Free Republic

Russia had already declared its intent in spring, and is now going ahead with plans to annex the territories it has occupied in the south and east of Ukraine on a fast-track basis. Simultaneous votes in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions have been scheduled from September 23 to September 27. In a speech on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested that Moscow would recognize the results. Just as it did with the Crimean annexation in 2014, Russia is making a point of appearing not to be involved. It was local Ukrainian politicians supported by the Russian military who...

A transport hub, an arms factory and a gas field: Ukraine recaptured vitial areas east of Kharkiv from Russia in a matter of days. The figures still amaze people in Ukraine — since September 6, the Ukrainian army has liberated more than 6,000 square kilometers (2,378 square miles) and more than 300 towns with a total population of about 150,000 people in the Kharkiv region, according to Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar. Reportedly, most of the territory in the north and east of Kharkiv Oblast has been recaptured, an area Russia had quickly occupied and held at the start...