MOSCOW, November 1. /TASS/. Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev held talks on Tuesday with President of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa, who also holds the post of the First Secretary of the Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF).
According to a statement provided by the ruling political party, United Russia, Medvedev thanked the leader of Zimbabwe for his balanced approach to the Ukrainian crisis and the recent referendums in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR respectively), as well as in the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions.
"A decision to include these regions into Russia was made based upon the will of local residents, and that will is permanent. We would never allow anyone to tear away the territories in question and [we] will resort to using all available means in order to protect everyone living there," Medvedev told Mnangagwa.
In response, Mnangagwa "confirmed Harare's unchanged approach to the discussion of the issue of Ukraine at international platforms despite unprecedented pressure from the outside."
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 after getting the green light from both houses of the Russian parliament: the State Duma and the Federation Council.