{"id":210956,"date":"2022-09-21T10:20:58","date_gmt":"2022-09-21T07:20:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uacrisis.org\/?p=210956"},"modified":"2022-09-21T10:21:01","modified_gmt":"2022-09-21T07:21:01","slug":"day-209","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uacrisis.org\/en\/day-209","title":{"rendered":"Day 209: Russia\u2019s threats of \u201creferenda\u201d in occupied areas, possible mobilization in Russia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Russia threatens sham referenda in Ukraine\u2019s occupied areas<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

On September 19, the so-called \u201cpublic chambers\u201d of \u201cLNR\u201d and \u201cDNR\u201d \u2013 Russia-installed administrations in the occupied parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, called for immediate \u201creferenda\u201d on joining Russia. The occupation administration in Kherson region was next to call for an immediate \u201cvote\u201d on joining Russia.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Russians plan to hold sham referenda in the occupied areas between September 23 and September 27. The intention of the \u201cvotes\u201d is obvious \u2013 to blackmail and intimidate as Ukraine\u2019s counteroffensive advances.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

President of Russia Vladimir Putin is expected to give an address on September 20 after parts of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions held by the Russian troops called for \u201creferenda\u201d on joining Russia, Russia\u2019s RBC said, quoting three sources close to President Putin\u2019s administration. The sources said they did not know what Putin will to say. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A number of Telegram channels said Russia\u2019s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu would also give an address on September 20. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russia\u2019s possible mobilization not to catch Ukraine by surprise<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

On September 20, Russia\u2019s State Duma amended the criminal code introducing chapters on mobilization, martial law and wartime. The Ukrainian intelligence does not rule out that Russia is resorting to propaganda to prepare its citizens for a military mobilization to fight against Ukraine, representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine\u2019s Defense Ministry Major General Vadym Skibitskyi said in an interview with \u201cKyiv Post\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday, we have begun to collect information \u2013 rhetoric about mobilization has dramatically increased in the Russian Federation. [Russian Communist Party leader] Gennady Zyuganov and other Russian political representatives say that yes, there is, in fact, a war and that the Russian army cannot cope. There is a need to declare war and begin mobilization. At the same time, Russian officials say that they will wage war not just with Ukraine but with NATO and the U.S. because they are fighting on the Ukrainian side,\u201d Skibitskyi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere might be support for general mobilization in Russia,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Russian leadership has debated mobilization since the onset of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. After the Russian forces suffered their first losses, especially in the Kyiv and Chernihiv Regions, and in southern Ukraine, they began to draw on different sources to replenish the troops, the representative of Ukraine\u2019s defense intelligence said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russia formed the so-called volunteer battalions and battalions of reservists, and deployed private military companies. It then formed the third army corps \u2013 new units within the Russian Armed Forces, Skibitskyi proceeded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A military mobilization would mark a significant blow to Putin\u2019s regime recognizing that the so-called \u201cspecial operation\u201d was not successful and a real war is on, Skibitskyi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe announcement of general mobilization would only be a positive thing to us because the protest mood in Russia is weak, but young people do not want to go to war,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skibitskyi, citing intelligence\u2019s analysis, said the main people who support Putin\u2019s war are those \u201cwho are 50 years old and who will not be going to war.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYoung people in their twenties and thirties are needed on the front. Because of that, this announcement of general mobilization would be an indicator that will show the readiness of the Russian people to continue this bloody war,\u201d the representative of the defense intelligence said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ukraine\u2019s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Russia\u2019s plans to hold sham \u201creferenda\u201d to annex the occupied Ukrainian territories, will not disrupt Ukraine\u2019s efforts to liberate them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jake Sullivan, the U.S. President\u2019s national security adviser said Russia\u2019s preparation to a military mobilization is reflective of Russia\u2019s struggles in Ukraine as they continue to lose ground on the battlefield.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kirovohrad Region: the heart of Ukrainian war volunteering. Ukraine in Flames #194<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Unlike its neighboring Mykolaiv region, Ukraine\u2019s central Kirovohrad region has not been subject to Russian occupation or ground fighting. Located in the center of Ukraine, it is sometimes referred to as the heart of Ukraine. These days, its representatives argue that it\u2019s the volunteer heart of the country. Thankful to its eastern neighbors for holding defense, it has been heavily involved in delivering thousands of tonnes of humanitarian aid to the war-torn areas of Ukraine. Kropyvnytskyi, Kirovohrad region\u2019s centre, has accepted 90,000 internally displaced person\u2019s, constituting nearly a quarter of the city\u2019s population. How is the Kirovohrad region, one of Ukraine\u2019s smallest regions, able to do so much to help Ukraine? Ukraine In Flames #194 explores this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speakers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n