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The Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the east of Ukraine, controlled by the separatists, have new leaders. The people of these regions were allowed to go to the polls on Sunday, but no country recognizes the elections.
Denis Pushilin was elected Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Donetsk, self-proclaimed. He was appointed interim director earlier this year. That happened after the death of his predecessor Alexander Zakharchenko, killed by a bombing in Donetsk
. Pushilin had won nearly 61% of the vote. Lugid Pasechnik, with over 68% of the vote, was chosen as leader of the neighboring Luhansk rebel region.
The pro-Russian "people's republics" forcibly separated from the rest of Ukraine in 2014. This was followed by a bloody conflict that claimed the lives of more than 10,000 people and drove out 1, 5 million people from their homes.
The United States and several European countries have called last month's elections illegal. The vote is in conflict with the agreement of Minsk II, concluded between Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France in 2015.
The agreement provided for a ceasefire – the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the conflict zone and the start of a dialogue leading to elections in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. These discussions have not yet taken place.
The armistice is violated daily
Moreover, the armistice is violated daily by both parties. The OSCE supervisor monitors compliance with the Minsk II agreement in eastern Ukraine and records violations on a daily basis. There are regular deaths.
In 2014, strong protests against the government led to violent conflict. Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in February of the same year and subsequently, pro-Russian separatists proclaimed the independence of the two regions through a referendum. Until now, no country recognizes both republics.
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