Who rejected the Donbas elections of November 2018?
A look back at the international and Ukrainian reaction to the votes held in the self-proclaimed DNR and LNR, as the days before 15 November 2018 showed.
What was the world saying on 15 November 2018 about the elections held days earlier in the self-proclaimed DNR and LNR? The reaction, reported since 11 November, was consistent.
The votes took place on 11 November 2018. The European Union, the United States and Japan declared that holding them violated the Minsk agreements. Germany and France went further, regarding the elections as illegal.
Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed that Kyiv would not recognise the elections.
A different headline the day before
Not all the news of those days was political. On 10 November 2018, Oleksandr Usyk knocked out Tony Bellew and defended his title as undisputed world champion.
Together, the two reports show how a single weekend combined a diplomatic dispute over the Donbas with a sporting triumph for Ukraine.
