September 28, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

By Aditi Sangal, Adrienne Vogt, Tara Subramaniam, Sana Noor Haq, Hannah Strange and Mike Hayes, CNN

Updated 0235 GMT (1035 HKT) September 29, 2022
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8:15 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

Authorities in occupied Ukraine regions declare huge majorities in favor of joining Russia after "sham" referendums

From CNN’s Olga Voitovych in Kyiv and Jo Shelley in London

Head of the separatist self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic Denis Pushilin, left, and Secretary of the United Russia Party's General Council Andrey Turchak attend a news conference on preliminary results of a referendum on the joining of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) to Russia, in Donetsk, Ukraine, on September 27.
Head of the separatist self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic Denis Pushilin, left, and Secretary of the United Russia Party's General Council Andrey Turchak attend a news conference on preliminary results of a referendum on the joining of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) to Russia, in Donetsk, Ukraine, on September 27. (Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters)

Authorities in the Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine that held so-called referendums say that all votes have now been counted and each saw a huge majority in favor of joining Russia.

The head of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic, Denis Pushilin, said on his Telegram channel that 99.23% of votes cast were for "joining the Donetsk People's Republic to the Russian Federation.”

Elena Kravchenko, the head of the election commission of the self-declared Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), said 98.42% of voters cast their ballots in favor of the motion.

As CNN previously reported, in Kherson, the Telegram channel of the pro-Russian administration said that with all votes counted, 87.05% were in favor of joining Russia.

In Zaporizhzhia, the head of the election commission said the final tally was 93.11% in favor.

The referendums -- announced at short notice by pro-Russian authorities in the four regions -- were widely condemned by Western governments as a sham and against international law. They were not observed by independent monitors.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said the referendum process was a “sham” that showed Russia’s “contempt for all those who have been calling for diplomacy”.

Ukrainian officials say that turnout has been extremely low and claimed that people had been bussed in from Crimea to vote.  

 

8:15 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

Facebook removes "two covert influence operations from China and Russia" on war in Ukraine 

From CNN’s Hannah Ritchie

Two covert “influence operations from China and Russia” spreading political narratives about the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine were removed from Facebook for violating the platform’s policy on “inauthentic behavior,” Meta said Tuesday.  

The Russian network was the “largest of its kind we’ve disrupted since the war in Ukraine began,” Meta said, targeting audiences in Germany, France, Italy and Ukraine with “narratives focused on the war and its impact through a sprawling network of over 60 websites impersonating legitimate news organizations.” 

Narratives pushed by the Russian network centered on the war in Ukraine, parroting Kremlin talking points about the impact of sanctions, and spreading stories critical of Ukrainian refugees. 

The sprawling network -- which began in May of this year -- comprised over 60 websites which carefully impersonated news organizations across Europe, including The Guardian, Bild and Der Spiegel. The disinformation effort revolved around fake news articles, original memes and YouTube videos which were shared across Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, Twitter, Change.org, Avaaz, and LiveJournal, according to Meta. 

The content was shared in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian and Ukrainian, and in some cases amplified by the Facebook pages of Russian embassies in Europe and Asia. 

“This is the largest and most complex Russian-origin operation that we’ve disrupted since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. It presented an unusual combination of sophistication and brute force,” Meta said. 

The network that originated in China was smaller in its scope and targeted people in the United States, Czech Republic and to a lesser extent Chinese and French speaking audiences globally in four “largely separate and short-lived efforts” between 2021 and mid-September 2022.  

In the US the operation focused on “domestic politics ahead of the midterm elections," while in the Czech Republic the narratives concerned the country's “foreign policy toward China and Ukraine,” Meta said. 

