LPR Civic Chamber Calls to Immediately Hold Referendum to Make Lugansk Part of Russia

This summer, Russian forces and Donbass militias liberated the territory, forcing the Ukrainian troops to leave.

The Civic Chamber of the Lugansk People's Republic published a declaration on Monday urging to hold a referendum to make the LPR a part of Russia, noting that the move is historically justified.

"The Civic Chamber of the Lugansk People's Republic proposes the initiative to immediately hold a referendum on recognizing the Lugansk People's Republic as a part of the Russian Federation," the LPR president's office said in an appeal to the Head of the Republic Leonid Pasechnik and the People's Council.

The chamber noted that the move would result in greater security for the republic and would ensure its return to peaceful life, suggesting that the people of Lugansk would support the initiative. It continued that the Ukrainian nationalists crossed all the "red lines", stressing that provocations by the Kiev regime only consolidated the republic, as people rallied against Ukrainian attacks.

"We hope that in the near future we will hear the response of officials from the administration of the [LPR] head and the people's council, saying how soon we can hold a referendum on our territory," head of the chamber Alexei Karyakin said. "This is not a one-day matter, and today we should consider absolutely all the necessary work to organize this referendum in the territories," he added, noting that it is too early to discuss the date of the vote.

Russia launched it's special military operation in February after the Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics asked Moscow for assistance amid intensifying attacks perpetuated by Ukrainian troops. President Vladimir Putin stressed that the op aims to put an end to the eight-year-long war waged by Kiev against Donbass, which has claimed over 13,000 lives. He also noted that Ukraine’s actions in Donbass amounted to genocide and that the Ukrainian war criminals should be held accountable for their atrocities.