Two separatist-controlled regions of eastern Ukraine announced the winners of leadership elections on Monday that were dismissed by Kiev and its international allies as a sham exercise engineered by Russia to install puppet regimes.
The polls took place on Sunday in the shadow of a conflict between Ukraine and Russian-backed rebels that has killed more than 10,000 people since 2014 and poisoned relations between the two neighbours.
The Donetsk region’s acting head Denis Pushilin, whose predecessor was killed in an explosion in August, was confirmed as leader with 61 percent of the vote while the acting chief of Luhansk region, Leonid Pasechnik, also won with 68 percent.
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