Vladimir Putin to celebrate 70th birthday by annexing parts of Ukraine into Russia

According to UK Military Intelligence, Putinis expected on Friday to announce the formal annexation of four breakaway regions of Ukraineinto Russia, reports The Hill. This comes just ahead of his 70th Birthday next week on October 7.

Rigged referendums

According to The Hill, the UK Ministry of Defence tweeted that this Friday Putin will address both houses of the Duma where he is expected to declare the regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, to be part of Russia.

The Hillreports that the referendums to join Russia in the respective regions of Ukraine began last Friday and concluded on Tuesday, the results came in overarchingly with a yes vote in favour of joining Russia.

Analysts agree that this move is escalating the war into a new phase while Ukraine and the west have denounced the referendums. Western countries claim that these referendums are rigged and the Russian government is clearly behind their organisation.

A formal ceremony at the Kremlin as a prelude to Putin’s Birthday

SkyNews reports about the comments of the Kremlin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, who said that on Friday Russian President Putin will attend a ceremony to mark the folding of the former Ukrainian regions into Russia.

Accordingly, Putin will welcome at the Kremlin, the representatives of the regions where the five-day referendum vote took place, to sign the treaties for merging with Russia.

According to Sky News, most of the Luhansk region is being controlled by Russian forces, however, 40% of the Donetsk region is still controlled by Ukraine and so are multiple settlements in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions. Fightings are ongoing in all four regions.

The annexation of these territories certainly will amuse Putin just ahead of his 70th Birthday. According to The New European, ‘that day is October 7, and on that day, there is a roll call of the President’s magnificent achievements that year’. In previous years Putin’s birthday coincided with the assassinations of notable Russian public figures, in 2014, the celebration was about the annexation of Crimea.

Experts agree that Putin is envisioning a greater Russia, alike the historic Russian expansionist empire, or its imperialist Soviet past.

Sources used:

-TheHill: ‘Putin could announce annexation on Friday, UK military intelligence says’

-Sky News: ‘Ukraine latest news: Putin to declare parts of Ukraine are now Russia in ceremony - taking war into dangerous new phase’

-The NewEuropean: ‘Putin’s 70th birthday and Russian elections are looming. Here’s why that’s bad news for Ukraine’

-Institute Montaigne: ‘Vladimir Putin, On the Way To A New Russian Imperialism?’

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