From Andrew Roth in the Moscow bureau of "The New York Times":
From RFE/RL's News Desk:
Self-proclaimed authorities in rebel-held sections of eastern Ukraine say prominent pro-Russian separatist figures have won elections denounced by the West and dismissed by President Petro Poroshenko as a "farce."
Separatist election officials said that Aleksandr Zakharchenko was elected to head the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and that Igor Plotnitsky won about 64 percent of the vote the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic, according to a full count of ballots cast on November 2.
Critics of the separatists said Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky faced no real opposition in the votes, which were held in defiance of Kyiv and the West but portrayed by Russia as a reflection of "the will of the people" in rebel-controlled portions of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini called the elections "illegal and illegitimate" and an "obstacle to peace" in eastern Ukraine.
Here is today's situation map of eastern Ukraine by the National Security and Defense Council:
A news flash from Reuters:
GERMAN GOVT SPOKESMAN SAYS CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS IN UKRAINE RULE OUT PREMATURE LIFTING OF SANCTIONS, IF SITUATION WORSES MAY NEED TO THINK OF FURTHER SANCTIONS
More from Reuters:
GERMAN GOV'T SPOKESMAN SAYS IT IS INCOMPREHENSIBLE THAT OFFICIAL RUSSIAN VOICES SHOULD RECOGNISE SEPARATIST ELECTIONS IN UKRAINE
From RFE/RL's latest news story on the vote:
"Kyiv should put up with the fact that the Donbas is no longer part of Ukraine," said Roman Lyagin, a separatist election official in Donetsk, using the term to describe an industrial section of eastern Ukraine that partially coincides with the territory held by pro-Russian rebels.
"Whether they acknowledge the expression of our will or refuse to recognize it, that is Kyiv's business. We have decided it all for ourselves," he said at a news conference after declaring Zakharchenko the victor.
Read the full story here.