8:15 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

EU vows to increase energy security after "deliberate" Nord Stream interference 

From CNN’s Sharon Braithwaite

Gas bubbles from the Nord Stream 2 leak reach the surface of the Baltic Sea near Bornholm, Denmark, on September 27.
Gas bubbles from the Nord Stream 2 leak reach the surface of the Baltic Sea near Bornholm, Denmark, on September 27. (Danish Defence Command/Reuters)

The European Union is “deeply concerned” about damage to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines that has resulted in leaks in the international waters of the Baltic Sea, calling it a “deliberate act.”

"All available information indicates those leaks are the result of a deliberate act," the bloc’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday, while promising to increase energy security efforts. 

The bloc "will support any investigation aimed at getting full clarity on what happened and why and will take further steps to increase our resilience in energy security," he said. 

8:15 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

EU foreign policy chief denounces "illegal" referendums in Russian-occupied Ukraine

From CNN’s Allegra Goodwin 

Press briefing by Josep Borrell, on the situation in Ukraine at UN Headquarters, New York, on September 21.
Press briefing by Josep Borrell, on the situation in Ukraine at UN Headquarters, New York, on September 21. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket/Getty Images)

The European Union “denounces” the holding of illegal referendums by pro-Russian forces in Ukraine, the bloc's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday.

The referendums – condemned by Western countries as a sham – have seen four Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine vote on whether to join Russia via polls which are contrary to international law. 

“The EU denounces holding of illegal “referenda” and their falsified outcome,” Borrell said in a tweet, adding, “This is another violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, amidst systematic abuses of human rights.”

“We commend the courage of Ukrainians, who continue to oppose and resist Russian invasion,” he added. 

2:52 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

Ukrainian military claims untrained Russian soldiers arriving in combat areas following mobilization effort 

From CNN’s Olga Voitovych and Hannah Ritchie

Untrained Russian forces are arriving in combat zones across Ukraine following the Kremlin’s mobilization effort, the Ukrainian military claimed Wednesday in its daily situational update. 

“In the Russian occupation forces, the recruitment of personnel called up for partial mobilization has begun. Thus, reinforcements arrived for the units of the 1st tank regiment of the 2nd motor rifle division of the 1st tank army, which are deployed to the combat zone. They were not trained at all,” the statement said, adding that persons “convicted of criminal offenses” were also joining the fighting. 

CNN is unable to verify the Ukrainian Armed Forces claims.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the immediate “partial mobilization” of Russian citizens, in an effort to bolster the Kremlin’s faltering invasion, following Ukraine’s gains in its ongoing counteroffensive. 

Experts have previously expressed concerns about the state of Russian forces in Ukraine and their ability to get new recruits sufficiently trained.

3:53 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

European leaders express concerns of sabotage over Nord Stream pipeline leaks

Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde, left, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, center and Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist speak with the media about the Nord Stream gas leak in the Baltic Sea on September 27.
Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde, left, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, center and Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist speak with the media about the Nord Stream gas leak in the Baltic Sea on September 27. (Fredrik Persson/TT News Agency/Reuters)

Several European leaders have suggested three leaks in the Nord Stream pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea were caused deliberately.

On Tuesday the Danish Prime Minister said she sees the leaks as “deliberate actions.” 

Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson also said Tuesday that the incident is “likely a deliberate action.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen referred to the pipeline leaks as "sabotage action" in a tweet Tuesday. She added that, “Any deliberate disruption of active European energy infrastructure is unacceptable and will lead to the strongest possible response."

Finland Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said Tuesday that the damage caused to the pipelines is "very concerning," following a call with his Swedish counterpart Ann Linde.

"There should be a full investigation into the incident. Sabotage to the pipelines cannot be excluded. (This poses) serious risks for the environment and shipping," he added.

Even Russia, which built the network, said the possibility of sabotage could not be ruled out.

Nord Stream AG, the operator of the pipelines, in safety documents published before any news emerged of the leaks, had said that the probability of a pipeline failure or leakage is “as low as one damage event every 100,000 years”.

