Eastern Ukraine to Hold Elections in November
Leaders of the rebel-held territory in eastern Ukraine announced Tuesday that they will hold early elections on November 2.
Donetsk’s head rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko announced the decision during a press briefing after rebel forces declared that they had withdrawn their heavy artillery, in accordance with the Minsk Memorandum agreed with the Ukrainian government as part of the peace talks underway.
Soon after the announcement, the rebel leader in Lugansk, Alexei Karyakin, announced his region will also be holding elections on the same date.
The decision comes as both parties are steadily advancing towards a peace agreement, after recently agreeing to establish a buffer zone of 15 kilometers from both their positions.
“We have withdrawn artillery but only in those areas where the Ukrainian regular units have done the same,” said Zakharchenko, explaining the advancements being made.
The “special status” law approved by the Ukrainian Parliament calls on elections for the eastern regions for December 7 and it is unclear whether Kyiv will cooperate with the earlier poll. Ukraine is holding parliamentary elections in the last week of October.
“We do not have an election legislation yet, but we do hope to draft and adopt it by that date,” Donetsk’s rebel leader Andrey Purgin told ITAR-TASS news agency.