He took the stage alongside the three other candidates, clearly – and unsurprisingly – defeated in the presidential elections which, with more than 87 percent of the votes, earned him his fifth term at the head of the Federation. Vladimir Putin celebrated his re-election from Moscow's Red Square as part of celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of the annexation of Crimea. “Russia will advance alongside the new regions,” the Russian leader chanted in front of tens of thousands of people. Ria Novosti“The journey of the inhabitants of Ukrainian Donbass to their homeland turned out to be more difficult and tragic than that of Crimea, but we nevertheless succeeded.” Two years after the start of the war of aggression in Ukraine, which the Kremlin defines as a “special military operation”, Putin also demands the “liberation” of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. Although Western chancelleries, led by the United States and the European Union, denounced the fact that the vote in the country was “neither free nor fair” and that it was not a ” democratic election,” Putin thanked the street for its trust and for the turnout was 74 percent, reiterating the intention to “pursue the goals that we have set for ourselves.” That is, the continuation of the war in Ukraine. During the event, the head of the Crimean administration also spoke via video conference with Red Square. Singers, actors and exceptional guests performed and participated on stage, coming from the town of Avdiivka, in the Ukrainian Donbass, conquered last month by Moscow troops. Among them, chess player Sergei Karjakin and artist Alexander Sklyar. Then there was the speech by Putin, who sang the national anthem from the stage with the three defeated presidential candidates.
Read also:
