Turnout reported off the charts.
LUGANSK, Ukraine (PNN) - May 11, 2014 - The most significant geopolitical event of the day is the east Ukraine independence referendum taking place in various cities across the region, less than two months after the Crimean case study which saw the region split away from Ukraine and join Russia despite the fervent warnings by Kiev and the West that the result of the election would not be accepted by anyone. As it turned out then, it only needed to be accepted by Russia, which promptly took over the Black Sea territory.
Today's vote is a carbon copy of what happened in Crimea, with the locals almost certain to vote for independence from Kiev, followed by another vote that annexes east Ukraine to Russia, which may be held as soon as May 18, promptly followed by the adoption of the ruble as the regional currency.
All while the West, in a desperate example of futility, once again does nothing but merely warns of more sanctions and claims this referendum was also illegal. The same West that had no problem with a violent coup in Kiev three months ago despite a signed agreement by Western leaders that saw the existing government in power until late 2014, and which now sternly refuses to recognize what, at least superficially, is a democratic referendum.
