Ukraine. Four Russian-occupied regions in southern and eastern Ukraine are holding self-styled referendums to join Russia. By annexing these regions, Russia may be able to claim that its territory is attacked with the western weapons supplied to Ukraine. The United Nations warned that seizure of territory by use of force is violation of international law. According to reports from the ground, armed soldiers go door-to-door collecting votes for the polls, including verbal answers. Russia says it uses this system for security reasons, but the presence of armed men contradicts its insistence that the process is free and fair. Russian forces have conducted extensive shelling of the neighbouring regions, especially in the south, in Mykolaiv and Odessa, according to Radio Romania’s Ukraine correspondent