8:15 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

Canada to impose new sanctions on "persons and entities" involved in "sham referendums" in Ukraine 

From CNN’s Hannah Ritchie

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks with the media during the the 77th United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 21. 
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks with the media during the the 77th United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 21.  (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Canada will impose fresh sanctions on “persons and entities” involved in carrying out “sham referendums” in Ukraine, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday. 

“Canada does not and will not ever recognize the results of these sham referendums or Russia’s attempted illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories,” Trudeau said. 

“In response to this further escalation, we intend to impose new sanctions against persons and entities that are complicit in this latest attempt to undermine the principles of state sovereignty, and that share responsibility for the ongoing senseless bloodshed across Ukraine,” he added. 

Some context: Pro-Russian authorities have held so-called referendums across Ukraine in the self-declared republics of Donetsk and Luhansk in the east and parts of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the south. 

The votes - which are illegal under international law - have been dismissed as a “sham” by Ukraine and Western nations.  

An exclusive CNN poll of Ukrainians conducted in February, just before Russia’s invasion, found that no region of the country had more than one in five people backing Ukrainian "unification" with Russia.

2:12 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

UK urges United Nations to reject results of illegal "sham" referendums

United Kingdom's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN James Kariuki speaks at the UN Security Council's emergency meeting at the United Nations Headquarters on August 23.
United Kingdom's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN James Kariuki speaks at the UN Security Council's emergency meeting at the United Nations Headquarters on August 23. (David 'Dee' Delgado/Reuters)

A British ambassador has urged the United Nations to reject the results of illegal Russian-backed "sham" referendums in Ukraine.

During a United Nations Security Council meeting to discuss the war, the United Kingdom's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN James Kariuki said the referendums were "an egregious violation" of the principles of the UN Charter.

"We’ve all seen images of soldiers with automatic rifles accompanying the ballots as they move from door to door, forcing Ukrainians to take part. Any referenda held under these conditions, at the barrel of a gun, can never be remotely close to free or fair," Kariuki said.

"The very idea that a referendum on a fundamental question could be held at three days’ notice in the middle of a war zone is frankly farcical," he added.

"We must all unequivocally reject these illegitimate actions and Russian attempts to illegally annex Ukrainian territory," he said.

2:32 a.m. ET, September 28, 2022

Pro-Russian authorities declare majorities in illegal "sham" referendums as fears of annexation grow

From CNN's Uliana Pavlova and Tim Lister

Workers hang Russian flags on an apartment building in Luhansk, Ukraine on Tuesday, Sept. 27.
Workers hang Russian flags on an apartment building in Luhansk, Ukraine on Tuesday, Sept. 27. (AP Photo)

Russian state media say election commissions in four occupied regions of Ukraine have returned majorities in favor of joining the Russian Federation, following referendums described as a "sham" by Western governments and Kyiv.

The so-called referendums — called at short notice by pro-Russian authorities in occupied areas of Ukraine — are against international law and have been widely condemned by Western governments. They were not observed by independent monitors. 

Russian state news agency RIA Novosti said that the commissions had published the results of referendums in Kherson, Zaporizhzhia and the Luhansk and Donetsk People's Republics. It did not say whether these were the final results.

The referendum plans were suddenly announced a week ago by Russian-backed local administrations and immediately welcomed in Moscow. 

Ukrainian officials say that turnout has been extremely low and that pro-Russian voters have been bused in from Crimea. 

"The results are obvious. Welcome home to Russia!" said Dmitriy Medvedev, the former Russian president who is now the deputy chairman of the country's Security Council, responding to the state media reports.

Officials anticipate Russia could now move quickly to annex the four areas, potentially within days. Such a move could provide Moscow with a pretext to escalate its faltering war, which has seen Kyiv regain thousands of square miles of territory this month.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov previously indicated that if the regions announced majorities in favor of joining Russia, the ratification process would be fast and they could become part of the Russian Federation “quite soon.” 

Asked if that would mean any attempt by Ukraine to regain the territories would be regarded as an attack on Russian territory, Peskov said: “Of course.”