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Residents of Russian-backed eastern regions of Russia have re-elected separatist leaders, the results revealed Monday, consolidating Moscow's grip on the disputed regions.
Kiev and its Western allies denounced the weekend elections as a sham but Russia insisted that they were a step forward in the quest for the independence of the regions.
Analysts say the votes will allow Moscow to claim the region's leaders as democratically elected representatives in upcoming talks with Kiev, even though few expect the moribund peace process to take place. Ukraine is relaunched soon.
Guards dressed in firearms and camouflage were deployed to ensure order during the Sunday vote in the "People's Republics" of Donetsk and Lugansk, controlled by the separatists since their breakup of the government pro-western Ukraine in 2014.
The authorities have made every effort to encourage strong participation by installing food stands near the polling stations and offering lottery tickets to those who voted.
Denis Pushilin, a 37-year-old interim leader of Donetsk and a former negotiator in Kiev, was elected with 61 percent of the vote, with nearly all votes counted, the local electoral commission said.
He had been responsible for the region after the killing of rebel "president" Donetsk during a bombing in August.
Leonid Pasechnik, 48, acting leader of Lugansk and former regional chief of Ukrainian security services, won 68% of the vote.
The Kiev Central Election Commission rejected the results without any consequences, claiming that it "categorically rejects any legal significance of these illegal and manipulative elections".
– The peace talks in deadlock –
Alexei Makarkin of the Moscow-based Center for Political Technology said the elections were aimed at strengthening the authority of separatist governments in the regions.
"Without these elections, they would have had less legitimacy than their predecessors," he said.
Analysts said the Kremlin has greater control over Pushilin than its predecessor and that polls are a way to increase its influence in the regions, which account for about 3% of Ukrainian territory.
French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the polls illegal, following a meeting with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on the sidelines of the commemorations of the First World War, which also attended Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
"These so-called elections undermine the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine," the duo said in a statement.
Washington and Brussels had asked Russia not to allow the polls, saying they would further impede efforts to end the conflict that has killed more than 10,000 people in four years.
In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea and supported the outbreak of insurgency in eastern Ukraine in what Kiev sees as a punishment for the pivot to the west.
While fighting is fierce, the conflict regularly kills soldiers and civilians. Kiev announced on Saturday that four Ukrainian soldiers had died in recent days.
The peace talks are deadlocked and the agreements signed by the West in 2015 are largely dead in the water.
Moscow, which denies accusations of channeling troops and arms across the border, said the polls were needed to fill the political vacuum after the assassination of Donetsk leader Alexander Zakharchenko.
Moscow pointed the finger at Ukraine for its assassination, while Kiev blamed internal quarrels between separatists.
According to officials, more than 80 percent of eligible voters voted in Donetsk, while the turnout was 77 percent in Lugansk.
Ukraine is ready for a presidential election next year, although there is no favorite yet.
"Russia will monitor the results of the 2019 elections in Ukraine and it will want the future president to start negotiations with Pushilin and Pasechnik," said Makarkin.
