September 3, 2023
1. New referenda in new five territories. Are they expedient?
In connection of donating their individual notions to multi-dimensional ‘peace plans’ on Ukraine many foreign politicians and experts are proposing to arrange new referenda in five new territories that have joined the Russian Federation in 2014 (Crimea) and in 2022 (the DPR and the LPR in Donbass, and Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions). Such proposals are included into ‘peace plans’ with the aim to end the Ukrainian-NATO aggression against these lands that have become Russian territory due to previous referenda.
In Russia the ‘referenda idea’ was articulated by extra-liberal and pro-Western “Yabloko Party” represented in the Russian State Duma some time ago.
The idea to run such new referenda is unacceptable for two major reasons:
First, these referenda on joining Russia or Ukraine have been already arranged in all these territories under international monitoring that ended with final results:
the majority of participants have expressed their desire to stay with Russia
for indefinite period of time.
Second, is it logical to conduct another round of referenda in the territories where more than 20,000 civilians have been already killed by Ukrainian aggressors since 2014, where the Armed Forces of Ukraine have already used depleted uranium, cluster and white phosphorus munitions, and totally 2 million of 155-mm calbre shells against civilians and social infrastructure facilities like kindergartens, schools, universities, hospitals etc?
The US M777, German PzH 2000, Polish Crab and French CAESAR were using 155-mm shells and rockets
During one year since the Special Military Operation or SMO was launched in February 2022, the AFU fired against the LPR 2889 combined strikes, including 696 strikes delivered by HIMARS MRLS.
What will be a logical prediction of the returns of such referenda if the proponents of the new ‘vox populi’ counting will look through the table of lethal weapons generously delivered by the USA, the UK, Poland, Germany and many other NATO member stares?
If any unbiassed observer examines any official Pentagon Facts Sheets describing the U.S. arms deliveries to Ukraine, any person will highly likely respond in such a way: participants in these referenda will again vote for staying and living in Russia rather than in Ukraine.
Namely it is Ukraine who began a brutal aggression against Ukrainians and Russians, banned Russian language and the Orthodox Church in Ukraine, engaged many times in nuclear blackmail attempts arranged against the Zaporozhye NPP, etc.
Who would like to live in a neo-Nazi Ukrainian state who shells these five territories
by HIMARS or other artillery pieces or drones – using approximately 300-800 missiles and shells and missiles PER EACH DAY and NIGHT against 10-15 populated areas
in these five territories where there are no Russian Armed Forces or military facilities? On September 3, 2023 Ukraine has shelled Donbass 86 times and used against it 273 shells and missiles equipped with cluster munitions.
Only “Azov” neo-Nazi faction and alike will vote for living in such irrelevant state like Ukraine.
[Note: there are the links to the July and August 2023 Fact Sheet on the U.S. arms deliveries to Ukraine: https://media.defense.gov/2023/Jul/25/2003267256/-1/-1/0/UKRAINE-FACT-SHEET.PDF and https://media.defense.gov/2023/Aug/29/2003290634/-1/-1/1/20230829_UKRAINE_FACT_SHEET.PDF ]
2. Another attempt to destroy the Crimean Bridge by the AFU
Russian forces destroyed a sea drone in the Black Sea that Kiev had launched in an attempt to strike the Crimean Bridge, the Russian Defense Ministry told reporters.
"At 11:15 p.m. Moscow time on September 1, the Kiev regime attempted a terrorist strike on the Crimean Bridge with a semi-submersible uncrewed surface vessel. The Ukrainian Naval drone was timely detected and destroyed in the waters of the Black Sea," the ministry noted.
The Russian MoD said on September 1, 2023 that the Black Sea Fleet had established permanent control of the situation in the Black Sea using all types of reconnaissance. The ministry announced that this had allowed the Naval Air Force on August 29-30, 2023 to foil attempts staged by a Ukrainian special operations unit to land on the Crimean coast and carry out terrorist attacks.
The Crimean Bridge has not been used and is not used to deliver arms and ammunition for the SMO.
Written by Vladimir P. Kozin
