In an interview with FRANCE 24 from Kyiv, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba struck a defiant tone, saying that the planned annexation this Friday by Russia of four Ukrainian regions following so-called referendums changes "nothing" for Ukraine and the world. The top Ukrainian diplomat said that the annexations and the recent partial mobilisation in Russia were a "sign of weakness" of Russian President Vladimir Putin, but added that "many Russians will die simply because Putin can’t recognise that he is losing this war".
The Ukrainian foreign minister said that the annexation by Russia of four regions – Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia – where so-called referendums were held this week changed "nothing" for his country and the world. He said that Russia did not even control all of those areas, adding that Ukrainian forces were actually "progressing well" in the Donetsk region, in particular around the railway hub of Lyman. He added that the annexation meant that talking to Vladimir Putin now made no sense.
