#Putin: We are determined to "save the residents" of the "referendum" areas of #Ukraine

The Kremlin confirms that these referendums will have "repercussions" on the security of the areas to be annexed



Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that the referendums organized by Moscow in the four Ukrainian regions it controls are aimed at "save the residents" of these regions.

"Rescuing the residents of all these regions where the referendum is being held is at the heart of the concerns of our society and our whole country," Putin said during a government meeting, speaking on the last day of these referendums, which Kyiv and Westerners denounced as a "farce."


In the same context, the Kremlin announced today that the "referendum", which ends Tuesday in four Ukrainian regions on their annexation to Russia, will have major "repercussions" on these regions, especially on the security level.

"There will be fundamental changes in these regions from a legal point of view, from the point of view of international law, and due to all the repercussions (of measures taken) to ensure security" in them, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

He continued, "Our legal system will consider all options, and of course our legislators, our executive bodies and our legal teams are ready."

And former Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev spoke earlier on Tuesday about the possibility that Russia would apply in these areas its doctrine of nuclear deterrence, which calls for nuclear strikes in the event that Russia faces a similar attack or an existential threat to it.


He pointed out that the strengthening of defense passes through "the possibilities offered by the mobilization" declared in Russia, but also through the use of "all Russian weapons, including strategic weapons and those based on new principles."

He stressed that "Russia has the right to use atomic weapons if this is necessary, in predetermined cases, with strict respect for the principles of government policy in the field of nuclear deterrence."

Peskov was asked about this point and emphasized that Medvedev's statements cite the Russian "military doctrine", calling on everyone to "remember" the principles of this doctrine.