WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration denounced as illegal a planned weekend referendum by pro-Russian insurgents pushing for autonomy and independence for portions of eastern Ukraine. Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday the referendum set for Sunday would be "bogus" and not recognized by the West.
Last month Moscow supported an independence referendum in the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, which led to its annexation by Russia. Leaders of the anti-government movement say they plan to hold a referendum on autonomy in the areas of Donetsk and Luhansk, although no preparations for the vote have yet been seen.
"We flatly reject this illegal effort to further divide Ukraine," Kerry told reporters after meeting at the State Department with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton. "It's pursuit will create even more problems in the effort to try to de-escalate the situation."
He added: "This is really the Crimea playbook all over again, and no civilized nation is going to recognize the results of such a bogus effort."
Although Russia has de facto control over Crimea, few nations recognize the move. The United States and Europe have hit Russia with sanctions over the annexation and Moscow's continued destabilizing actions in east Ukraine.
Meanwhile, both Kerry and Ashton lambasted Russia for failing to abide by an agreement to de-escalate tensions in the east and threatened that any move by Moscow to annex additional parts of Ukraine would be met by additional sanctions.