MOSCOW—Russian leaders have been quick to welcome the outcome of the referendums that pave the way for occupied regions of Ukraine to be incorporated in the Russian Federation, escalating the conflict with Kyiv and Western governments, which have dismissed the votes as a sham.
Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the State Duma, wrote on Telegram Wednesday that the outcome would “save millions of people from genocide,” after results released Tuesday evening claimed to show that Russian-controlled Luhansk and areas of Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia overwhelmingly supported becoming part of Russia.
