Russia is introducing its own currency, media and Internet services in the occupied parts of Ukraine, in particular in southern Kherson.
Ukraine says Russia may plan to hold a referendum in the city to see if Kherson wants to create a pro-Russian “people’s republic,” but such a vote would be illegal and fictitious.
Why did Russia concentrate on Kherson?
Russian troops occupied Kherson in early March, a week after the invasion of Ukraine.
It was the first big city they captured.
Before the invasion, it was home to 290,000 people. But, according to the former mayor, about 40% of Kherson residents have left the city since then.
If Russia seeks to seize southern Ukraine and establish a land route to Crimea, Kherson at the mouth of the Dnieper on the Black Sea coast will be key, according to the British Ministry of Defense.
What has Russia changed in Kherson?
Russian forces have appointed a “new Kherson administration” because Mayor Igor Kolikhayev “did not cooperate” with Russian forces, Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti reported.
Access to Ukrainian TV channels has been blocked, and Internet providers have been replaced by Russian ones.
Kherson residents were urged to listen to news from pro-Russian radio stations.
Ukraine says Russia’s goal is to “make its false propaganda an unalterable source of information.”
Photo by Reuters
In Kherson, the Russian military is dispersing people who went to a peaceful rally
The occupying authorities stated that the region would “move into the ruble zone” on May 1.
Residents of Kherson told BBC News that people began to pay pensions in rubles.
But many are trying to challenge Russian forces by exchanging rubles for Ukrainian hryvnias.
Is Russia planning a referendum?
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky warned residents that Russia intends to hold a “so-called referendum” in the Kherson region to secede from Ukraine and transform it into a “people’s republic.”
He advised people not to provide the Russian authorities with any personal data, such as passport numbers, as they could be used to falsify voting results.
The British Defense Ministry said in an April intelligence report that the referendum would be a way for Russia to justify its occupation of Ukraine.
But Kolikhayev said it would be illegal because Kherson officially remains part of Ukraine.
How has Russia changed lives in the regions it has cut off from Ukraine?
Russia’s treatment of Kherson was the same as that of Crimea, which it annexed in 2014 following a referendum declared invalid by the UN General Assembly.
The Russians built a bridge between Crimea and southern Russia, brought in weapons, introduced the ruble, and gradually abandoned the hryvnia. And pro-Russian media now dominate the peninsula.
But the situation in Kherson is even closer to the situation in two regions of eastern Ukraine seized by pro-Russian forces shortly after the annexation of Crimea.
Puppet leaders created the so-called people’s republics in Luhansk and Donetsk regions, where they also introduced the ruble and issued Russian passports to the population.
There, Russia pays pensions and state salaries, and children are taught in Russian schools.
Photo by Reuters
On March 16, 2014, a so-called referendum was held in Crimea, and two days later a “Treaty on the Admission of Crimea to Russia” was signed in Moscow.
There are rumors that Russia plans to hold referendums in both regions on their accession to Russia.
However, Ukraine has made it clear that all fake votes will be considered invalid.
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