So-called Luhansk People's Republic postpones local elections
The head of the so-called Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), Igor Plotnitsky, has announced the decision to postpone the local elections in the occupied territories of the Luhansk region. The elections were to be held on July 24 and have been postponed to November 6, reports the Luhansk separatist websites.
The date of the local elections has been repeatedly postponed by the Luhansk and Donetsk separatists.
Recently, a representative of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), Denis Pushilin, said that the local elections in the territories controlled by the DPR and LPR separatists are unlikely to be held until the end of the year because it is hard “to find compromise.” Moreover, the DPR said that separatists may unilaterally set a date for local elections if the law on local elections in the Donbas is not approved by Kiev.
According to several agreements reached as a result of the negotiations in Minsk in 2014–2015, known as the ‘Minsk Agreements,’ local elections in the occupied territories of the Donbas must be held only in accordance with Ukrainian legislation and with the participation of international observers.
Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of supporting separatists in the Donbas and also demand that Moscow fulfill the Minsk Agreements; however, Russia denies the accusations and states that they are only a “guarantor” of the implementation of the Minsk Agreements.