Separatists in eastern Ukraine have proclaimed a new state on the territories they control. More than 10,000 people have died…
(Photo: AFP)
Separatists in eastern Ukraine have proclaimed a new state on the territories they control.
More than 10,000 people have died in fighting after Russia-backed rebels took control of parts of Ukraine's industrial heartland in April 2014.
Ukraine signed a cease-fire deal with the separatists in 2015 which also provided for a gradual return of the areas into Kiev's fold while giving some autonomy to the areas. The agreement was never fully implemented.
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The separatist Donetsk News Agency today quoted separatist leader Alexander Zakharchenko as saying that the rebels in Donetsk and Luhansk would form a state called Malorossiya.
Zakharchenko said they are drawing up a constitution that would be put up to a popular vote later. There was no immediate comment from Russia, which has been supporting the rebels.
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