The city of Kherson is planning to hold a referendum on joining Russia, despite the ongoing war and hostilities in Ukraine. The deputy head of Kherson’s military-civilian administration, Kirill Stremousov, said: “So, we want to say that no matter what you do [speaking to Kiev]: criminal responsibility, intimidation, information terror, there will still be a referendum in the Kherson region that will clearly define the region as part of the Russian Federation,” he said in a video posted to his Telegram channel on Tuesday.
This announcement comes as Western media are reporting on a military offensive by the Kiev government to retake Kherson from Russian control. BBC reports that Serhiy Khlan, an advisor to Kherson’s Ukrainian government, told Ukrainian television the region would “definitely be liberated by September.”
