US Tells Families Of Envoys To Leave Ukraine
- More than 50 rebels killed in biggest Ukraine government assault
- Ukraine-Russia crisis: Attack will have 'consequences,' EU and US warn
Eastern Ukraine rebel leaders call for region to become part of Russia have 308 words, post on www.nydailynews.com at May 13, 2014. This is cached page on Vietnam Dance. If you want remove this page, please contact us.