MOSCOW, October 8. /TASS/. Russia is firm about its righteousness and feasibility of steps taken in regard to the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR respectively) as well the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Saturday.
"We are absolutely sure in the rightful cause and the steps that we take," Lavrov said in an interview with Russia’s Argumenty i Fakty daily. "Our evaluations and arguments, which we will continue sharing with international partners, are quite obvious and many of our partners share them."
The Russian foreign minister said that authorities in Kiev previously deprived the people of the Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions of their right for the self-identification within Ukraine.
"People residing in the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions were deprived of any prospects for their self-identification within Ukraine as a result of the Kiev’s launched military campaign, which included sporadic shelling of residential areas, destruction of the civilian infrastructure, etc.," he said.
Lavrov also stated that Kiev earlier decided to sabotage Minsk Accords and opted to take the course of the forcible suppression of Donbass.
From September 23 to September 27, the DPR and the LPR as well as the Kherson and the Zaporozhye Regions held referendums where the majority of voters opted to join Russia.
On September 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the heads of the four regions signed treaties on their accession to Russia.
On October 5, President Putin signed laws on ratifying the accession of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) as well as of the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions to Russia following a granted approval from both houses of the Russian parliament - the State Duma and the Federation Council.
Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine
The situation along the line of engagement in Donbass escalated on February 17. At that time, the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) reported the worst wave of bombardments by the Ukrainian military, which damaged civilian infrastructure and caused civilian casualties.
On February 21, President Vladimir Putin announced that Moscow would recognize the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics. Russia signed agreements on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with their leaders. Moscow recognized the Donbass republic in accordance with the DPR and LPR constitutions within the boundaries of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions as of the beginning of 2014.
Russian President Putin announced on February 24 that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republic for assistance he had decided to carry out a special military operation in Ukraine. The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories, noting that the operation was aimed at the denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine.
The DPR and the LPR launched an operation to liberate their territories under Kiev’s control.