Russia readies to annex parts of Ukraine after ‘sham’ referendums. What happens next?

"Sham" referendums being held in four areas of Ukraine could provide Russia a pretext to escalate the war in Ukraine. Here's what could happen next.

Four occupied regions in Ukraine have overwhelmingly voted to join Russia, pro-Moscow officials claimed Tuesday, in what the West has called “sham” referendums.

Held in Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, where the war in Ukraine has been focused for months, the referendums took place between Sept. 23 and Sept. 27.

According to Russia-installed election officials, 93 per cent of the ballots cast in the Zaporizhzhia region supported annexation, as did 87 per cent in the Kherson region, 98 per cent in the Luhansk region and 99 per cent in Donetsk.

Many Western leaders, though, have denounced the votes’ legitimacy and noted they are following the same playbook as was done in Crimea in 2014, when Russia annexed the area through a similar referendum — and are warning the votes could be a pretext for escalation.

Here’s what could happen next.

U.S. President Joe Biden has called the referendums a “sham,” and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has denounced their legitimacy as well.

“We will never recognize them,” Trudeau had said in a tweet Sept. 20, after the referendums were announced. “This is a blatant violation of international law. It is a further escalation of war. And it is unacceptable.”

The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, on Wednesday called the ballots “illegal” and described the results as “falsified.”