The Ukrainian foreign ministry Tuesday denounced the upcoming parliamentary elections in the self-proclaimed "people's republics" in eastern regions, calling them "illegitimate."
"Any independent voting organised by the so-called 'Donetsk People's Republic' and 'Lugansk People's Republic' on the territory of Ukraine will undermine the peace process in Donbass," Xinhua quoted foreign ministry spokesman Eugene Perebiynis as saying
The spokesman stressed the vote will be inconsistent with a ceasefire agreement reached Sep 5 in Belarusian capital Minsk and will not be recognised by the international community.
He considered the statements made earlier by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on legitimacy of the polls as "destructive and provocative."
Lavrov Monday told the Russian "Izvestia" daily newspaper that Moscow will recognise the results of the polls in Ukraine's self-proclaimed "people's republics" scheduled for Sunday.
The leaders of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic" and "Lugansk People's Republic" planned to hold elections to their Supreme Councils Nov 2. The polls will also choose heads of the two self-proclaimed republics.