Vladimir Putin officially annexes Ukraine’s Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, & Zaporizhzhia into Russia

YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — Russian President Vladimir Putin officially announced the annexation of four new Ukrainian territories into Russia. These include the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), the Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR), and the regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. 

In a major ceremony held at the Kremlin, the Russian President congratulated the citizens of his country on the occasion, followed by the official signing ceremony by Putin and the puppet leaders of the four regions. 

The occupation of the four new territories has been a major target of Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine. They now join Russia to create an important land corridor to the Crimean peninsula, which the country annexed in 2014.

Addressing Ukraine and the Western powers, the Russian president urged its rivals not to harbor hopes of reversing today’s actions. 

“I want the Kyiv authorities and their real masters in the West to hear me, so that they remember this. People living in Luhansk and Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia are becoming our citizens forever,” 

he declared during the event. 

Putin creates sham republics. Countries hit back

The hyped annexation ceremony follows sham referendums in the four territories just three days earlier. Supervised by Russia, the residents of the regions allegedly voted 99% in favor of joining the world’s largest country. 

Hours before their annexation, Vladimir Putin had recognized the independence of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia through presidential decrees,

This is well in line with Kremlin’s modus operandi. In February 2022, Putin also signed similar decrees that acknowledged Donetsk and Luhansk as independent countries. 

 “Referendums have taken place … their results are well-known.People have made their choice.This is an inalienable right, which is enshrined in Article 1 of the U.N. Charter.”

 Putin declared. 

The development has been met with fierce criticism not from Ukraine, but also other global leaders. US President Joe Biden has already declared that his government will never recognize Russian sovereignty over occupied territories. He described the result of the referendum as “manufactured in Moscow.” 

Along with Albania, the country is also working on a joint resolution condemning Russia’s actions. 

“Make no mistake: these actions have no legitimacy. The United States will always honour Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders,” 

President Biden said. 

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also slammed Putin’s actions as “a dangerous escalation” of the war. According to him, Russia’s annexation of Ukrainian territory is illegal and “has no place in the modern world.”

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, also criticized Russia for the move. In the wake of the recently-concluded referendums, the European Union proposed fresh sanctions on Moscow. 

The United States, meanwhile, also imposed sweeping sanctions on hundreds of Russian companies and individuals following the annexation. 

Recommended: Russia oil exports boom as EM ignores western sanctions

Putin blames ‘Anglo-Saxons’ for Nord Stream blasts

Taking his attacks on the West one step further, Vladimir Putin accused the Anglo Saxons (a term used in Russia to refer to the immoral Western countries) of organizing the recent blast of the Nord Stream pipeline.

The Nord Stream gas pipelines running through the Baltic Sea suffered a major leak. The West termed the incident sabotage, calling it “a deliberate disruption of active European energy infrastructure“. Meanwhile, Putin also accused the United States of trying to capture the EU energy market by pushing Russia out of the region. 

According to Vladimir Putin, leaders in Europe are well aware of the US plans, but do nothing since they have “betrayed their own people.”

“Sanctions were not enough for the Anglo-Saxons: they moved on to sabotage. It is hard to believe but it is a fact that they organised the blasts on the Nord Stream international gas pipelines… Its clear to everyone who benefits from this. Of course, he who benefits did it,” 

Putin said about the USA.

Both Putin and Zelensky are ready for talks, but with caveats

With around 15% of his county now officially annexed into Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced he is formally applying for fast-track membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) military alliance. 

Putin has always perceived Ukraine’s NATO ambitions as a threat to Russia. 

Meanwhile, Zelensky also said that he is ready to engage in negotiations with Russia “on equal, honest, dignified and fair conditions”. However, he clarified that engaging with Putin is not an option.  

“Clearly, with this Russian president, it is impossible. He does not know what dignity and honesty are. Therefore, we are ready for a dialogue with Russia, but with another president of Russia,” 

Zelensky said. 

On his part, Vladimir Putin also called for the continuation of negotiations. However, he offered his readiness under new harsh conditions. 

Ukraine can only return to the negotiating table if they are ready to give up claims on the four regions which Russia annexed.  

“We call on the Kyiv regime to immediately end hostilities, end the war that they unleashed back in 2014 and return to the negotiating table. We are ready for this … But we will not discuss the choice of the people in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. That has been made. Russia will not betray them,” 

Putin said. 

Will the markets take a hit? 

Russia’s apparent defiance of the international sanctions, along with the rising energy crisis in Europe, spell trouble for the markets.

Earlier this month, when Vladimir Putin threatened tear-up supply contracts to let Europe freeze this winter, oil prices spiked. 

Brent crude oil, considered an international benchmark, went as high as $88.45 a barrel at the beginning of September. While the Rubble has taken a fresh hit following the new sanctions, Kremlin’s countermeasures will continue to cost Moscow’s allies. Despite the recent correction, analysts believe crude oil prices will rise again.

The S&P 500 continued being on a negative path in what came to be one of the worst weeks this year. On Thursday, the Nasdaq Composite dropped more than 2% as The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1%. 

Meanwhile, as Friday came to a close, the FTSE 100 index gained 12 points after the debacle caused by the tanking of the British Pound. 

However, experts do not think Putin’s speech will impact the market beyond a point. 

Responding to a question by CoinChapter, market analyst Michael Gogel asserted that the fear factor among investors will get fueled by this development. 

“This won’t impact any more than what’s already supposed to happen, I think. It’s all being priced in slowly…it will take years, until 2027-28. But it may instore more fear…since it’s the media that will decide,” 

Gogel says.

Meanwhile, the crypto market also remains impacted. Leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC), which reached an all-time high of over $68,000 last November, continues to suffer. 

At the time of writing, BTC remains under the $20,000 mark, having fallen to as low as $19,270 today. 

With the global economy still hit with inflation, observers hope the annexation of these four regions will satisfy Putin’s appetite. However, should the war drag on, it is unlikely that there will be optimism in the market anytime soon. 

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